HelixFold3
Baidu's AlphaFold3 reproduction - code non-commercial, commercial use only via the paid server.
Developer: Baidu (PaddleHelix team)
Overview
- Developer
- Baidu (PaddleHelix team)
- Category
- Structure and complex prediction
- Commercial rights
- Restricted
- Commercial cost
- Paid service
- Compute
- Heavy GPU
- Open weights
- Yes
- Last verified
Capabilities
Predicts all-atom biomolecular complexes (proteins, ligands, nucleic acids, ions). Input: a JSON entity list with optional MSAs; output: ranked all-atom complex structures with confidence scores. Built on PaddlePaddle, so it needs that stack rather than PyTorch.
When to use it
Mostly of academic or comparative interest. If you need an AlphaFold3-class predictor you can self-host commercially, use Boltz-2, Chai-1 or Protenix instead; HelixFold3 would mean paying for Baidu's server.
Input / Output
- Input
- a JSON entity list with optional MSAs
- Output
- ranked all-atom complex structures with confidence scores
Compute
Heavy GPU. Other tools with this compute profile →
Commercial Licensing
Commercial rights — may a company use it?
RestrictedLicence as writtenCustom 'Terms of Use Agreement' - non-commercial use only for code and parameters
The helixfold3 LICENSE states the open-source code and derivative works are 'only available for non-commercial use by individuals and non-commercial organizations... or for journalism', and the README repeats that code and model parameters are non-commercial only. The same README says the free version of the HelixFold3 server is non-commercial while 'the paid version offers unrestricted usage, enabling commercial applications' - so commercial use exists, but only as a paid hosted service, not as a self-hosted model.
Some commercial use is possible, but a component, dependency or condition needs a paid licence or carries obligations.
Commercial cost — is commercial use free of charge?
Paid API or hosted service onlySelf-hosting commercially is not permitted at any price. Commercial use runs through the paid tier of the hosted HelixFold3 server; the README states the free tier is non-commercial and the paid tier is unrestricted, but does not publish the price.
Price and rights are separate: this panel is about money, the panel above is about permission.
- Commercial OK ≠ Free of charge. A tool can be licensed for company use and still need a paid licence for a dependency (BindCraft → PyRosetta).
- Free download ≠ Commercially licensed. Weights you can download at no cost may still forbid commercial use (AlphaFold 3).
- Unverified ≠ Commercially permitted. If no published statement settles it, treat it as unknown — not as a yes.
- Every component counts. Each status considers the code licence, the model-weights terms, required dependencies and any terms of use.
Model Weights
Open weights. A separate weights licence is Not documented as its own field; where weights carry different terms from the code, that is stated in the licence explanation above.
Dependencies
Not documented as a separate field. Any dependency that affects commercial use (for example a paid PyRosetta licence) is named in the licence and cost explanations above.
Official References
- Official site / repo
- github.com/PaddlePaddle/PaddleHelix/tree/dev/apps/protein_folding/helixfold3
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Get told when a licence changes
Licences on these tools do change. One short email when a status flips or a tool is added. No other use of your address.