Pharmaceutical companies at the forefront of adopting AI across the entire drug lifecycle
Artificial intelligence applied to medical research, top technology trend in 2024 according to the World Economic Forum.
Farmaindustria.es
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a true revolution that has reached all sectors, but the pharmaceutical sector is at the forefront, as corroborated by the World Economic Forum’s annual report on The 10 Emerging Technologies to Address Global Challenges. This list places at the top of the list for 2024 advances in the use of AI in scientific discovery and especially in the fight against disease, through the advancement of diagnostics or the discovery of new treatments.
Although pharmaceutical companies have been applying AI for some time, it is in recent times that its implementation has accelerated thanks to machine learning or generative AI. Moreover, its use has been extended to the entire drug value chain, from R&D with the identification of new molecules and therapeutic targets, to the possibility of providing solutions in fields that have been particularly complex until now, such as rare diseases. Artificial intelligence is also already very useful for optimising the design of clinical trials, manufacturing and process control, automating data for pharmacovigilance and improving environmental efficiency. There is also great potential in improving processes and interactions with the National Health System.
The transformation that the pharmaceutical sector is set to undergo thanks to artificial intelligence has a clear objective: to accelerate the development of innovative therapies, improve patient care and preserve patient safety. For this reason, the Digital Innovation departments of pharmaceutical companies advocate an ethical and humanistic approach to all AI-related initiatives, ensuring that the technology is used for the benefit of society and healthcare at all stages of the pharmaceutical value chain.
‘Artificial intelligence is an essential tool to address global challenges in healthcare and innovative pharmaceutical companies are leaders in the implementation of advanced technologies such as AI, contributing to the development of our industry and to Spain’s leadership as an innovative country,’ says Juan Yermo, CEO of Farmaindustria.
In this context, the pharmaceutical industry is one of the four sectors identified by Europe as strategic to ensure the economic security and leadership of the region, thanks to the establishment of strategic autonomy based on innovation and drug production platforms.
The aim of pharmaceutical companies is to maximise the opportunities that AI opens up so that the sector remains a key ally in the development of increasingly efficient healthcare systems and, ultimately, in improving the health and well-being of the population.
