This Week in Healthtech:
AI Meets Big Pharma

Week Ending 05-18-18: What AI means to Big Pharma, drug discovery and research; Pfizer partners with XtalPi; AI pharma startup sees more funding

The Why, How and When of AI in the Pharmaceutical Industry

The latest from Forbes takes a look at the broken model plaguing pharma R&D. The solution: use AI to “adopt more efficient and automated processes, more data-driven decisions, and smarter analytics tools to increase R&D success.” While likely an uphill battle, Buvailo’s article illustrates possible adoption strategies pharma can implement to keep pace with technological innovation. Read more.

Pfizer Eyes AI-Powered Drug Discovery and Development Software

Pfizer has partnered with XtalPi, noting the pairing has the opportunity to “enhance [Pfizer’s] computational modeling capabilities.” The partnership will not only aid the pharma giant’s molecule drug discovery efforts, but Pfizer plans to make some of the molecular mechanics parameters its generates with public-domain compounds available to the academic community. Read more.

How Big Pharma is Using AI for Drug Discovery, Clinical Trials, and More

Big Pharma panelists addressed the future of AI at the World Medical Innovation Forum, specifically looking at how AI will impact drug discovery and research. Novartis president, Dr. Jay Bradner commented, “we are reimagining life science companies like ours as medicine companies powered by data and digital.” Read more.

AI Pharma Start-Up BenevolentAI Now Worth $2 Billion After $115 Million Funding Boost

BenevolentAI, a London-based startup, received another $115M in funding to help scale the company’s drug development and AI platform. BenevolentAI’s technology “deciphers the molecular process of disease and matches drug treatments to the most applicable patients.” The company also plans to use the platform to develop treatments for currently incurable diseases. Read more.

Drugmakers Are Down with AI, Experts Agree. They’re Just Not Sure What to Use It For

FiercePharma’s article covers Big Pharma’s most immediate concern: AI and how to use it. Drug makers are interested in AI opening new revenue streams, but the lack of education surrounding implementation will make innovation difficult. Read more.