John Baker
Managing Partner, Global Life Science Practice Leader
Unlocking value and automation through Artificial Intelligence (AI) is top of mind for business leaders today. As organizations across industries look to differentiate themselves and grow, technology leadership continues to be a key driver.
Continuing our latest trends and talent implications series, Artificial Intelligence Across Industries, we take an in-depth look into the life science sector as it relates to AI and the talent that organizations need to navigate an ever-evolving industry.
John Baker, Managing Partner, Global Life Science Practice Leader; Sal DiFranco, Managing Partner, Global Technology; and Patrick Haberland, Managing Partner, European Life Science Practice, explain how AI is impacting the life science industry today, where it’s going in the future, and what organizations need to be aware of in terms of talent implications.
How is AI impacting the life science industry today?
Critical life science businesses are always related to valid scientific studies, regulation, and finally, reimbursement. AI gives the opportunity to analyze medical data faster and with fewer errors. Therefore, AI has the ability to greatly impact diagnostics, from radiology to molecular pathology.
AI makes life sciences more dynamic because it delivers high speed and very little error when deployed correctly. It enables an affordable and scientifically proven approach to prevention by not only collecting data through smart devices but also providing crucial medical advice.
AI will and is already having an impact on many areas of life science, including:
- Drug Discovery: Bringing drugs to market faster and more cost-effectively.
- Medical Device and Drug Design: Analyzing best materials and accelerating prototypes via digital design, which reduces costs.
- Supply Chain: Predicting demand, managing inventory, and reducing waste.
- Disease Diagnosis: Analyzing substantial amounts of data from Electronic Medical Records, medical imaging, and more.
- Personalized Medicine: Pulling data and insights from genetics and biomarkers and tailoring treatment by predicting outcomes, reducing costs, and avoiding adverse reactions.
- Clinical Trials: Identifying the most appropriate patient populations through Machine Learning, including the use of Chatbots for customer support.
- Precision Medicine: Supporting precision medicine and enabling rapid precision medicine by helping physicians detect possible disease patterns and proposing treatments. AI supports physicians with companion medicine as IBM claimed it some time ago.
- Digital Twins: Utilizing digital twins of patients to support better individual treatment. A collective of many digital twins enables pharma to do research without the risk of harming real patients.
As life science companies evolve, so will new uses for AI, which will continue to reduce healthcare costs and improve patient outcomes. The future of life science companies’ success will be predicated on the utilization of AI in the areas mentioned above and those that have yet to be identified.
AI enables an affordable and scientifically proven approach to prevention by not only collecting data through smart devices but also providing crucial medical advice.
What do organizations need to be aware of in terms of talent implications?
In the life science industry, companies will need executives with expert knowledge of regulations, scientific data models, and how to create commitment with scientists, physicians, and patients. Data protection and storage will be the limiting factors for the use of AI in life science.
As life science is also a business, future talent must have a solid understanding of reimbursement to analyze if a product is viable and a scalable business case. In Europe, for example, every country has its own reimbursement, and sometimes, one country has more than one reimbursement system.
Overall, hiring to ensure AI methodologies are adopted, utilized, and developed will be critical to each company’s success. Failure to do so will cause those companies to fall behind their competitors.
Hiring to ensure AI methodologies are adopted, utilized, and developed will be critical to each company’s success.
Navigating a Complex Industry Armed with Forward-looking Leadership
From reducing healthcare costs and errors to improving patient outcomes, AI is making a significant impact on the life science industry. With the right leadership in place, life science companies will discover how to best utilize AI to their advantage as they build the future of the life science industry.
Reach out to discuss how AI is impacting your business and our recommendations for engaging today’s top technology and life science leaders.