AstraZeneca is increasingly turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to improve how new medicines are discovered and developed, with the company saying the technology is helping scientists make better decisions and improve the odds of success.
Speaking at a recent industry event, AstraZeneca Chief Executive Officer Pascal Soriot said AI is changing the way pharmaceutical research is carried out. By processing huge volumes of data quickly, AI helps researchers spot promising drug candidates earlier and avoid spending time and money on projects that are unlikely to work.
Developing a new medicine is often a long and costly journey. It can take more than a decade and billions of dollars to bring a drug to market, and many candidates fail during clinical trials. Soriot said AI can help tackle these challenges by guiding researchers towards better choices from the start.
He stressed that AI is not replacing scientists. Instead, it acts as a powerful assistant, helping researchers analyse information faster and make more informed decisions. The goal is to combine human expertise with advanced technology to improve productivity across the company’s research programmes.
The pharmaceutical industry has been embracing AI at a rapid pace. Companies are using the technology to identify disease patterns, design new molecules, analyse clinical trial results and uncover potential treatments more efficiently than before.
AstraZeneca is among the major drugmakers investing heavily in AI-powered research tools. The company sees the technology as an important part of its strategy to speed up innovation and deliver better treatments to patients around the world.