Intelligent Clinical Trials: Using Generative AI to Fast-Track Therapeutic Innovations

Clinical development, the process of bringing new therapies to market, is slow, and the increasing complexity of trials is further extending timelines – taking up to 12 years for a new drug to reach patients. This white paper looks at the perennial challenge of efficiently shepherding experimental drugs through clinical trials.

The financial toll of clinical development is significant: developing a single drug now costs over $2.5 billion, with clinical trials consuming almost half of that investment. Yet, despite these massive costs, the system is not working: nearly 90% of clinical trials end in failure, often due to poor trial design, inadequate patient recruitment, and fragmented data systems. This inefficiency not only delays life-saving treatments but also inflates healthcare costs, leaving millions of patients waiting for therapies that could improve or even save their lives.

Generative AI (Gen AI) offers the opportunity to reverse this trend by helping clinical development teams design smarter trials and bring new efficiencies throughout the clinical trial life cycle. Drawing on interviews with leaders from the life sciences, technology, government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the paper explores Gen AI’s potential to revolutionize clinical development and break down existing barriers. It also examines how stakeholders can collaborate to overcome these challenges, and deliver new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.