An AI supercomputer and discovering next-gen brain disorder treatments, with Tarek Samad

Gefion is Denmark’s first AI supercomputer, named after a goddess in Danish mythology. It is operated by the Danish Centre for AI Innovation (DCAI), a company established with funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, the world’s wealthiest charitable foundation, as well as the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Tarek Samad, Lundbeck’s senior vice president and head of research, for a conversation on AI – specifically, Lundbeck’s agreement with the DCAI to run and operate Gefion – and accelerating drug discovery and development within the neurological and psychiatric field. You can listen to episode 236 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

Illumina innovative sequencing and array technologies are fuelling groundbreaking advancements in life sciences research, translational and consumer genomics, and molecular diagnostics. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Markus Vossman, Germany general manager at Illumina, about innovative genomic applications and projects in the region. Vossman discusses the genomics landscape, as well as next-generation sequencing (or NGS), and the Model Project, a large-scale national pilot project aiming to evaluate the utility of genomic sequencing for patients with advanced cancer and rare diseases. You can listen to episode 235 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

The FDA recently announced that it will begin offering faster drug reviews to certain medicines, reducing the drug review process from approximately ten months to one or two months. This news follows a series of rapid changes from the FDA since the Trump administration took office. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Dr Amy Bucher, chief behavioural officer at Lirio, a healthcare personalization platform helping insurers, health systems, and pharmacies deliver precision nudges to move patients into action. Bucher discusses the risks of the declining trust in healthcare institutions from a behavioural science perspective, as well as how regulatory changes, such as fast-tracking drug approvals as seen with the FDA lately, can impact patient perception. You can listen to episode 234 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

In a new pharmaphorum podcast, guest Patrick Leung – chief technology officer at Faro Health – discusses how AI can transform clinical trials. The conversation touches upon how large language models (or LLMs) can be gotten into production in regulated spaces – and why generic models won’t cut it in this domain – as well as the role of real-world data in quantifying and reducing patient burden. You can listen to episode 233 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

The Women in AI Healthcare event series - hosted by Real Chemistry in collaboration with Pharma Brands – brings together dynamic female leaders to discuss the transformative role of artificial intelligence in life sciences. It is also a call to action: to ensure women are not only present, but pivotal in shaping the future of AI in healthcare. In a new pharmaphorum podcast focused on the important and timely subject of women in AI, web editor Nicole Raleigh spoke with: Kate Eversole, event director at Pharma Brands; Celine Parmentier, EVP, head of global med comms at Real Chemistry; and Emma Slade, head of applied AI at Tangram Therapeutics. The guests discuss their own work with AI, the risk of training AI models predominantly on male data, and how, within life sciences, women are already shaping, challenging, and advocating for AI. The conversation also touches upon the possible next greatest impacts of AI in the sector, and the need to keep the ‘human in the loop’, as well as the possible negative impacts if AI is relied upon too much. You can listen to episode 232 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.   Resources mentioned within the conversation are as below: Kotek, H., Dockum, R., & Sun, C. (2023). Gender Bias and Stereotypes in Large Language Models. arXiv:2304.02485. UN Women & UNESCO (2020). I'd Blush If I Could: Closing Gender Divides in Digital Skills Through Education. Tatman, R. (2017). Gender and dialect bias in YouTube’s automatic captions. Criado-Perez, C. (2019). Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men. King, M. (2020). The Fix: Overcome the Invisible Barriers That Are Holding Women Back at Work.   You can register to be a part of the women in AI community here: https://www.pharmabrands.ca/womeninai   Information on the survey being run by Dr Michelle Penelope King, on AI and workplace motivation, can be found here: https://lnkd.in/eCg87_7w

AI’s growing influence in pharma is transforming traditional drug discovery timelines. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Dr Alan Roth, CEO of Oxford Drug Design, about the use of AI to accelerate discovery of new treatments for cancer, infectious diseases, and cystic fibrosis. Roth discusses combining deep enzyme biology expertise with GenAI and targeting leucyl-tRNA synthetase. You can listen to episode 231 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

AI and computational small molecule drug discovery approaches are helping to realise the potential of targeted protein degradation (TPD) in molecular glue development. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Benedict Cross, Chief Technology Officer at PhoreMost, a company that’s specialises in next-gen TPD and which is progressing a pipeline of degrader therapeutics within oncology and inflammation. Cross discusses TPD market growth, PhoreMost’s high-throughput GlueSEEKER platform, and the future horizon of TPD, of molecular glues going forward. You can listen to episode 230 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

Blood is a rich source for biomarker development, and CTCs are increasingly proving themselves to be valuable in cancer prognosis and treatment prediction. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Craig Eagle, Chief Medical Officer of Guardant Health, a precision medicine company that offers blood tests to inform cancer treatment decisions. Eagle discusses Guardant’s participation in the National Cancer Institute’s Vanguard Study, as well as screening, recurrence monitoring, and therapy selection focused on conquering cancer with data, with examples especially in the colorectal cancer space. You can listen to episode 229 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

There is a world of difference between the NHS from its beginnings in 1948 and the NHS as it is now. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh speaks with Dr Ruth Chambers OBE, co-director of Raparu Consult CIC and a visiting professor at Staffordshire University, for a conversation on her book, “Our NHS for better or worse?”. Chambers discusses her personal experience as a GP in the NHS, including the discrimination she faced as a woman, and analyses the notion of ‘burden’ in respect of the National Health Service, as well as differences in mental health care now and her proposed ‘Prescription for Change’. You can listen to episode 228 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.

CB1 inhibition is an approach that taps into the body’s natural metabolism to burn fat while preserving muscle for more sustainable weight loss. Unlike GLP-1s, which suppress appetite, CB1 inhibition activates fat-burning processes. In a new pharmaphorum podcast, web editor Nicole Raleigh spoke with Punit Dhillon, CEO of Skye Bioscience, for a conversation on CB1 inhibitor antibodies in the obesity space. Dhillon discusses GLP-1 weight-loss drugs like semaglutide having taken the world by storm, despite the concerns over side effects, as well as what CB1s could mean for the obesity and weight-loss field. You can listen to episode 227 of the pharmaphorum podcast in the player below, download the episode to your computer, or find it - and subscribe to the rest of the series – on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Podbean, and pretty much wherever else you download your other podcasts from.