Accelerating the Digital Revolution in Healthcare

This is an incredible moment in time for medicine. We’ve reached a tipping point in the convergence of biomedical and digital innovation.

More data was created in the last two years than the previous 5,000 years of human history. Computing power has expanded, and data architecture and quality has reached a place where we can extract meaningful insights to impact human health. Researchers and doctors have access to increasingly sophisticated forms of artificial intelligence and machine learning that have augmented their ability to decode disease. And a proliferation of mobile devices and sensors is increasing patient’s ability to gather and share information about their health.            

Yes, the adoption of technologies in the discovery and development of medicines comes with a lot of complex challenges. But that shouldn’t deter us from pursuing bold ideas. The exponential growth of data science and digital technologies is helping us unlock the mysteries of human biology like never before -- now is the time to hit the accelerator.

I believe one way to speed up our digital revolution is through stronger collaborations with emerging health tech innovators. Passionate startups and entrepreneurs are the vanguard of digital health. There are thousands of them working on health tech ideas around the world. I’m constantly being inspired by their ideas and agility. I just returned from the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco, which has quickly become an epicenter for investment in digital health. I was thrilled by the latest disruptive technologies emerging from startups.

By blending the fresh thinking and entrepreneurial energy of these startups with big companies’ global scale, regulatory experience and scientific expertise, I believe we can do more to take on society’s big healthcare challenges.

To advance our thinking and find the best ways to use these new technologies at scale, Novartis has been expanding our collaborations with startups, as well as established leaders in the tech industry. Last year we launched The Novartis Biome, a digital innovation lab and series of open innovation challenges, the HealthX World Series. They aim to better connect Novartis with health tech entrepreneurs and encourage development of new, scalable healthcare solutions.

We announced the winner of our second HealthX challenge, Multisensor Diagnostics, at J.P. Morgan Health last week. They are developing an innovative device to rapidly measure a range of health metrics through breath and saliva. Our Respiratory Development Unit – which sponsored the challenge – is now exploring partnering with Multisensor Diagnostics to develop a proof-of-concept study within the Novartis Biome.

Participating companies have access to state-of-the-art lab space and our proprietary data and expertise. They have the opportunity to run validation studies in clinical studies – something we know is difficult for tech startups to do, but is essential to test and scale up digital solutions. I visited our first innovation lab while I was in San Francisco and met some of the Novartis Biome participants, like Mekonos, who are developing potentially revolutionary new approaches to cell and gene therapy using nano-robotics.

Novartis, like many others, is also investing earlier to help seed, accelerate and scale promising digital health technologies. For example, we invested in Aktana, which provides AI-enabled insights to help companies deliver information to physicians, based on their needs. We’re partnering with Aktana to help us create a dynamic and simple ‘personal assistant’ for our sales representatives so their 100,000 daily interactions with doctors are more personalized and meaningful.

We also recently invested in StartUp Health, a global organization that works with entrepreneurs seeking breakthroughs in healthcare. We’ve been inspired by StartUp Health’s mission to solve 10 of the world’s major health challenges, including expanding access to care, reducing costs, and finding cures for cancer and other diseases. StartUp Health’s West Coast operation and our Novartis Biome innovation lab are now located together, helping us to work more closely together.

And we have collaborations with a number of more established digital pioneers. For example, we are working with Pear Therapeutics to develop prescription software applications that can treat opioid addiction, schizophrenia and multiple sclerosis. Our ReSET-O app for Opioid Abuse Disorder was cleared by the FDA in December, a first of its kind for this disease.

 It’s early days for the digital revolution in healthcare. We have so much to learn -- in terms of the technologies, as well as new and agile ways of working. By working closely with the tech industry, I believe we can challenge conventional thinking, truly reimagine medicine and help further “bend the curve of life” for billions of people around the world.

That’s a goal worth chasing.

You can learn more about the Novartis Biome here on Novartis.com.