Enabling scientific leaders to make informed decisions in early R&D requires integrating complex data through advanced modeling and AI-driven tools. As the relationship between compounds and therapeutic outcomes grows increasingly intricate, leveraging high-quality experiments, datasets and scientific expertise enables proactive rather than reactive decision-making. The greatest opportunity in drug development today lies in adopting a rational and deliberate approach to molecule development, streamlining timelines and bringing life-saving treatments to patients faster. At Lonza, we recognize these challenges and have developed AI and model-based tools to enable route scouting along with advanced modeling of drug delivery and physiology. These offerings are designed to help our customers reduce their development timelines and improve overall process efficiency.
Q: What’s needed to empower scientific leaders to make informed pipeline decisions in early R&D?
A: Drug development has become more complex. There are many factors to consider and synthesizing that information into something actionable is key. Some might call it artificial intelligence, others machine learning, but at its core, it’s about using well-designed experiments and high-quality datasets to build models. These models help scientists make informed, proactive decisions instead of simply reacting to challenges as they arise.
Q: What’s the biggest opportunity in the discovery and development industry right now?
A: The biggest opportunity lies in developing molecules more rationally and deliberately, making the right decisions at the right moments. Doing so can significantly shorten development timelines, which means bringing products to market faster. That not only makes good business sense but also translates to improving patient outcomes sooner. Ultimately, the real value lies in saving lives more efficiently and effectively.
Q: What recent developments or service offerings at Lonza are helping customers to make smarter decisions faster?
A: On the drug substance side, we’ve launched a new AI-enabled route scouting service to help customers identify the most efficient pathway for synthesizing a molecule, leveraging Lonza’s extensive data and supply chain insights. This not only optimizes the synthetic process but also ensures reliable sourcing of components. We’ve also introduced the new Design2Optimize™ platform, a model-based solution that creates a "digital twin" of an API process to reduce experiments and accelerate development. When combined with AI-enabled route scouting, high-throughput experimentation, and our scientific expertise, this integrated approach enables faster, more informed decision-making.
On the drug product side, we’ve made significant investments in modeling tools for drug delivery and physiology. When paired with strategic in vitro characterization techniques, these tools can be applied early in development to assess absorption risks and evaluate whether enabled forms and formulations can overcome them. This approach helps avoid unnecessary testing of suboptimal formulations, saving both time and resources.
Overall, these innovations help our customers streamline development, reduce material use, and ultimately bring treatments to patients more quickly.