“Traditionally, the period from ‘last patient, last visit’ to the first filing could take a year and a half. With AI, we can now shorten that timeframe by several months,” said John Dawber, managing director for global business services, during a Reuters summit on Friday.
The Danish company is leveraging AI in several key areas of the launch process, such as preparing regulatory documents, analyzing safety data, and enhancing commercial analytics for both approved medications and those undergoing clinical trials.
This initiative is indicative of a larger trend within the industry, as pharmaceutical companies increasingly rely on AI to expedite research, optimize workflows, and reduce expenses.
Projections indicate that machine learning could cut early-stage development timelines in half over the next three to five years.
Novo is aiming for even greater improvements, with Dawber noting that rapid advancements in AI tools, now widely implemented in its operations in India, could expedite timelines even more.
INDIA TAKES CENTRE STAGE
Novo’s Bengaluru facility is becoming more pivotal in global drug launches, managing a rising share of preparatory tasks, including the rollout of its recently launched oral obesity treatment in the United States.
“A significant portion of the work for any market (launch) is conducted out of the India centre. There’s likely not a medication introduced anywhere globally that hasn’t been influenced by Bangalore,” Dawber remarked.
Tasks ranging from clinical data analysis to regulatory submissions and commercial strategizing are increasingly performed in India.
Despite this expanding role, Dawber anticipates a “conservative” approach to hiring amidst a broader restructuring.
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He expects Novo’s global business services division to finish the year with approximately 4,000 employees. Previously, he mentioned that he anticipated the unit would reach 5,000 employees by 2025.
Dawber conceded that this target is now “too ambitious,” even when looking ahead to 2027, and emphasized that Novo is focusing on recruiting suitable individuals for the right positions as it expands its AI-focused operations, rather than merely increasing headcount rapidly.
