Harnessing the potential of AI in commercial life sciences

Artificial intelligence (AI) has gained significant momentum in life sciences over the past few years. With the promise of making data more consumable and actionable, and providing deep insights into individual customer behaviour, AI technology has the potential to change the life sciences commercial model as we know it. But where do we start and how do we sustain success?

In their report ‘Life Science CIOs Can Accelerate Commercial Effectiveness With New Applications of Artificial Intelligence’, Gartner notes that: “The designation ‘artificial intelligence’ is overused to describe myriad technologies, adding confusion and apprehension when life science CIOs are considering which AI investments to make.”

While companies are making significant investments in AI, the technology is evolving rapidly, and there are many bold claims about what value these systems can bring. Interpretations of how exactly AI can help life sciences commercial teams can differ between, or even within, companies.

One of the most common misconceptions is the idea of AI as an all-seeing, all-knowing programme – one that can answer questions it wasn’t asked. Although AI technology can answer a lot, teams must first have a clear problem to solve and processes to test.

• Read the full article in pharmaphorum's Deep Dive digital magazine