SUE TABBITT
Senior writer, Sarum Life Sciences, United Kingdom

Abstract

2024 saw continued scientific breakthrough and regulatory transformation, and a growing focus on AI and cost containment. Here, those actively supporting the life sciences sector share their reflections on the year just passed, and their hopes and predictions for 12 months ahead.

What theme(s) dominated the life sciences landscape in 2024?

Cost containment and risk aversion have been a key theme over the past 12 months. William Hind, founder of Alpharmaxim attributes this to ongoing global conflicts, the economy and in particular the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that was passed in the US.

“Across the sector, the result of having price containment enforced in the US has been a metaphorical sharp intake of breath and a knee-jerk reaction to save costs across the whole sector –from reducing clinical trials, to travel, to the level of communications spend,” Hind says. He adds, “The other big theme dominating the sector has been AI – folk need to work out better how to use it and how it can add value to their activities.”

Agnes Cwienczek, director of product management at ArisGlobal, says, “For me, 2024 was the year when the EU regulatory ecosystem finally started to interconnect its various initiatives and data; when the eCTD 4.0 standard began to mature beyond draft specifications; and when global health data interoperability gained the required attention and impor ...