The Indian pharmaceutical industry, long known as the “pharmacy of the world” due to its generic drug production, is beginning a technological transformation. As reported by The Economic Times, major market players Sun Pharma and Glenmark have announced the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) tools into their R&D processes to reduce time-to-market for new drugs and cut development costs.
A Change of Course: From Copying to Innovation
The pivot towards digital technologies is occurring against the backdrop of a global shift in the strategy of Indian pharmaceutical giants: companies are striving to move away from the exclusive production of generics (copies) towards creating their own innovative molecules.
For Sun Pharma and Glenmark, the share of revenue from new research programs in their global revenue has already begun to grow. For instance, at Sun Pharma last year, 20% of revenue (which amounted to over 52,000 crore rupees, or ~$6.2 billion) came specifically from innovative and new research products.
Sun Pharma’s Strategy: Accelerating Clinical Trials
Dilip Shanghvi, Executive Chairman of Sun Pharma, speaking at the ET Pharma summit, noted that the company is seriously evaluating the capabilities of AI to strengthen its research potential.
The main goal is to optimize the most expensive and time-consuming stages of development:
“Because the technology and capability exist, we need to see how we can use it to help us recruit patients for phase 3 studies faster, conclude those studies faster, and submit the filings faster. That itself is a huge, like one-and-a-half-year, piece, which I see significant value in.”
— Dilip Shanghvi, Executive Chairman, Sun Pharma
Glenmark’s Strategy: “Small Molecules” Take Priority
Glenn Saldanha, Chairman of Glenmark Pharma, sees the application of AI somewhat differently. In his opinion, in the short term, artificial intelligence will be most effective in the discovery of small molecules (traditional chemical drugs).
“I think for biologics it will take a little longer, but AI will play a big role right across the value chain, from clinical trials to modeling and drug design.”
— Glenn Saldanha, Chairman, Glenmark Pharma
He also added that AI already provides the opportunity to shorten the time required to analyze phase 3 clinical trial data and accelerate regulatory submissions.
Confirmation of the success of Glenmark’s R&D strategy was a major deal by its subsidiary IGI with American giant AbbVie. In July of last year, the rights to the drug ISB2001 (for the treatment of multiple myeloma) were licensed for an estimated $1.9 billion, of which the company received $700 million upfront.
Global Changes
Indian companies are following a global trend. According to Precedence Research, global pharmaceutical manufacturers invested $6.93 billion in AI for drug discovery last year. This figure is expected to grow to $16.5 billion by 2034.
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