CytoReason, an Israeli company that uses artificial intelligence (AI) in creating disease models for drug discovery and development, has announced a partnership with Japanese pharma services firm Summit Pharmaceuticals International. Together, the two will provide one of the country’s top pharmaceutical firms with AI-based technology to help advance drug development.
According to the collaborators, CytoReason’s AI platform will combine its disease model with clinical data provided by the pharmaceutical company, to help advance understanding of how the drug behaves on a molecular level, compared to similar treatments currently on the market.
David Harel, CEO and co-founder of CytoReason, provided details on the collaboration with Outsourcing-Pharma, and what lies ahead.
OSP: Please share a short description of CytoReason—who you are, what you do, and any specific accomplishments you might like to point out.
DH: CytoReason's computational model of the human body simulates human disease on a cellular level and makes human trials more focused and accurate. With CytoReason's proprietary database and AI-led platform, pharma and biotech companies make data-driven decisions in a fraction of the time and cost.
To date, six of the world's top ten pharma companies use CytoReason's technology to power their drug programs.
OSP: Could you please share how CytoReason and Summit Pharmaceuticals connected—have you partnered with them in the past?
DH: CytoReason is constantly working to expand its presence globally. With one of the largest pharmaceutical markets in the world and companies known for their impeccable due diligence processes, we are delighted to receive Japan's stamp of approval.
SPI has vast experience working with the Japanese pharma market, and an extensive network of relationships in the industry. This is the first major deal that our partnership brings to fruition. We trust there will be many more.
OSP: What sets CytoReason apart from other companies operating in this space?
DH: CytoReason is a tech company, while most companies in the pharma AI space are biotech companies. CytoReason develops computational disease models that feed on a growing repository of public and proprietary clinical data. Our platform gives different people in the organization - biologists, bioinformaticians, program directors - one place to manage their drug programs and to compare them across patients, diseases, and other drugs in the market.
OSP: Similarly, what stands out about Summit Pharmaceuticals among pharma firms?
DH: Summit Pharmaceuticals, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Sumitomo Corporation, serves as the bridge between the Japanese pharma ecosystem (which consists of tech companies and drug makers) and the global pharma ecosystem. Among other things, SPI leads the introduction of advanced AI technologies into the Japanese market.
OSP: Does the collaboration have any short- or long-term goals in your work that you could share with us?
DH: Our longstanding partnership with SPI provides us with an excellent opportunity to work with other pharma companies in Japan. There’s no better partner than SPI to introduce our cutting-edge technology into the Japanese market.
OSP: Are there any specific conditions or therapeutic areas you’ve got in your sights?
DH: We focus on both immune-mediated and immuno-oncology diseases.