The Promise and Potential of AI in Life Sciences | Opinion

California is a national leader in innovation. This position is no more apparent than in the life sciences, where the state plays an outsized role driving research and development (R&D) that contributes billions to California’s economy and transforms patients’ lives. With the integration of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), California has an exciting opportunity to accelerate this impact—combining its leadership in technology and life sciences to improve access to cures, lower health care costs, and continue to bolster the state’s economic health.

This week, more than 18,000 leaders in the biotech industry are gathering in San Diego at the BIO International Convention where the subject of AI is front and center. Experts from across the field are exploring the pivotal role AI is playing in revolutionizing drug discovery and discuss the benefits, challenges, and regulatory implications of AI adoption in life sciences.

California, which is home to 35 of the world’s top 50 AI companies today, represents the most significant intersection of life sciences and AI innovation in the world. This positions California as a leading voice, taking responsibility to set the proper tone for AI regulation, including policies that impact health care.

AI has the potential to be a transformative and revolutionary force in health care—improving patient outcomes, enhancing operational efficiency, advancing medical research, and driving health equity. In the life sciences, AI is changing the game for drug discovery, minimizing bias in clinical trials, and identifying diseases in earlier stages. In MedTech, AI is being applied across practices to improve early diagnosis, robotic surgery, diagnostic imaging, and clinical decision support. The promise of this technology is unparalleled, which is why its deployment—and the regulatory environment that will help shape that deployment—is so critical.

Right now, as state policymakers consider a series of AI bills that will determine how the technology is used in California, they must give special consideration to the technology’s unique application in health care and the vast federal regulations, current and future, for AI systems in the life sciences. It is important to note the fact that health care AI has been regulated by the FDA for decades, therefore it is prudent for California not to duplicate or contradict federal regulations, which would impede advancements and deployment of game-changing tools in our health care system.

The promise of AI—especially in the life sciences—necessitates a targeted, intentional approach toward regulation that is grounded in ensuring patient safety, while promoting innovation. Responsible AI deployment will be hinged on ethical frameworks that address bias, transparency, accountability, and fairness in AI systems. With those guardrails in place, AI has tremendous potential to positively impact the lives of everyone through the exciting R&D taking place in the life sciences sector.

As experts continue to explore the pivotal role of AI in the life sciences and health care, and as legislators work toward regulating the evolving technology, we must ensure our industry—and the state—can continue to leverage its potential to speed-up the development of cutting-edge cures. These advancements could change the lives of millions of patients, while also making health care more accessible by utilizing AI tools to achieve significant efficiencies throughout the entire health care system. California continues to blaze the trail and it is so fitting that the global life sciences industry will be gathering in San Diego this month to discuss the promise and potential of artificial intelligence in life sciences.

Mike Guerra serves as president and chief executive officer of California Life Sciences (CLS), the state’s most impactful and influential trade association advocating for California’s life sciences industry. Representing more than 1,200 member companies, he strives to advance California’s leadership as the world-leading life sciences ecosystem by advocating for effective national, state, and local public policies, supporting emerging innovation, and fostering an inclusive workforce and talent pipeline.

The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.