Signal over noise: what will make AI stick in pharma R&D

AI is moving quickly from experimentation to practical adoption across life sciences. The opportunity is real, but so is the noise. Predictive AI, generative AI, agentic systems, AI co-scientists, foundation models, digital biomarkers and workflow automation are all competing for attention, investment and partnership dollars. For innovators and pharma R&D leaders, the key question is no longer whether AI will matter. It is which capabilities will become embedded in the way medicines are discovered and developed, and which will remain temporary hype.

Johnson & Johnson invites external innovators, investors, academic leaders and ecosystem partners to an afternoon discussion in Basel on what will make AI stick in pharma R&D. The program will examine where AI is already showing durable value, where expectations may be running ahead of evidence, and how external innovators can build capabilities that are differentiated, scalable and relevant to real R&D needs.

The discussion will focus especially on intelligent and agentic AI: systems that move beyond generating outputs toward supporting scientific reasoning, orchestrating workflows, planning experiments, analyzing results and helping teams move faster from data to insight. Rather than treating AI as a generic productivity layer, the program will ask where AI can become part of the operating model for drug discovery and development, from target identification and validation to biomarker discovery, endpoint development, therapeutic design, clinical development and regulatory workflows.

Basel provides a strong setting for this conversation. The activation is planned alongside BioTechX Europe, bringing together a large community of data, AI, genomics and pharma stakeholders already present in the city.

If you are working on AI, data science or digital health capabilities with potential to transform drug discovery and development, we invite you to join the conversation and connect with Johnson & Johnson leaders and the Basel life sciences innovation community.