Novo Nordisk and AWS Partner on AI-Driven Drug Discovery

Novo Nordisk selects Amazon Web Services for cloud infrastructure. The two companies aim to accelerate drug discovery and development processes using artificial intelligence and cloud technologies, reducing the time and resources needed to bring new treatment candidates to patients.

Global health company Novo Nordisk announced that it has selected Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its cloud provider. Under a long-term partnership, Novo Nordisk's scientific and therapeutic expertise in serious chronic diseases will be combined with AWS's cloud computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies.

The two companies aim to increase efficiency in drug discovery, clinical development, manufacturing and operational processes through artificial intelligence-enabled applications. One of the partnership's primary goals will be to shorten the time from the development of a targeted drug to its first application in humans.

Joint Innovation Center established in London
As part of the partnership, a Joint Innovation Center was established at Novo Nordisk's facility in King's Cross, London.

The center is planned to host collaborative work between Novo Nordisk's research and development teams and AWS engineers, artificial intelligence experts and applied scientists. The aim is to conduct scientific research, laboratory work, software development and data analytics in a more integrated manner during the drug discovery process.

With the new working model, molecular predictions generated by artificial intelligence models can be directly evaluated by researchers and engineers and transferred to laboratory experiments. Results obtained from physical laboratory testing are also planned to be fed back into artificial intelligence models, creating a continuous data and experiment cycle.

This approach is expected to reduce the time and resource requirements, particularly in the early stages of drug discovery.

AWS artificial intelligence technologies to be used in drug discovery
Under the partnership, Novo Nordisk will benefit from AWS's cloud infrastructure as well as artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies.

Prominent technologies include Amazon Bio Discovery. The platform enables researchers to access biological artificial intelligence models and supports the creation, visualization and evaluation of properties of potential therapeutic molecules. The goal is to accelerate iterations in the discovery process by connecting computer-aided drug design with physical laboratory work.

Another technology, Amazon Bedrock AgentCore, will be used for the creation, coordination and scaling of artificial intelligence agents. These artificial intelligence agents are planned to analyze enterprise data sources, execute multi-step workflows and work integrated with laboratory information management systems (LIMS).

Novo Nordisk also aims to manage its biological, genomic and operational data in a secure and scalable environment by leveraging AWS's global cloud infrastructure.

Artificial intelligence use to extend beyond researchers
The partnership is not planned to be limited to artificial intelligence and machine learning specialists. Novo Nordisk aims to enable the use of new technologies by research scientists, clinical research teams and employees working in commercial operations.

Under this scope, the company aims to deploy artificial intelligence-enabled tools across its global operations and strengthen data-driven decision-making processes.

Novo Nordisk plans to increase collaboration among global teams by leveraging AWS infrastructure across different business units, including research, manufacturing, supply chain and commercial operations.

Collaboration with Amazon ecosystem expands
Novo Nordisk's collaborations with the Amazon ecosystem are expanding. The company is conducting studies with various Amazon companies, including Amazon Pharmacy, Amazon Ads and Amazon One Medical, in the context of delivering healthcare services to patients and developing health solutions.

By integrating AWS's cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure into this ecosystem, Novo Nordisk aims to create a more integrated technology infrastructure in its scientific research and operational processes.

Novo Nordisk has more than 66,700 employees in approximately 80 countries.

"Artificial intelligence could transform our drug development approach"
Thilde Hummel Bøgebjerg, Senior Vice President responsible for Corporate IT and Quality at Novo Nordisk, stated that artificial intelligence could bring significant transformation to drug discovery and development processes.

Bøgebjerg noted that through the expanded partnership with AWS, an environment has been created where scientists, engineers and technology teams can work together and artificial intelligence applications can be scaled responsibly.

Dan Sheeran, Vice President and General Manager of AWS Health and Life Sciences, said that the work conducted with Novo Nordisk demonstrates the potential of combining artificial intelligence with life sciences expertise.

Sheeran noted that the partnership aims to develop artificial intelligence-enabled applications in research, clinical development, manufacturing and IT operations, accelerating Novo Nordisk's processes end-to-end.

Novo Nordisk and AWS aim through this partnership to enable broader use of artificial intelligence in life sciences and accelerate the discovery and development processes for new treatments.