Spontaneous innovations are being witnessed in the pharmaceutical industry. This is an industry that has in the past been characterized with slowness in adopting new technology, but as it can be seen, this is bound to change. Some of the trends being witnessed this 2021 include artificial intelligence, blockchain, and additive manufacturing. The industry is also witnessing increased inter-organizational collaborations as well as favorable regulations.

This article takes an in-depth look at some of the trends you should be on the lookout for.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

With the help of artificial intelligence and machine learning, drug discovery and development processes have been accelerated. Various startups are using these technologies when it comes to addressing pharma industry challenges. Such challenges include automating and optimizing manufacturing processes and designing reliable and efficient marketing and post-launch strategies. In the entire process of discovering and developing drugs, one crucial step is patient identification. AI makes this work easier as it simplifies the process of identifying eligibility criteria.

Flexible Production

Owing to the changes in market dynamics, the pharmaceutical industry is trying new ways to manufacture. For instance, it is exploring ways to manufacture small volumes for precision medicine. One of the factors that have led to the increased popularity of single-use technology is the increased productivity and reduced downtime. The technology eliminates complex steps such as cleaning and validation between different production stages. Besides, continuous manufacturing is associated with low energy requirements, minimum wastage, and increased productivity.

Precision Medicine

Because each patient is unique, medical professionals have to develop a unique treatment plan for each of them. With the ongoing advancements in data analysis and omic, new insights into the human body's response to drugs have been gained. The insights coupled with advanced manufacturing methods like additive manufacturing have paved the way for personalized medicine. Drug exposure models help determine the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetic properties of various drugs, thus helping in arriving at the best dosage depending on sex and age amongst other clinical parameters.

Blockchain

This ought to be one of the most significant technologies in the pharma industry from the production stage right to the distribution stage. Pharmaceutical industry stakeholders use the technology to safeguard sensitive data. Also, Blockchain is being used to solve the issue of sub-standard and counterfeit medicine that find their way into the pharma supply chain and cause the loss of innocent patients' lives.

Some other pharma system solutions you should expect to see this 2021 include curative therapies, digital therapeutics, and real-world data, among several others. The awaited evolution is finally here.