Pharmaceutical Bio Association Actively Supports AI Drug Development... Education Platform Also Progressing Smoothly

On the 16th, Kim Woo-yeon, head of the AI New Drug Development Support Center at the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, is presenting at the '2nd AI New Drug Development Expert Advisory Committee' held at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. (Photo by Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association)

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] The AI Drug Development Support Center operated by the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association is successfully progressing with its AI drug development expert education platform LAIDD2.0 (Lectures on AI-driven Drug Discovery V2.0).

On the 17th, the Pharma Bio Association AI Center announced that it held the ‘2nd AI Drug Development Expert Advisory Committee’ on the 16th at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. The AI Center launched the AI Drug Development Advisory Committee in May, composed of 14 experts from industry, academia, and research sectors. At this meeting, a report on the AI Center’s 2022 activities and a free discussion on key issues such as AI drug development education were conducted.

LAIDD2.0, which expanded and reorganized the LAIDD platform operated since last year and started service in September, provides educational content across various fields including AI, bio, chemistry, drug development, and clinical studies. The number of educational courses increased from 33 to 51, and the number of professional instructors expanded from 30 to 41.

According to the center, education has been provided to AI developers, drug development researchers, job seekers, and university students, resulting in 2,602 members and 251 graduates as of the 15th. The ‘Field-centered AI Drug Development Collaborative Education (PharmCoLab)’ program, targeting those needing practical AI drug development training, also educated 74 people, bringing the total number of trainees for LAIDD2.0 and PharmCoLab to 325. These participants are diverse, including undergraduates, master’s and doctoral students, and employees, receiving customized online and on-site education tailored to their levels.

Based on these achievements, the AI Center plans to continuously strengthen LAIDD2.0’s educational content to accelerate the training of practical AI drug development personnel. To this end, the committee discussed measures such as allowing students to undertake projects similar to real AI drug development sites with mentor support, issuing certificates and job competency certifications, linking these to employment, and providing additional points for current employees. The AI Center will collect the committee’s opinions and reflect them in future projects.

Additionally, the current status of the AI drug development information portal ‘KAICD,’ the ‘AI Drug Development Council’ composed of 25 AI drug development companies, the ‘AI Drug Development Workshop’ hosted by industry, hospitals, and government, and the ‘1st New Drug Development AI Platform Technology Briefing’ connecting pharmaceutical and bio companies with AI drug development firms were introduced as part of open innovation efforts. In the subsequent free discussion, various opinions were exchanged on utilizing medical data autonomously managed by medical institutions and patients, and on activating educational programs through practical training courses for medical and pharmacy students.

Kim Wooyeon, head of the AI Center, said, “Through operating online and offline education platforms and active exchanges among AI drug development experts, we are creating an AI drug development ecosystem in the domestic pharmaceutical and bio industry. The center will continue to lead the activation of AI drug development through professional workforce training and open innovation strategies.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.