AI in drug development drives breakthrough MSD–Mayo Clinic collaboration

Merck & Co. (MSD) and Mayo Clinic have launched a research and development collaboration to integrate AI, advanced analytics, and multimodal clinical data into drug discovery and precision medicine. The partnership is designed to improve target identification, strengthen early development decisions, and increase the probability of success in clinical programmes.

The collaboration combines Mayo Clinic’s Platform architecture and clinical-genomic datasets with MSD’s virtual cell technologies. By integrating biological modelling capabilities with real-world clinical data, the partners aim to generate deeper insights into disease mechanisms and therapeutic targets.

MSD will gain access to de-identified datasets, including medical imaging, laboratory results, molecular data, electronic health records, clinical notes, registries, and biorepositories. These multimodal data sources will be used to train and validate AI models, refine biomarker discovery, and support more data-driven research strategies.

Through the Mayo Clinic Platform Orchestrate programme, the collaboration seeks to scale AI-enabled tools across research and development workflows. The platform-based approach is intended to facilitate secure data access, streamline analytics, and accelerate the translation of insights into clinical applications.

The initial focus areas include dermatology (atopic dermatitis), neurology (multiple sclerosis), and gastroenterology (inflammatory bowel disease). The broader objective is to advance precision medicine by combining high-quality clinical data, AI-driven analysis, and pharmaceutical R&D expertise to deliver more effective therapies to patients.

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