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Life sciences must become cloud-first to seize the science of tomorrow

If the power of the life sciences industry to innovate and collaborate were ever in doubt, the speed
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If the power of the life sciences industry to innovate and collaborate were ever in doubt, the speed at which vaccines for COVID-19 were discovered, developed, trialled, approved and manufactured have confirmed just how dynamic the industry can be.

And that dynamism, innovation and collaboration are all qualities that the industry must continue to nurture as it faces the challenge of developing new medicines, treatments and services for the future. Behind all of these are massive and growing volumes of data that life sciences companies generate, manage and analyse to secure breakthroughs. And those volumes will only increase. One estimate[1] suggests that by 2025 more than 60 million patients will have their genome sequenced. That presents a huge opportunity for research to develop more precise and personalised medicines. But managing the volumes of data that will be necessary to turn that opportunity into reality will be a major challenge.

Cloud for data-fuelled business growth

The cloud is the obvious route to enabling all the data capabilities to achieve this. But to date the industry has not embraced cloud with quite the same enthusiasm as their counterparts in other industries. And that’s likely to be for a number of reasons. But one of the main blocks is the focus on cost as a driver for cloud adoption. The industry has tended to view cloud as a way to lower the total cost of ownership of the IT estate by consolidating applications and data centres into a cloud environment. Cost is of course a driver but for those focused on revenue growth, that case alone has not been compelling. Additionally, in a risk averse industry, driven by understandable concerns with regards to data security and regulation, many life sciences businesses have been reluctant to make more aggressive moves to cloud.

Accenture research shows that two-thirds of life sciences companies report that they have not seen the results they expected from their investment in cloud. At the same time, only a few have adopted a ‘cloud-first’ strategy. This is where the cloud is widely adopted beyond the IT function. It’s extended across the whole organisation to drive new ways of data-enabled working for everyone. So rather than being a cost play, cloud is seen as a vital enabler of business.

“Two-thirds of life sciences companies report that they have not seen the results they expected from their investment in cloud. At the same time, only a few have adopted a ‘cloud-first’ strategy”

From face-to-face to FaceTime

It’s a change in focus that was brought home for many by the required response to the pandemic and the sudden need to shift large numbers of people to remote working. For many companies within the life sciences industry and beyond, transformation that was previously planned to take place over three or four years had to be implemented within a matter of weeks. But for life sciences in particular, an industry historically heavily reliant on face-to-face sales interactions, the change has been revolutionary. Sixty-one percent of health care professionals said they communicate with pharma sales reps more now than before COVID-19 and 87% want either all virtual or a mix of virtual and in-person meetings even after the pandemic ends.[2]

So as the focus shifts from cost to value, we are now seeing cloud as a CEO agenda item. They are beginning to appreciate its potential to enable new, more effective and more profitable ways of doing business.

Building the data-powered life sciences business  

Ultimately, of course, it’s the data enablement that cloud creates which is the most compelling proposition for the industry. At every stage from discovery to distribution, enabling all processes with the right data in the right place and at the right time is essential. What’s more, the huge transactional power and data throughput required to, for example, use analytics and artificial intelligence for discovery and research of new scientific therapies, are available from the cloud on an as-needed basis. The cloud enables companies to innovate faster and at greater scale than they can working within the constraints of their traditional technology landscape.

The imperative to innovate also applies to the move into new services and therapies such as digital therapeutics and telehealth. These offer game-changing outcomes for both patients and providers. But the ability to make them successful hinges on remote connectivity as well as the management of vast datasets to provide real-time analysis and insights. Here again, the cloud offers the computational power required.

Empowering the ecosystem through collaboration

The life sciences industry has evolved at pace through collaboration that has been fuelled by the search for a vaccine. We’ve seen companies that usually compete with each other coming together with regulators to share data and collaborate in pursuit of COVID-19 vaccines. As a result, the industry is increasingly seeing the value of ecosystem partnerships and the role that cloud plays in realising this value. Cloud can support reliably, securely and transparently sharing data between the many different players in the life sciences value chain, spanning research institutes to regulators.

Data governance

Given the sensitivity of the data that life sciences companies manage, there are some reservations about the extent to which the cloud offers the appropriate level of security. But this is an issue that has been addressed by other highly regulated and risk-averse industries. Banking, for example, has embraced the cloud while paying particular attention to the security of individuals’ financial data.

Cloud platforms have invested heavily in security, to the extent that the major providers offer security standards that are likely to be more advanced than most individual companies can claim. And while there will be specific concerns about the most sensitive data repositories (such as genomic), many of the data security concerns can be addressed through effective data governance, addressing where data resides and who has access to it. In fact, the large public cloud providers have created specialist offerings for healthcare and life sciences that are built to meet the needs of specific regulatory jurisdictions.

Accelerating the journey

The cloud offers the life sciences industry a powerful platform for innovation and growth. It can enable a more resilient enterprise and culture that companies will need to address the challenges and opportunities of a fast-changing, unpredictable world. Accelerating their journey to cloud is essential. To get there faster, leaders need to think about the following steps:

High on the CEO agenda: Cloud must be a CEO priority as a key enabler of growth. That means aligning the whole enterprise to ensure that cloud delivers its ROI.  Migration must be more than an IT-driven exercise: every part of the business should be involved. To achieve that requires cross-functional teams and partnerships that harness the cloud for business reinvention using new digital technologies. Data must be front and centre to create new insights into everything from new discoveries to supporting patients, with digital and analytics serving as the core to developing and delivering new treatments and supporting services.

Shared success: Making sure that everyone sees the benefits of moving to cloud requires common metrics for success (and responsibility for realising them). One way to do this is by setting up Cloud Centres of Excellence (CoE). By bringing together a small team of cross-functional experts, a CoE can point the way to cloud adoption and value realisation, and provide central governance and direction so that the rest of the business can learn from and emulate their success.

A tech-savvy business, everywhere: But as well as focused expertise in a centre of excellence, the benefits of cloud also must be accessible to as much of the organisation as possible. That means investing in developing technology skills and know-how as broadly as possible as well as evolving the culture of the organisation to be data driven and technology enabled. Building up the entire organisation’s ‘technology quotient’ (TQ) is vital for creating an understanding of the opportunities this presents to employees as well as the enterprise-wide transformation for which cloud is a key enabler.

About the author

Pervaise Kahn is Accenture’s Strategy and Consulting Lead for Life Sciences in the UK and Ireland. He has spent 25 years in the health and life sciences industries focused on growing biotechs and mid to large sized global pharmaceutical companies. His current work focuses on advising life sciences companies on business and technology strategies to fuel growth. He is passionate about people development, coaching, leadership skills and inclusion & diversity in the workplace. Pervaise holds a PhD in pharmaceutical chemistry and is a member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Industrial Advisory Group.

References

[1] https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/203554v1

[2] Reinventing Relevance: New Models for Pharma Engagement with Healthcare Providers in a COVID-19 World, Accenture Healthcare Provider Survey May 2020

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Analyst reviews Apple stock price target amid challenges

Here’s what could happen to Apple shares next.

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March 12, 2024

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They said it was bound to happen.

It was Jan. 11, 2024 when software giant Microsoft  (MSFT)  briefly passed Apple  (AAPL)  as the most valuable company in the world.

Microsoft's stock closed 0.5% higher, giving it a market valuation of $2.859 trillion. 

It rose as much as 2% during the session and the company was briefly worth $2.903 trillion. Apple closed 0.3% lower, giving the company a market capitalization of $2.886 trillion. 

"It was inevitable that Microsoft would overtake Apple since Microsoft is growing faster and has more to benefit from the generative AI revolution," D.A. Davidson analyst Gil Luria said at the time, according to Reuters.

The two tech titans have jostled for top spot over the years and Microsoft was ahead at last check, with a market cap of $3.085 trillion, compared with Apple's value of $2.684 trillion.

Analysts noted that Apple had been dealing with weakening demand, including for the iPhone, the company’s main source of revenue. 

Demand in China, a major market, has slumped as the country's economy makes a slow recovery from the pandemic and competition from Huawei.

Sales in China of Apple's iPhone fell by 24% in the first six weeks of 2024 compared with a year earlier, according to research firm Counterpoint, as the company contended with stiff competition from a resurgent Huawei "while getting squeezed in the middle on aggressive pricing from the likes of OPPO, vivo and Xiaomi," said senior Analyst Mengmeng Zhang.

“Although the iPhone 15 is a great device, it has no significant upgrades from the previous version, so consumers feel fine holding on to the older-generation iPhones for now," he said.

A man scrolling through Netflix on an Apple iPad Pro. Photo by Phil Barker/Future Publishing via Getty Images.

Future Publishing/Getty Images

Big plans for China

Counterpoint said that the first six weeks of 2023 saw abnormally high numbers with significant unit sales being deferred from December 2022 due to production issues.

Apple is planning to open its eighth store in Shanghai – and its 47th across China – on March 21.

Related: Tech News Now: OpenAI says Musk contract 'never existed', Xiaomi's EV, and more

The company also plans to expand its research centre in Shanghai to support all of its product lines and open a new lab in southern tech hub Shenzhen later this year, according to the South China Morning Post.

Meanwhile, over in Europe, Apple announced changes to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which went into effect last week, Reuters reported on March 12.

Beginning this spring, software developers operating in Europe will be able to distribute apps to EU customers directly from their own websites instead of through the App Store.

"To reflect the DMA’s changes, users in the EU can install apps from alternative app marketplaces in iOS 17.4 and later," Apple said on its website, referring to the software platform that runs iPhones and iPads. 

"Users will be able to download an alternative marketplace app from the marketplace developer’s website," the company said.

Apple has also said it will appeal a $2 billion EU antitrust fine for thwarting competition from Spotify  (SPOT)  and other music streaming rivals via restrictions on the App Store.

The company's shares have suffered amid all this upheaval, but some analysts still see good things in Apple's future.

Bank of America Securities confirmed its positive stance on Apple, maintaining a buy rating with a steady price target of $225, according to Investing.com. 

The firm's analysis highlighted Apple's pricing strategy evolution since the introduction of the first iPhone in 2007, with initial prices set at $499 for the 4GB model and $599 for the 8GB model.

BofA said that Apple has consistently launched new iPhone models, including the Pro/Pro Max versions, to target the premium market. 

Analyst says Apple selloff 'overdone'

Concurrently, prices for previous models are typically reduced by about $100 with each new release. 

This strategy, coupled with installment plans from Apple and carriers, has contributed to the iPhone's installed base reaching a record 1.2 billion in 2023, the firm said.

More Tech Stocks:

Apple has effectively shifted its sales mix toward higher-value units despite experiencing slower unit sales, BofA said.

This trend is expected to persist and could help mitigate potential unit sales weaknesses, particularly in China. 

BofA also noted Apple's dominance in the high-end market, maintaining a market share of over 90% in the $1,000 and above price band for the past three years.

The firm also cited the anticipation of a multi-year iPhone cycle propelled by next-generation AI technology, robust services growth, and the potential for margin expansion.

On Monday, Evercore ISI analysts said they believed that the sell-off in the iPhone maker’s shares may be “overdone.”

The firm said that investors' growing preference for AI-focused stocks like Nvidia  (NVDA)  has led to a reallocation of funds away from Apple. 

In addition, Evercore said concerns over weakening demand in China, where Apple may be losing market share in the smartphone segment, have affected investor sentiment.

And then ongoing regulatory issues continue to have an impact on investor confidence in the world's second-biggest company.

“We think the sell-off is rather overdone, while we suspect there is strong valuation support at current levels to down 10%, there are three distinct drivers that could unlock upside on the stock from here – a) Cap allocation, b) AI inferencing, and c) Risk-off/defensive shift," the firm said in a research note.

Related: Veteran fund manager picks favorite stocks for 2024

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Major typhoid fever surveillance study in sub-Saharan Africa indicates need for the introduction of typhoid conjugate vaccines in endemic countries

There is a high burden of typhoid fever in sub-Saharan African countries, according to a new study published today in The Lancet Global Health. This high…

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There is a high burden of typhoid fever in sub-Saharan African countries, according to a new study published today in The Lancet Global Health. This high burden combined with the threat of typhoid strains resistant to antibiotic treatment calls for stronger prevention strategies, including the use and implementation of typhoid conjugate vaccines (TCVs) in endemic settings along with improvements in access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene.

Credit: IVI

There is a high burden of typhoid fever in sub-Saharan African countries, according to a new study published today in The Lancet Global Health. This high burden combined with the threat of typhoid strains resistant to antibiotic treatment calls for stronger prevention strategies, including the use and implementation of typhoid conjugate vaccines (TCVs) in endemic settings along with improvements in access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene.

 

The findings from this 4-year study, the Severe Typhoid in Africa (SETA) program, offers new typhoid fever burden estimates from six countries: Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, and Nigeria, with four countries recording more than 100 cases for every 100,000 person-years of observation, which is considered a high burden. The highest incidence of typhoid was found in DRC with 315 cases per 100,000 people while children between 2-14 years of age were shown to be at highest risk across all 25 study sites.

 

There are an estimated 12.5 to 16.3 million cases of typhoid every year with 140,000 deaths. However, with generic symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and abdominal pain, and the need for blood culture sampling to make a definitive diagnosis, it is difficult for governments to capture the true burden of typhoid in their countries.

 

“Our goal through SETA was to address these gaps in typhoid disease burden data,” said lead author Dr. Florian Marks, Deputy Director General of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). “Our estimates indicate that introduction of TCV in endemic settings would go to lengths in protecting communities, especially school-aged children, against this potentially deadly—but preventable—disease.”

 

In addition to disease incidence, this study also showed that the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Salmonella Typhi, the bacteria that causes typhoid fever, has led to more reliance beyond the traditional first line of antibiotic treatment. If left untreated, severe cases of the disease can lead to intestinal perforation and even death. This suggests that prevention through vaccination may play a critical role in not only protecting against typhoid fever but reducing the spread of drug-resistant strains of the bacteria.

 

There are two TCVs prequalified by the World Health Organization (WHO) and available through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. In February 2024, IVI and SK bioscience announced that a third TCV, SKYTyphoid™, also achieved WHO PQ, paving the way for public procurement and increasing the global supply.

 

Alongside the SETA disease burden study, IVI has been working with colleagues in three African countries to show the real-world impact of TCV vaccination. These studies include a cluster-randomized trial in Agogo, Ghana and two effectiveness studies following mass vaccination in Kisantu, DRC and Imerintsiatosika, Madagascar.

 

Dr. Birkneh Tilahun Tadesse, Associate Director General at IVI and Head of the Real-World Evidence Department, explains, “Through these vaccine effectiveness studies, we aim to show the full public health value of TCV in settings that are directly impacted by a high burden of typhoid fever.” He adds, “Our final objective of course is to eliminate typhoid or to at least reduce the burden to low incidence levels, and that’s what we are attempting in Fiji with an island-wide vaccination campaign.”

 

As more countries in typhoid endemic countries, namely in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, consider TCV in national immunization programs, these data will help inform evidence-based policy decisions around typhoid prevention and control.

 

###

 

About the International Vaccine Institute (IVI)
The International Vaccine Institute (IVI) is a non-profit international organization established in 1997 at the initiative of the United Nations Development Programme with a mission to discover, develop, and deliver safe, effective, and affordable vaccines for global health.

IVI’s current portfolio includes vaccines at all stages of pre-clinical and clinical development for infectious diseases that disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries, such as cholera, typhoid, chikungunya, shigella, salmonella, schistosomiasis, hepatitis E, HPV, COVID-19, and more. IVI developed the world’s first low-cost oral cholera vaccine, pre-qualified by the World Health Organization (WHO) and developed a new-generation typhoid conjugate vaccine that is recently pre-qualified by WHO.

IVI is headquartered in Seoul, Republic of Korea with a Europe Regional Office in Sweden, a Country Office in Austria, and Collaborating Centers in Ghana, Ethiopia, and Madagascar. 39 countries and the WHO are members of IVI, and the governments of the Republic of Korea, Sweden, India, Finland, and Thailand provide state funding. For more information, please visit https://www.ivi.int.

 

CONTACT

Aerie Em, Global Communications & Advocacy Manager
+82 2 881 1386 | aerie.em@ivi.int

Journal

The Lancet Global Health

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Incidence of typhoid fever in Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, and Nigeria (the Severe Typhoid in Africa programme): a population-based study

Article Publication Date

12-Mar-2024

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US Spent More Than Double What It Collected In February, As 2024 Deficit Is Second Highest Ever… And Debt Explodes

US Spent More Than Double What It Collected In February, As 2024 Deficit Is Second Highest Ever… And Debt Explodes

Earlier today, CNBC’s…

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US Spent More Than Double What It Collected In February, As 2024 Deficit Is Second Highest Ever... And Debt Explodes

Earlier today, CNBC's Brian Sullivan took a horse dose of Red Pills when, about six months after our readers, he learned that the US is issuing $1 trillion in debt every 100 days, which prompted him to rage tweet, (or rageX, not sure what the proper term is here) the following:

We’ve added 60% to national debt since 2018. Germany - a country with major economic woes - added ‘just’ 32%.   

Maybe it will never matter.   Maybe MMT is real.   Maybe we just cancel or inflate it out. Maybe career real estate borrowers or career politicians aren’t the answer.

I have no idea.  Only time will tell.   But it’s going to be fascinating to watch it play out.

He is right: it will be fascinating, and the latest budget deficit data simply confirmed that the day of reckoning will come very soon, certainly sooner than the two years that One River's Eric Peters predicted this weekend for the coming "US debt sustainability crisis."

According to the US Treasury, in February, the US collected $271 billion in various tax receipts, and spent $567 billion, more than double what it collected.

The two charts below show the divergence in US tax receipts which have flatlined (on a trailing 6M basis) since the covid pandemic in 2020 (with occasional stimmy-driven surges)...

... and spending which is about 50% higher compared to where it was in 2020.

The end result is that in February, the budget deficit rose to $296.3 billion, up 12.9% from a year prior, and the second highest February deficit on record.

And the punchline: on a cumulative basis, the budget deficit in fiscal 2024 which began on October 1, 2023 is now $828 billion, the second largest cumulative deficit through February on record, surpassed only by the peak covid year of 2021.

But wait there's more: because in a world where the US is spending more than twice what it is collecting, the endgame is clear: debt collapse, and while it won't be tomorrow, or the week after, it is coming... and it's also why the US is now selling $1 trillion in debt every 100 days just to keep operating (and absorbing all those millions of illegal immigrants who will keep voting democrat to preserve the socialist system of the US, so beloved by the Soros clan).

And it gets even worse, because we are now in the ponzi finance stage of the Minsky cycle, with total interest on the debt annualizing well above $1 trillion, and rising every day

... having already surpassed total US defense spending and soon to surpass total health spending and, finally all social security spending, the largest spending category of all, which means that US debt will now rise exponentially higher until the inevitable moment when the US dollar loses its reserve status and it all comes crashing down.

We conclude with another observation by CNBC's Brian Sullivan, who quotes an email by a DC strategist...

.. which lays out the proposed Biden budget as follows:

The budget deficit will growth another $16 TRILLION over next 10 years. Thats *with* the proposed massive tax hikes.

Without them the deficit will grow $19 trillion.

That's why you will hear the "deficit is being reduced by $3 trillion" over the decade.

No family budget or business could exist with this kind of math.

Of course, in the long run, neither can the US... and since neither party will ever cut the spending which everyone by now is so addicted to, the best anyone can do is start planning for the endgame.

Tyler Durden Tue, 03/12/2024 - 18:40

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