Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning in Biopharmaceutical Engineering: A Woman's Perspective
I grew up a tomboy, but not your typical tomboy. I hated sports, was incredibly uncoordinated, and was afraid of the ball. I was your Asian-American scrawny tomboy. I LOVED video games and sci-fi. My parents always bought us the latest and greatest technology. I was there when Atari’s Pong was state of the art. I exchanged rolls of quarters for Sega Center tokens to play TRON. I filmed my cousins landing backside ollies on their skateboards in The Valley while wearing Stormtrooper helmets, using one of the first (and super heavy) VHS video cameras. I taught myself to code on the very first Macintosh 128K. And I painted a sick portrait of Billy Idol in 1987 on Apple’s first graphic editor, MacPaint.
So, it’s no surprise that I find myself fascinated by the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). As a founder of a biotech consulting firm, and now VP of Business Development of AVS Life Sciences, I can’t help but wonder where this technology is going to take us.
I recently attended a conference on how AI and ML can be utilized in improving the quality of manufacturing drug products. At this conference, I was among the less than 10% of the audience represented by women. It was reminiscent of 2003, when I started my own biotech validation company, where I was among less than 10% of the women-minority owned CQV firms in the Bay Area. Nonetheless, this AI conference was exciting and thought provoking. And as I digested all the presenter’s speeches, it made me wonder how women can play a significant role in the optimization of Quality GMP manufacturing of therapies through the use of AI and ML.
I listened to multiple case studies on how the integration of these technologies can lead to increased efficiency, improved quality control, and reduced costs in the production process. What I heard led me to feel that we are standing at the precipice of another technological revolution, one that is just in its infancy. And this time, women must not miss the boat once again. But, 21 years after starting my own consulting business, I was disheartened to see that women were showing up in AI and ML meetings at less than 10% representation.
With my firm’s merger and acquisition in 2024, I feel that I’ve finally found my voice, and this time I’m going to use it along with my experience, wisdom and maturity to encourage other women in biopharma to explore the next frontier of technology as it pertains to optimizing biological drug development and delivery.
Women can make a difference early in the implementation of AI and ML in biopharma by sharing our insights on ethical deployment of these technologies. By considering the social and environmental implications, women can ensure that their use is aligned with ethical principles and values. This must include addressing concerns around data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the impact of automation on the workforce.
By harnessing the power of these technologies, women can help to drive innovation, improve efficiency, and ultimately contribute to the development of life-saving medications for patients around the world. We need to ride this technological wave from the beginning while the window of opportunity is wide open. The future is now. This is the moment for women to gain a foothold in the development of this breakthrough technology, leveraging our emotional intelligence to ensure that AI and ML technologies mature to become useful tools in the biopharma industry.
But what do I know? I’m just a tomboy nerd who saved Princess Peach by conquering Super Mario Brothers in the summer of 1988, and who still loves playing Super Mario Cart with her teenage son today.