Center for Life Sciences Innovation
ITIF’s Center for Life Sciences Innovation advocates for accelerating biopharmaceutical innovation by recognizing that the public and private sectors both have essential roles to play. The Center’s mission is to study and advance the many technology, economic, and policy factors underpinning successful life sciences innovation—from how new technologies like artificial intelligence, genomics, and gene editing are powering the next generation of biomedical innovation to the economics of life sciences innovation, including the role of IP and incentives therein; international competitiveness in life sciences innovation; and foremost the optimal set of public policies, at home and abroad, to spur greater levels of much-needed biopharmaceutical innovation. (Read more.)
- Call for proposals: ITIF will offer grants for new research that helps to inform the relationship between the expectation of a financial reward for an approved new drug or new indication in the United States and the (1) investment in research and development for new and existing drugs, and/or (2) the approval of new drugs and new indications. Learn more about how to submit a proposal.
- Featured series: Innovate4Health is a joint project of ITIF and the University of Akron IP Center (UAIP), spotlighting innovators from around the world who have leveraged IP systems to bring their life-saving innovations to market.
- Stay up to date by signing up for ITIF’s weekly email and checking the box to get information about “Life Sciences.”
Featured Publications
LATAM Health Champions, 2024
Innovation plays a critical role in improving public health and in overcoming global health challenges. The call for LATAM Health Champions, which ran from February 5 to March 5, 2024, received more than 60 applications proposing innovative health solutions to a wide range of health challenges. Here, the top 20 are highlighted.
Not Again: Why the United States Can’t Afford to Lose Its Biopharma Industry
America’s leadership in advanced-technology industries can never be taken for granted, as evidenced by its losses in telecommunications equipment, semiconductors, televisions, solar panels, and chemicals. Policymakers must recognize what went wrong in those cases to avoid a similar industrial decline in the biopharmaceutical industry.
Events
March 5, 2024
Preserving U.S. Leadership in Biopharmaceutical Innovation
Watch now for an expert panel discussion surrounding the ITIF report examining why the United States lost its lead in other advanced technology industries, and how policymakers can avoid repeating the same mistakes in the biopharmaceutical sector.
April 4, 2023
Lessons From the Rise and Fall of Japan’s Life-Sciences Innovation Ecosystem
Tune in for an expert panel discussion examining where Japan faltered in this sector, what it must do to restore its life-sciences innovation leadership and competitiveness, why that would be in the best interests of both Japan and the United States—and what America must do to avoid following in Japan’s footsteps.
March 24, 2023
Preserving a Virtuous Cycle: The Economics of Biopharmaceutical Innovation
Watch the release event of a new report that examines the dynamics that underpin the economics of biopharmaceutical innovation and how to maintain a supportive environment that keeps the United States in the lead of life-sciences innovation.
March 29, 2022
How Using March-in Rights Would Threaten America’s Research Universities
ITIF hosted a panel discussion with leading experts on innovation policy, technology transfer, and business, who spoke to the practical implications of exercising federal “march-in” rights and why it would be a grave and ill-timed mistake for the U.S. health, competitiveness, and research landscape.
April 29, 2021
How Intellectual Property Has Played a Pivotal Role in the Global COVID-19 Response
ITIF hosted an expert panel discussion about the report and the vital role IP has played throughout the pandemic.
Vice President, Global Innovation Policy, and Director, Center for Life Sciences Innovation
Information Technology and Innovation Foundation
Read BioCain Brothers & Company Professor of Healthcare Management in the Faculty of Business
Columbia University Graduate School of Business
Read BioMore From the Center
October 4, 2024|Blogs
Draghi Wants to Have His Drug Cake and Eat It Too
Mario Draghi's 2024 report addresses the EU's biopharmaceutical decline, citing challenges like underfunded research, fragmented pricing, and competition from the U.S. and China. It recommends reforms but underplays the impact of EU drug price controls on innovation.
October 3, 2024|Publications
Call for Grant Proposals on Drug Development and the Expectation of a Financial Return: Developing Better Evidence to Inform Biopharmaceutical Policy and Regulation
The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation will offer grants for new research that helps to inform the relationship between the expectation of a financial reward for an approved new drug or new indication in the United States and the (1) investment in research and development for new and existing drugs, and/or (2) the approval of new drugs and new indications.
September 19, 2024|Blogs
Beyond What Meets the Eye: How SELENA+ is Revolutionizing the Detection of Eye Diseases
Selena is transforming eye care by leveraging AI to detect diseases like diabetic retinopathy with unprecedented accuracy, helping to diagnose issues early and prevent blindness, thus improving patient outcomes and offering more access globally.
August 28, 2024|Blogs
Alzheimer’s Disease Next Game Changer: TauRx Pharmaceutical’s Novel Tau Aggregation Inhibitor
TauRx is revolutionizing Alzheimer's treatment with a novel drug that targets toxic brain proteins, offering fresh hope in the fight against this devastating disease.
August 16, 2024|Blogs
Innovative Cure For All: How CurASeal’s Plant-Based Technology Advances Bleeding Control and Wound Healing
InCurA is revolutionizing MENA's medical landscape with AI-optimized, locally produced hemostatic solutions like CurASeal, bridging the gap between innovation and accessibility while reducing reliance on global imports.
July 30, 2024|Reports & Briefings
How Innovative Is China in Biotechnology?
China used to be considered a laggard in biotech. But with a comprehensive national strategy and extensive resources now supporting the industry, it is becoming more innovative. In fact, several indicators suggest it is narrowing the innovation gap with global leaders in the West.
June 7, 2024|Blogs
Mexico, Maize, and Food Sovereignty
Mexico's newly elected president, Claudia Sheinbaum, can reverse President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's anti-innovation policies toward genetically modified maize, and improve the lives of small farmers across Mexico.