The Future Of Pharma Lies In Gaming Technologies

By Abhishek Sinha

At first blush, the pharma and life sciences industries seem unlikely candidates for augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), virtual reality (VR), and extended reality (XR) technologies. Usually associated with the gaming industry and simulation experiences, these future- facing technologies may be overlooked in the hard science and business worlds, particularly the pharma industry. And yet, pharma is seeing significant benefits from these tools (e.g., shortened time-to-market) when applied to clinical trials, R&D, and manufacturing.

APPLICATIONS IN PHARMA

In the life sciences and pharma spaces, competition to use these technologies has been strong in the United States and Europe, but less so in Asia. Large tech companies such as Microsoft are entering the field, as are healthcare providers like G-Health and Philips. By leveraging data in the cloud, applied VR, AR, and XR in the global metaverse provide a continuous feedback loop, with go/no-go testing built into the processes. These technologies allow teams to build on the iterations — experimenting on the fly — virtually and in real time, without endangering human lives. And these applications reduce back-and-forth processing time and cost less.

AR, MR, VR, XR, AND THE METAVERSE

Augmented reality (AR) is a system that incorporates three basic features: a combination of real and virtual worlds, real-time interaction, and accurate 3D registration of virtual and real objects. Mixed reality (MR) extends the experience by adding sensors to scan the real world and create an invisible virtual clone. Virtual reality (VR) creates a full-immersion experience in the virtual world, which some refer to as the “metaverse.” (The metaverse is a three-dimensional world where individuals can enter and interact with other users connected in the same virtual environment.) Extended reality (XR) includes AR, MR, VR and any existing or future technology on the virtuality continuum. Going from AR to XR layers the experiences of non-reality. According to analysts’ estimates, applying updated versions of these alternate-reality technologies to pharma could add $1.5 trillion to the global economy by 2030.

BENEFITS, COST SAVINGS, AND RISKS

With use of AR, MR, VR, and XR, scenario building becomes more manageable. Testing simulations save time and money, reduce risk, and provide additional benefits. Consider these examples:

• XR in pharma allows scientists and engineers to review 3D assets and models at full scale by inspecting data in a spatial context.
• The concept of enhanced global education in virtual groups also applies to collaboration across research, manufacturing, and testing cohorts, all simultaneously viewing the same molecular structures and contributing in real time. Waiting for one team to finish before another can start becomes a thing of the past.
• Conducting preclinical and clinical trials under XR can yield answers to a drug’s efficacy, quantity, side effects, half-life, and food and drug interactions at the molecular level in a virtual setting. This significantly reduces costs and risks before any real-world trials have begun.

NEXT STEPS

Forward-thinking companies can use XR components to test iterations of their drugs or healthcare methods. An influx of venture capital supports this rapid growth. The realization of the solutions cannot occur until AR, VR, MR, and XR technologies are embedded in every step along the way, from first-spark concept to successful patient delivery in the metaverse. This marrying of data and technology with human ingenuity embraces game theory, science fiction, and exciting future business opportunities in pharma and the life sciences.

ABHISHEK SINHA is a business and integration manager for Accenture with more than 16 years’ experience in pharmaceutical, automobile, and e-commerce digital enterprise solutions.