Sinead Keogh
Director, BioPharmaChem Ireland, and Ibec Head of Sectors
Rising costs are forcing biopharma manufacturers to change strategies to meet financial targets, with AI at the forefront.
The Irish life sciences sector is the indispensable engine of our economy, generating €116 billion in exports and cementing Ireland’s reputation as a global leader. We’re the second largest exporter of complex pharmaceutical goods and vaccines in Europe. However, the current financial environment means that mastering generative AI is not an option; it’s a core defensive strategy.
Financial pressures forcing strategic recalibration
Our BioPharmaChem Manufacturing Report 2025 shows that expected profitability increases have dropped sharply to just 14% (down from 33% in 2024). This margin squeeze is driven by rising costs, as 86% of leaders expect wage growth and 71% anticipate energy cost increases.
Faced with this, our members are moving decisively. Latest data reveals AI is now a top priority for 64% of businesses (up from 54% last year), with 86% planning to adopt or extend AI initiatives in the next year or two. Crucially, 100% of those investing do it to improve efficiency and productivity, with 75% to improve innovation. This pivot to technology is the AI Imperative in action.
the current financial environment means that mastering generative AI is not an option; it’s a core defensive strategy.
Playbook provides roadmap for AI adoption
BPCI, with lead authors Brightbeam and Connected Health Skillnet, developed the ‘GenAI in Lifesciences Manufacturing Playbook.’ This is a living roadmap containing over 100 practical use cases, from foundational applications to high-stakes GxP environments like accelerating deviations management. Majority of companies in Ireland are currently at this foundational stage, and scaling AI rapidly through ‘Human in the Loop’ principles is a priority. The Playbook was developed through a collaborative process with our industry partners, a core advantage for scaling innovation and maintaining our global reputation for quality.
To win, we must industrialise our talent pipeline by increasing matched funding for Skillnet Business Networks to deliver the AI fluency our workforce urgently needs. Furthermore, we strongly advocate for sectoral AI regulatory sandboxes and urge the Government to revise the National Digital and AI Strategy to strongly reflect competitiveness needs. Finally, we must utilise the forthcoming R&D Compass to expand qualifying expenditure definitions and reform outsourcing rules, ensuring it fully supports this innovation-led future.
