Women Making A Difference: Shiva Amiri
- Shaping AI's Impact on Drug Discovery
tl;dr
Shiva Amiri of Pivotal Life Sciences is leveraging AI to revolutionize drug discovery, enhancing investment strategies and identifying gaps in therapeutic development.
Amiri's journey includes bioinformatics studies at Oxford and roles at Biosymetrics and 23andMe, shaping her expertise in AI applications for biomedicine.
Despite AI’s progress, challenges like data complexity and healthcare’s slow adoption remain. Amiri advocates for thoughtful AI application to address significant health challenges and improve global health.
Harnessing AI to refine investment strategies and enhance therapeutic development, Pivotal Life Sciences is turning a cutting-edge technology into a tool for groundbreaking health innovations.
Shiva Amiri is redefining the intersection of artificial intelligence and drug discovery. As a key figure at Pivotal Life Sciences, Amiri leads a team that uses cutting-edge AI to transform how new therapies are identified and developed. Her work is at the forefront of a shift in life sciences investments which promises to enhance the precision and identification of gaps and opportunities in drug discovery and development.
“The key is not to force AI where it doesn’t fit but to apply it thoughtfully to where it can make a real difference.”
Amiri's journey began at the University of Toronto during a time when the dot-com boom and the Human Genome Project were transforming the worlds of technology and science. "I loved thinking about the potential for computers to decode biological data," she says. Her passion led her to bioinformatics and a graduate program at Oxford, eventually landing her roles in Canada and beyond, including a stint as CEO of Biosymetrics, a company that repurposed AI for biomedical applications and 23andMe Inc. where she built data technologies for both the consumer health and the therapeutics parts of the business.
Now at Pivotal Life Sciences, Amiri’s role is integral to the firm's tech-driven investment strategy. "Our goal is to leverage AI to make more informed decisions in drug discovery," she explains. Her team combines computational biology, data science, and advanced analytics to evaluate potential investments in biotech firms. This approach helps Pivotal identify innovative companies with the potential to address major health challenges.
The evolution of AI in life sciences has been dramatic. "AI’s role in drug discovery has shifted from a 'nice-to-have' to a critical component of competitive strategy," says Amiri. Recent advancements, like DeepMind’s AlphaFold, which predicts protein structures with unprecedented accuracy, illustrate AI's growing impact. Amiri’s work at Pivotal builds on these advancements, integrating vast datasets to uncover new insights.
Despite the progress, challenges remain. "Extracting actionable insights from complex, multidimensional data is still a major hurdle," Amiri notes. While AI has made strides in diagnostics and drug development, the broader healthcare system is slower to adopt new technologies due to its entrenched structures and regulatory hurdles.
Looking forward, Amiri sees enormous potential for AI to close gaps in understanding diseases and developing treatments. "The key is not to force AI where it doesn’t fit but to apply it thoughtfully to where it can make a real difference," she says. At Pivotal, this approach isn't just about investing in technology—it's about fostering a vision to improve human health on a global scale.
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