From the Atlantic coast of the Sahara to the mountains of northern Iraq, the Arabic language unites some 500 million people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. When it comes to data, however, the MENA region is notably disunited. This is especially true in the pharmaceuticals sector, which suffers from fragmented, non-standardized and elusive medical data. These hurdles contribute to a 20 percent termination rate for advanced-stage pharmaceutical products – translating to substantial financial losses and resource wastage across a region otherwise poised for considerable industry growth.

With over 20 years industry experience, Jordanian pharmacist Hazem Al Yacoub was all too aware of the information challenges facing MENA. In 2018, he co-founded Pi Pharma Intelligence to offer a digital solution to the region’s disjointed data. Pi Pharma Intelligence aims to revolutionize the accessibility of essential data by harmonizing and consolidating pharmaceutical insights from across MENA. It has proved a winning idea: in the four years since the company began commercial activities in 2020, it has acquired 50 international clients – principally pharmaceutical manufacturing companies looking to expand into MENA.

AI brings benefits and challenges to pharma SMEs

The sheer volume of data that Pi Pharma Intelligence must collect and standardize would be unmanageable without the support of artificial intelligence (AI). The use of AI makes this process much faster, while continuous manual checks ensure accuracy is being maintained. Hazem also found that AI can improve the experience of clients who use the company’s digital platforms by improving suggested search and data options based on the client’s navigation of the company’s huge dataset.

However, the use of AI risks exposing Pi Pharma’s code – its “golden resource,” according to Hazem – to competitors. AI tools have been inadvertently known to disclose intellectual and property and trade secrets. “In the pharmaceutical sector, the accuracy of data and code are an integral part of the industry,” explains Hazem. “If we are not securing our data and code then the company could easily be replaced by a competitor.”

Expert advice on AI and IP

This is a challenge many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – not just those in the pharmaceuticals industry – are wrestling with. The rapid expansion of AI in recent years has raised complex questions about IP protection, ownership and strategy.

In response, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)’s IP for Business Division, Division for Arab Countries and IP and Frontier Technologies Division, with support from Funds-In-Trust Japan Industrial Property Global, teamed up to host a new edition of WIPO’s highly praised IP Management Clinic (IPMC) program. Held in September 2023, this free online clinic enabled 22 selected SMEs from eight countries (Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Saudia Arabia, Sudan and Tunisia) to explore AI and IP with local and international IP and business experts.

Using AI and IP management to improve MENA’s data gaps

Pi Pharma Intelligence was one of the 22 companies to attend this IPMC. “As a company, we knew that copyrights are important for data protection,” recalls Hazem. “So we wanted to understand how we can use AI without compromising our privacy and data security.”

The expert advice Pi Pharma Intelligence received at the IPMC has helped it better understand the importance not only of copyrights, but of securing legal agreements with clients, consultants and employees to protect proprietary code and other IP. The company also learned about the need for privacy and data governance agreements when working with AI development companies. “IP plays a critical role in business success by providing legal protections that safeguard companies’ innovations and market value,” says Hazem. “We are grateful for the IPMC, which equipped us with the knowledge and skills to build a strong IP strategy for our business, protecting it from future risks  . The one-to-one mentoring sessions have been instrumental in guiding us to safeguard our algorithms and trademarks.”

Pi Pharma Intelligence is using this newfound knowledge to advance its use of AI to help pharmaceutical companies manage their portfolios in MENA, secure in the knowledge that there are tools to safeguard the company’s IP. In this way, Hazem and his team are working to fill in the costly data gaps holding back MENA’s burgeoning pharmaceuticals industry.