Health
American Factories Lag in Adopting A.I. This Drugmaker Is an Exception.
In a sterile Bristol Myers Squibb lab about an hour north of Boston, scientists in scrubs and hairnets transfer living cells to a 2,000-liter stainless steel bioreactor that grows them for weeks. The goal is to produce proteins that are genetically engineered to attack cells that cause disease.
Tiny variations in heat, light or pH level can stop the cells from growing, causing drug shortages that endanger patients. Typically scientists would have to wait to see what went wrong during that fragile process, but now artificial intelligence is used to carefully monitor important variables — such as temperature and oxygen levels — and alert technicians if there are problems.
Every year the World Economic Forum and McKinsey recognize manufacturers that are on the cutting edge of technology, including artificial intelligence. This year, the Bristol Myers Squibb facility in Devens, Mass., was the only manufacturer in the United States that made the list of 23.
While American companies typically lead in artificial intelligence research and capital investment, U.S. manufacturers often struggle to translate those breakthroughs into productivity gains on the factory floor.
Of the 223 factories that have made the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network list since 2018, 14 have been in the United States, while 99 are in China. Of the American ones, four are in the pharmaceutical and life sciences sector.
“China is scaling faster,” said Rahul Shahani, a partner at McKinsey who works with the World Economic Forum on the initiative. He added, “They have technologists in the factories — hundreds of them — while in the U.S. we’re competing for that same talent with Silicon Valley.”
Large American pharmaceutical companies have been a rare bright spot in the use of A.I. Many drugmakers, including Pfizer and Eli Lilly, are investing billions in A.I. and related technologies to accelerate drug discovery and streamline manufacturing. The trend coincides with President Trump’s demands that drugmakers produce more drugs on U.S. soil.
Scientists at the Devens facility use artificial intelligence to discover molecules that can target cancer and other diseases with greater precision. A.I. can comb through data sets from past experiments to identify possibilities that a human might not have considered. Researchers then test those molecules in the virtual world — a process referred to as “in silico.” Only the most promising are tested in a physical laboratory. The company can run multiple “in silico” experiments at a time.
“Drug discovery and bio-manufacturing are definitely areas where A.I. can have the most impact,” said Kyle Chan, a fellow at the Brookings Institution’s John L. Thornton China Center. “These are areas where A.I. has some of the largest advantages over previous approaches given the need to process and synthesize large, complex data sets.”
Still, there’s no guarantee that technological advantages will instantly equate to benefits for patients. The history of drug development is filled with failures, and it is unknown whether molecules identified by A.I. will pass muster in clinical trials.
The Bristol Myers Squibb facility sits on an 89-acre campus where buildings are decorated with portraits of cancer survivors..
Previously, scientists and technicians were never sure why some batches of cells produced a large amount of proteins, while others failed completely. But now A.I. uses information from past batches to identify what variables need to change. For example, if oxygen levels are lower than previous batches, the system will suggest that oxygen be added. If the pH levels are higher than previous batches, it will recommend a fix. It also makes suggestions about the best time to harvest the cells.
These innovations have boosted the volume of drugs produced for clinical trials and commercial use at the facility by about 40 percent, according to a company spokeswoman.
“We are able to now intervene in the batches during the manufacturing process and not have to wait until we get to the end,” said Karin Shanahan, executive vice president, chief supply chain and operations officer for the company.
These innovations have helped stabilize production of Orencia, a drug that treats autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis using cells that are extremely difficult to grow. In 2024, manufacturing challenges resulted in a shortage in some parts of the world.
The company is just beginning to use A.I. in its manufacturing process of another drug, Breyanzi, which turns a cancer patient’s own white blood cells into a personalized therapy. Currently, the Devens plant is authorized by the Food and Drug Administration to produce treatments for just 12 patients at a time.
Ms. Shanahan said she hoped that eventually A.I. would increase production of the treatment, often viewed as a last resort for people with blood cancers such as leukemia.
Bristol Myers Squibb has embarked on a series of cost-cutting measures as the key patent for its cancer drug Opdivo expires in 2028. The drug, which uses proteins that have been genetically engineered to target cancer cells, generated more than $10 billion of the company’s $48 billion in revenue last year.
The company is trimming $2 billion in costs by the end of 2027 in addition to $1.5 billion in cuts announced in 2024. More than 1,000 positions are being eliminated, many of them at a research facility in Lawrenceville, N.J., heightening anxiety about A.I.’s taking jobs away in the sector.
At the Semafor World Economy summit last month, Bristol Myers Squibb’s chief executive, Chris Boerner, said the company had a responsibility to use A.I. to further its mission but acknowledged that it could adversely affect some employees.
“We are engaging with those employees to make them more marketable around this technology — with the company or elsewhere,” he said.
The facility in Devens, which was completed in 2009 at a cost of $750 million, wasn’t designed with A.I. in mind. As recently as 2020, employees used Excel spreadsheets for some tasks. Batch records that document every step of production were filled out by hand. But in recent years, the company has prioritized digitizing and automating its processes.
“We needed to make sure that we could formulate our products faster, that we could commercially scale them faster,” Ms. Shanahan said. “And so that’s really what forced us to start to go down that path.”
Overall the company aims to cut the time it takes to bring a drug to market to about six years, from nine, she said.
Other factories that received recognition from the World Economic Forum this year included Yueda Textile in Yancheng, China, which collects sensor data to detect machine maintenance issues before they occur, reducing costs; and Midea, a manufacturer of microwaves and air-conditioners in Thailand that uses A.I. to investigate customer complaints, generating recommendations for corrective action that cut resolution time from months to days.
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June 23, 2026
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Just four minutes of daily strength exercises can dramatically improve mobility, balance and leg strength in older adults, per new research from the Penn State College of Medicine.
Standard public health guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. However, the study suggests that fewer than one in five older adults meet the recommended muscle-strengthening guidelines.
The research team designed a home-based program called Functional Activity Strength Training, or FAST-2. They evaluated 97 sedentary participants 65 and older, with an average age of 74.
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Before entering the study, these individuals were averaging just 18 minutes of total physical activity each week.
The older adults were randomly split into two groups, with one group performing the daily exercise routine and the other serving as a control group that received no intervention, according to the study’s press release.
Just four minutes of daily home strength training can significantly improve mobility, balance and leg strength in older adults, according to a Penn State College of Medicine study. (iStock)
Participants performed four basic movements for 30 seconds each, separated by 30-second rest intervals. The entire routine lasted exactly four minutes. The circuit consisted of push-ups, chair stands, two-arm resistance-band rows and stair stepping.
To keep the routine accessible, researchers provided written explanations and simple modifications. For example, participants could perform push-ups against a kitchen counter or wall, or use their hands on their knees for support during chair stands.
Participants were also given four elastic resistance bands and an adjustable step platform.
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“Exercise is actually really complicated, because you have to decide how many repetitions, how far, how many sets, how much rest and how many times per week,” co-author Smita Dandekar, associate professor of pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine, said in the press release.
“It’s hard work … so if we can make it short, we’re part [of the] way there.”
The program consisted of four basic movements: push-ups, chair stands, resistance-band rows and stair stepping. (iStock)
As the participants grew stronger, they were encouraged to progress to higher levels of difficulty, such as transitioning away from modifications or increasing the height of the stepper.
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After 12 weeks, the results suggested that a tiny dose of regular exercise could yield noticeable physical benefits. In a 30-second chair-stand test, the exercise group performed an average of 4.2 more repetitions than the control group.
“These indicators … give you a sense of whether or not you’re going to be able to be active in the future.”
The adults doing the exercises also shaved 2.3 seconds off their time during a test measuring how they could stand up and sit down five times consecutively. Furthermore, they extended their one-legged balance time by an average of 3.6 seconds.
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The researchers emphasized that these specific measurements are critical medical indicators of an older adult’s future health.
By keeping the routine ultra-short, researchers eliminated common barriers like time constraints and exhaustion, resulting in an exceptionally high 81% workout completion rate. (iStock)
“These indicators predict your future ability to go into a nursing home, your future likelihood of falling and of developing difficulty walking,” noted lead author Christopher Sciamanna, professor of medicine and of public health at Penn State College of Medicine, in the press release.
“They give you a sense of whether or not you’re going to be able to be active in the future.”
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While traditional home exercise programs generally see low engagement, the participants in this study successfully completed their workouts on 81% of the tracked days, according to the researchers.
After 12 weeks, exercising seniors gained the ability to complete an average of four more chair-stand repetitions than those who did not exercise. (iStock)
The study had several noted limitations. As it tracked a relatively small sample size of fewer than 100 individuals over a brief 12-week time frame, it is unknown whether these mobility gains can be sustained long-term.
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Additionally, the researchers did not specify the exact dropout rates or detail how the routine might affect seniors who already relied on assistive devices like walkers or canes.
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Because the final trial results reflected a specific group of participants who met the entry criteria, further investigation is required to determine whether the short routine can safely benefit older adults facing more severe physical limitations or cognitive decline.
The study was published in the journal PLOS One.
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Jill Smokler, founder of Scary Mommy, has died at age 48 after a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
The popular “mommy blogger” had been fighting the disease for the past two years, according to an announcement posted on ScaryMommy.com on Monday.
The stay-at-home mother of three launched the blog in 2008 as a place to share the “joys and pitfalls” of parenting, according to the article.
As Scary Mommy expanded from a personal blog into a major parenting brand, Smokler built a following with her honest, often self-deprecating take on motherhood. She went on to speak at blogging conferences, author bestselling books, appear on national television programs and earn three Webby Awards, her biography states.
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“Jill spent her life telling the truth about motherhood — that it could be wonderful and impossible in the very same breath — and in doing so, she gave millions of women permission to stop pretending and feel a little less alone,” her family shared in a statement following her passing.
Jill Smokler, founder of Scary Mommy (pictured in 2018), has died at age 48 after a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. (Lloyd Fox/Baltimore Sun/ZUMA Press Wire / Shutterstock)
“She was funny, fearless, generous and entirely herself. More than anything she built, Jill was proudest of her three children, Lily, Ben and Evan. We are heartbroken to lose her, and endlessly proud of the mark she left on the world.”
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Smokler’s first sign of the disease was in April 2024, when she experienced a sudden seizure. She then underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor, after which she didn’t recognize her own children, she previously shared with Today.
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“I am definitely grateful that I don’t remember the looks on their faces when I didn’t recognize them,” she said. “That must have been gutting.”
Smokler was diagnosed with glioblastoma, the most common malignant primary brain tumor in adults and one of the deadliest forms of brain cancer. There is currently no cure.
About 13.9% of all brain tumors are glioblastomas, according to the American Brain Tumor Association. (iStock)
Following surgery, the blogger underwent radiation and chemotherapy, during which she was open about her treatment side effects, including fatigue and hair loss. Additional surgeries and clinical trials followed, according to previous interviews.
“Thank you, Jill, for everything. May you rest in peace,” the Scary Mommy post concluded.
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About 13.9% of all brain tumors are glioblastomas, according to the American Brain Tumor Association. More than 12,000 new cases are diagnosed in the U.S. each year.
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Median survival is approximately 12 to 18 months after diagnosis, even with treatment. Only about 5% to 7% of patients survive five years after diagnosis, data shows.
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