ACT Brief: Applied Clinical Trials at 2026 SCRS Global Site Solutions Summit
Applied Clinical TrialsSummary
The recent SCRS Global Site Solutions Summit highlighted key discussions on the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in clinical research. Mike Wenger, Chief Innovation Officer at CREO, identifies two main pitfalls in AI implementation. He notes that some sites avoid AI due to misconceptions about sponsor expectations, which focus more on contract adherence and confidentiality than on banning technology. Conversely, an overly aggressive adoption of AI can lead to complications. Wenger advises that AI should be integrated into manageable segments of workflows while maintaining traditional software for repeatable processes.
Jennifer Byrne, CEO and founder of Javara, emphasizes that the primary challenge in clinical research lies in financial sustainability rather than operational issues. She advocates for consistent investment in research infrastructure, rather than relying on funding tied to individual studies. Byrne suggests that government funding and public-private partnerships could help bridge this financial gap and warns against the piecemeal development of research programs, which fails to account for the comprehensive costs of nurturing the next generation of investigators.
Kurt Messina, CEO of Paradigm Clinical Research, argues that operational efficiency should be driven by scale, but cautions against centralizing studies within a single site. He points out that managing multiple organizations can be more complex than overseeing a few, yet sponsors often hesitate to concentrate studies due to perceived risks. Messina stresses that the true measure of success lies in an organization’s ability to access, enroll, and retain patients, rather than its size or geographical reach.
Show Notes
In today’s ACT Brief, we examine how sites can avoid both fear-driven and overly aggressive AI adoption, why community-based research needs sustained financial investment, and why patient access matters more than organizational size.
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