Korean Pharmaceutical Bio Association Launches AI New Drug Development Talent Mentoring Program

'LAIDD Mentoring Project' Launch
Goal to Train 40 Certified Professionals in Job Competency

A convergence talent development program has been established in which experts in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) drug development provide practical guidance and consulting to trainees.

Exterior view of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. [Photo by Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association]

The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association's AI Drug Development Support Center announced on the 19th that it has launched the 'Lectures on AI-driven Drug Discovery·LAIDD Mentoring Project' course to cultivate practical talents in AI drug development and is recruiting trainees from pharmaceutical and bio companies as well as university (graduate) students to participate in the project.

LAIDD is Korea's first comprehensive education platform aimed at nurturing convergence talents in AI and the pharmaceutical and bio sectors. This LAIDD mentoring project was newly established this year as part of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and Korea Health Industry Development Institute's 'AI Utilization Drug Development Education and Promotion Project' to cultivate convergence talents who can be immediately deployed in the AI drug development field.

The LAIDD mentoring project targets ▲employees of pharmaceutical and bio companies currently using AI in drug development or considering a job transition ▲AI developers who want to learn how AI is applied in drug development ▲university (graduate) students and job seekers who wish to acquire key technologies in AI drug development and seek employment in related fields.

Forty participants will be selected through document screening and interviews to undertake a five-month online and offline competency enhancement education and mentoring-guided team project from July to November. The selected trainees will form teams of four members with diverse backgrounds in AI, biology, chemistry, pharmacy, and medicine to carry out AI drug development projects.

Mentors will select project topics with high industry demand and provide mentoring support for team project execution. The mentor topics include ▲Disease target discovery and validation using Mendelian randomization (Professor Sangsoo Kim, Soongsil University) ▲Drug-target interaction prediction using federated learning (Professor Hwajong Kim, Kangwon National University) ▲Drug response prediction using omics and drug data (Deputy Director Hyunjin Shin, Mokam Life Science Research Institute) ▲Molecular virtual screening using graph neural networks (Professor Jooyong Lee, Seoul National University) ▲Cancer treatment drug target discovery through multi-omics data integration analysis (Professor Daehee Hwang, Seoul National University).

The association plans to issue job competency certificates and digital badges to trainees who complete the LAIDD mentoring project and actively support job transitions for employees and AI drug development field entry for job seekers through project outcome poster presentations.

The education is open to anyone interested in AI drug development and is completely free of charge. Those wishing to participate can apply by 6 p.m. on the 30th via the LAIDD website or the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association website.

LAIDD (Lectures on AI-driven Drug Discovery) Mentoring Project Curriculum.
[Image provided by Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association]