Bio-IT World Honors Four 2026 Innovative Practices Winning Projects

Winners from Arizona State University, Novartis, ASAP Discovery Consortium and CareDx to be Recognized During 25^th Annual Bio-IT World Conference & Expo

BOSTON, April 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Bio-IT World today announced the winners of its 2026 Innovative Practices Award. The prize-winning collaborations came from teams at Arizona State University, Center for Evolution and Medicine, which collaborated with Starfish Storage; CareDx; ASAP Discovery Consortium; and Novartis, which collaborated with Genedata AG.

Bio-IT World sponsors this elite awards program to highlight outstanding examples of how technology innovations and strategic initiatives are being applied to advance life sciences research. The 2026 winners represent excellence in innovation in open science, patient advocacy, global data access, and real-world AI.

"Since 2003, the Bio-IT World Innovative Practices Awards have been our way of shining a spotlight on the brilliant minds using technology to move life sciences forward, and this year's honorees continue that proud tradition. These projects are each advancing critical areas for our progress as a field. It is a true privilege to recognize the passion and ingenuity behind this work, and we congratulate all of our 2026 winners," said Allison Proffitt, executive editor, Bio-IT World.

All four teams will be honored at the Bio-IT World Conference & Expo taking place May 19-21 in Boston. On May 21, they will be part of the 8:00 am Plenary Keynote session, and then will present their projects at 10:40 am. Individuals interested in learning more at Bio-IT World 2026 can register here.

Following is more information on the honorees.

Global Access Prize: How ASU Transformed 20 Years of Indigenous Health Imaging Data
Arizona State University nominated by Starfish Storage

For over two decades, a Bolivian hospital has collected CT scans of the Tsimane indigenous population as part of Arizona State University's Tsimane Health and Life History Project, creating a unique longitudinal archive for studying healthy aging. But inconsistent Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) metadata across more than 20 years of scanner evolution meant every researcher request required days of manual investigation. ASU's Center for Evolution and Medicine partnered with Starfish Storage to transform this archive into a self-service, consent-governed knowledge platform. Researchers now access data in minutes, and the system enables scalable, independent collaboration across global research teams.

Real World AI Award: Novartis Reimages CMC with AI-Native Data Platform
Novartis nominated by Genedata AG

As therapeutic modalities grow more complex and regulatory scrutiny becomes increasingly data-driven, traditional document-centric CMC operating models are no longer sufficient. Novartis Technical R&D implemented an interoperable, AI-native, GxP-enabled data platform that transforms fragmented information into trusted, reusable data assets. This foundation enables in-silico experimentation, modeling, process monitoring, and predictive risk assessment, accelerating regulatory readiness and reducing development delays. The platform, developed collaboratively with Genedata, has evolved for use beyond the original implementation, into an off-the-shelf product for biopharma CMC.

Open Science Award: Data Sharing for Open Science
ASAP Discovery Consortium

The AI-driven Structure-enabled Antiviral Platform (ASAP) is an open-science consortium developing oral, clinic-ready therapeutics for pandemic-potential RNA viruses. Funded by NIAID investment, ASAP leverages the cost-efficient COVID Moonshot model to bridge the "preclinical valley of death." By integrating AI/ML and automated structural biology at Diamond Light Source, the platform has delivered a pre-clinical candidate in 2025, 8 hit to lead candidates and ten resistance-robust targets. Notably, in 2023, the consortium contributed 6% of all new X-ray structures to the Protein Data Bank.

Patient Impact Award: AlloSure Plus
CareDx

AlloSure Plus is a CareDx innovation project advancing organ transplant surveillance through the integration of molecular diagnostics, clinical data, and AI. The project culminated in the development of an AI-enabled risk-prediction framework that combines AlloSure Kidney donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) analysis with routinely collected clinical and laboratory parameters to deliver a personalized assessment of kidney allograft rejection risk. The outcome is a model that supports earlier intervention, reduces reliance on invasive biopsies, and enables more individualized patient management.

About Bio-IT World Conference & Expo
Cambridge Healthtech Institute's Bio-IT World Conference & Expo is the world's premier event showcasing technologies and analytic approaches that solve problems, accelerate science, and drive the future of precision medicine. Bio-IT World unites a global community of experts in life sciences, pharmaceuticals, clinical research, healthcare, informatics, and IT, all dedicated to advancing biomedical research, drug discovery and development, and healthcare innovations.

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