MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Deep technology, including AI, biotech, and quantum computing, drives innovation and economic growth. Countries like China and South Korea lead by producing tech. A sustainable digital society requires strong digital infrastructure, data privacy, and citizen empowerment. Educational institutions play a key role in nurturing tech producers. Shifting from tech consumption to production ensures prosperity and security.

Iambic Therapeutics introduces Enchant™, a multi-modal transformer model that predicts clinical properties of drug candidates early, reducing preclinical R&D time and improving clinical success rates.

Massachusetts leads in biotech innovation, focusing on sustainability. Universities, research institutions, and companies drive advancements, with government support fostering a cohesive ecosystem. Key innovations include biodegradable plastics, sustainable agriculture, and clean energy solutions. Challenges remain in funding and regulation, but continued collaboration and education are vital for future leadership.

AI, particularly generative AI, could revolutionize antibiotic discovery, addressing the urgent threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). However, this requires collaboration across sectors and supportive public policy, such as the PASTEUR Act, to bridge economic hurdles post-approval. Generative AI can accelerate the discovery process, reducing time and cost, and potentially save millions of lives by developing new antibiotics.

Lumicell Direct Visualization System, developed by Barbara L. Smith and Ralph Weissleder, received FDA approval in 2024 for real-time lumpectomy margin assessment, reducing the need for second surgeries and improving cancer resection accuracy.

Dr. Ravi V. Bellamkonda, a renowned biomedical engineer and higher education leader, will join Ohio State as executive VP and provost, pending Board of Trustees approval, starting January 14, 2025. He comes from Emory University, where he led initiatives in arts, AI, and student flourishing. Dr. Bellamkonda is also a distinguished researcher in biomedical engineering and a recipient of the NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award. His family, including spouse Dr. Lalita Kaligotla and dog CJ, will join him at Ohio State.

Researchers developed an in vitro human liver model that mimics circadian rhythms, identifying cyclical gene expression affecting drug metabolism and immune responses. This model, sustained for 10 weeks, revealed that drug-metabolizing enzyme CYP3A4 activity varies by time of day, impacting drug toxicity. The system also showed that liver cells are more susceptible to infections like malaria when immune response genes are downregulated, emphasizing the importance of circadian rhythms in liver function and drug development.

The 2024 chemistry Nobel was awarded to John Jumper and Demis Hassabis for developing AlphaFold, an AI tool for predicting protein structures, and David Baker for computational protein design, both significantly enhanced by AI. AlphaFold's transformative impact on protein structure prediction and design has revolutionized the field, making highly accurate structures accessible and enabling new scientific discoveries.

Stanford Medicine researchers received ARPA-H contracts for precision cancer care, surgical innovation, and large language model-driven patient communication. Katherine Ferrara leads a $35 million project on precision radiopharmaceutical imaging and therapy, focusing on ovarian and head and neck cancers. Lisa Knowlton co-leads a $22.3 million effort to improve intraoperative anatomy visualization. Roxana Daneshjou and Akshay Chaudhari are awarded $4.8 million to develop AI-driven medical chatbots for patient assistance.

Luxa Biotechnology appoints Keith Dionne, Ph.D. as CEO to advance RPESC therapy for dry AMD/GA, aiming to restore vision for patients lacking treatment options.