Merck Partners With Google Cloud on AI Push in Drug Development

The partnership, announced at Google Cloud Next in Las Vegas, will involve joint engineering efforts between Google Cloud teams and Merck’s internal digital and research units.

Merck & Co has partnered with Google Cloud to expand the use of artificial intelligence across its drug development and healthcare operations, committing up to $1 billion over several years to the initiative.

The partnership, announced at Google Cloud Next in Las Vegas, will involve joint engineering efforts between Google Cloud teams and Merck’s internal digital and research units. The collaboration will focus on integrating AI across key areas, including drug discovery, regulatory processes, manufacturing, and commercial operations.

According to Merck Chief Information and Digital Officer Dave Williams, the investment will extend beyond software access to include AI infrastructure, engineering support, and licensing of Google’s Gemini Enterprise platform. He indicated that the collaboration is expected to span at least a decade, although no fixed timeline has been defined.

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian said the partnership aims to accelerate drug development by combining Merck’s pharmaceutical expertise with Google’s AI capabilities and cloud infrastructure. The companies intend to use AI tools to support complex tasks such as laboratory simulations and regulatory documentation.

Merck has already been using AI to streamline parts of its clinical study reporting process for the past two years. The company said it is now scaling these applications further across its global operations. It has also used Google’s technology to reduce the time and cost involved in preparing regulatory dossiers required for medicine reimbursement approvals in multiple markets.

Williams noted that the company is moving beyond pilot projects, with AI already being deployed in active regulatory submissions. He added that Merck sees significant potential in addressing large-scale data and information challenges across the drug development lifecycle.

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