Accelerating Digital Trust & Intelligent Transformation in Life Sciences
Compliant Innovation at the Speed of Change
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What You'll Learn
- How to build a trusted digital foundation in an AI-driven world and modernize third-party risk management as cloud and SaaS footprints expand.
- How to adopt AI safely across clinical, quality, and manufacturing operations with an AI governance and operating model that scales without increasing compliance risk.
- How intelligent workflow automation—paired with Computer Software Assurance (CSA)—accelerates continuous validation across Quality, Lab, R&D, and IT.
- How to solve GxP talent shortages by shifting from talent acquisition to workforce enablement that aligns people, process, and platforms.
- How to create an integrated, “Connected Compliance” ecosystem that unifies cybersecurity, AI governance, automation, and workforce readiness for 2026.
Virtual Event Overview
Life sciences organizations are entering a new era—one defined by AI adoption, rising cybersecurity threats, rapid workflow automation, and unprecedented talent shortages. In this environment, success depends on one defining capability: the ability to move fast while staying compliant.
The 2026 USDM Life Sciences Summit: Accelerating Digital Trust & Intelligent Transformation brings together global experts, enterprise leaders, and technology innovators to explore how organizations can embrace AI, automation, and secure digital operations—without increasing risk.
Across dynamic panels, real-world case studies, and actionable frameworks, attendees will learn how to:
- Build a trusted digital foundation in an AI-driven world
- Adopt AI safely across clinical, quality, and manufacturing operations
- Streamline processes through intelligent automation
- Solve talent shortages through new models of GxP workforce acceleration
- Create an integrated, “Connected Compliance” ecosystem
This summit helps you lay a strong foundation for 2026, providing the frameworks, practical guidance, and expert insights you need to accelerate digital trust, adopt AI safely, and unlock smarter, more efficient operations—setting the stage for growth in the new year.
The USDM point of view: In regulated life sciences, speed and compliance are not opposing forces—they are designed together. The organizations that win in 2026 will treat digital trust as an operating model, not a checkbox: AI deployed under governance, automation validated continuously, third-party risk managed as the perimeter expands, and a workforce equipped to operate it all. USDM helps life sciences teams connect cybersecurity, AI governance, automation, and workforce enablement into a single Connected Compliance ecosystem so innovation moves at the speed of change—without inheriting new risk.
Why Watch
This summit is essential for life sciences professionals who want to:
- Understand the biggest regulatory, cybersecurity, and AI forces shaping 2026
- Learn how leading companies are deploying AI responsibly in GxP environments
- See practical examples of automation, platform modernization, and workflow acceleration
- Get ahead of talent scarcity with modern workforce models
- Build a digital roadmap that integrates people, processes, and platforms into a unified compliance ecosystem
Join us to uncover how trusted, intelligent, and connected digital capabilities can fuel transformation and position your organization at the forefront of the next era in life sciences.
Who Should Watch
Industry Types: Pharma, Biopharma, Biotechnology, Medical Device, CRO/CMO, and any regulated life sciences organization.
Roles: CIO, CTO, CISO, Quality leaders, Regulatory leaders, IT Infrastructure, Cloud, GxP Apps, R&D and Lab leaders, Clinical Operations, and more.
Agenda
Opening Remarks
Session 1: Digital Trust by Design in 2026 — The New Blueprint for Cybersecurity, TPRM Modernization & Compliance Leadership
Description:
In 2026, digital trust is no longer a technical aspiration—it’s an operating model. As AI, cloud, and third-party SaaS expand, life sciences organizations must scale security and compliance with growth. This session reveals USDM’s proven frameworks—from our TPRM engine to our tiered Virtual CISO service protecting IP, clinical data, and GxP/HIPAA environments. Learn how leading companies modernize TPRM, strengthen AI governance, and build resilient, compliant cloud programs that reduce risk and meet evolving 2026 regulatory expectations.
Topics Covered:
- The new third-party threat landscape
- Cloud and SaaS compliance modernization
- IP protection, clinical data security, and vendor oversight with a virtual CISO
- Regulatory expectations for 2026 and beyond
- Real-world digital trust failures and how to prevent them
Panelists / SMEs:
- Olivier Melis, Senior Director of Head of DT eCompliance, argenx
- John Petrakis, Chief AI Officer, USDM Life Sciences
- Brian Rankin, Head of Cybersecurity Services, USDM Life Sciences
- Jeffrey Wheatman, SVP, Black Kite
Related reading: life sciences cybersecurity.
Session 2: AI + Compliance — Operationalizing Compliant AI: Architectures, Controls, and Validation
Description:
AI is no longer a future consideration—it is a competitive imperative. Yet while 60% of pharmaceutical organizations are launching GenAI pilots, only 6% of enterprise data meets FAIR standards, and fewer than half have formal AI ethics councils in place—creating a rapidly expanding governance gap. This session explores how to scale AI across quality, clinical, and manufacturing operations without increasing compliance risk. Attendees are introduced to USDM’s AI Center of Excellence (CoE) and data insights services as the operational bridge for governance, AI risk management, and validated deployment. With the EU AI Act’s August 2026 deadline approaching, this session provides a practical roadmap for safe, compliant AI adoption at scale.
Topics Covered:
- What’s actually compliant in AI adoption today
- Building an AI governance and operating model
- AI-enabled quality management
- EU AI Act 2026 countdown framework and readiness milestones
- AI case studies delivering measurable operational impact
Panelists / SMEs:
- Rathina Govindaswamy, VP Digital Cloud and AI, USDM Life Sciences
- Shweta Maniar, Global Director, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Google
- John Petrakis, Chief AI Officer, USDM Life Sciences
- Sari Heller Ratican, Counsel, Privacy & Cybersecurity, Fenwick & West
Session 3: Smarter, Leaner, Safer — Intelligent Workflow Automation for 2026
Description:
Workflow automation is now the fastest path to higher throughput, lower cost, and stronger audit readiness. But in 2026, automation extends beyond change control and QMS—it includes scaling AI from pilot to production. This session explores how organizations modernize Quality, Lab, R&D, and IT operations with intelligent automation, while leveraging USDM’s MLOps and AI Operationalization services for model monitoring, drift detection, and compliant deployment. We’ll also show how CSA implementation enables continuous validation and accelerates digital transformation across GxP environments.
Topics Covered:
- The hidden cost of manual workflows in GxP operations
- Intelligent automation for Quality, Lab, R&D, and IT
- MLOps for regulated AI — monitoring, drift detection, and compliant deployment
- CSA as an automation accelerator and enabler of continuous validation
- AI in audit readiness and monitoring
- Case studies reducing cycle time, error rates, and operational cost-driven automated validation
Panelists / SMEs:
- Hovsep Kirikian, VP Strategy & Operations, USDM Life Sciences
- Vishakha Sant, Global Head of Product, Healthcare, Life Sciences, and Payer, ServiceNow
- Manu Vohra, VP of Life Sciences, Box
- Elizabeth Warnock, Director, Global IT Software Quality Assurance at Abbott
Related reading: data integrity in life sciences and 21 CFR Part 11 compliance.
Session 4: Enabling the Next-Gen GxP Workforce — People, Process & AI at Scale
Description:
AI and automation initiatives in life sciences rarely fail because of technology—they fail because organizations are not prepared to operate them. As GxP skill gaps widen, delivery models strain, and regulatory expectations continue to rise, success in 2026 depends on workforce enablement: aligning people, operating models, and governance to sustain transformation. This capstone session brings the day’s themes together—digital trust, compliant AI, and intelligent automation—by focusing on the operating models and leadership decisions required to make them stick. Panelists will share how life sciences organizations are redesigning roles, delivery structures, and accountability models to enable AI and automation at scale, without increasing compliance risk.
Topics Covered:
- The shift from talent acquisition to workforce enablement in GxP and AI programs
- Upskilling vs. top-skilling: building role-based capabilities for AI-enabled quality management
- Organizational change management required to operationalize AI in regulated environments
- Designing operating models that align people, processes, and platforms for adoption
- Real-world examples of workforce-enabled transformation across regulated domains
Panelists / SMEs:
- Kevin Brown, CEO, USDM Life Sciences
- Lisa Fry, Senior Director of Sales, USDM Life Sciences
- Sameera Moinpour, Global VP, Customer Success and Services, WorkBoard Inc.
- Mark Ohrvall, Vice President of Delivery Operations, USDM Life Sciences
Closing Remarks
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the USDM Life Sciences Summit 2026 about?
The summit—Accelerating Digital Trust & Intelligent Transformation—focuses on how regulated life sciences organizations can move fast while staying compliant in an era defined by AI adoption, rising cybersecurity threats, workflow automation, and talent shortages. Four sessions cover digital trust and cybersecurity, compliant AI, intelligent workflow automation, and next-gen GxP workforce enablement.
Can I watch the summit on-demand?
Yes. The 2026 USDM Life Sciences Summit is available to watch on-demand. Fill out the registration form on this page to unlock the recorded sessions, panels, and frameworks.
Who should watch this summit?
It is built for pharma, biopharma, biotech, medical device, and CRO/CMO organizations—and for roles including CIO, CTO, CISO, quality and regulatory leaders, IT infrastructure and cloud teams, GxP applications owners, and R&D, lab, and clinical operations leaders.
How does the summit address adopting AI in GxP environments?
Session 2 covers operationalizing compliant AI—architectures, controls, and validation—and introduces USDM’s AI Center of Excellence as the operational bridge for AI governance and compliance, AI risk management, and validated deployment, including readiness for the EU AI Act’s August 2026 deadline.
How does the summit connect compliance, automation, and workforce?
The sessions are designed to build into an integrated “Connected Compliance” ecosystem—linking third-party risk management and cybersecurity, compliant AI, CSA-driven continuous validation, and workforce enablement so people, processes, and platforms advance together.
Watch the full summit on-demand. Fill out the form on this page to access all four sessions, expert panels, and the frameworks behind a Connected Compliance roadmap for 2026. Want to map these themes to your own digital trust and AI roadmap? Contact USDM to talk with our team.