PARIS, France, May 8, 2026
Waiv, the Paris-based artificial intelligence precision medicine company formerly known as Owkin Dx, announced a strategic collaboration with Daiichi Sankyo to advance AI-driven biomarker discovery for an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) oncology program. The collaboration will leverage Waiv’s computational pathology platform to analyze early-phase clinical data and identify predictive biomarkers capable of improving treatment response assessment and patient stratification in cancer therapy development.
The partnership highlights the rapidly expanding role of artificial intelligence, digital pathology, and multimodal biomarker analytics in oncology drug development, particularly in the growing ADC therapeutics market. ADCs are among the most active and competitive areas in modern oncology, combining targeted antibodies with potent cytotoxic payloads to selectively destroy cancer cells while minimizing systemic toxicity.
AI Platform Targets Precision Oncology Challenges
Under the agreement, Waiv will apply its end-to-end computational pathology platform to analyze tumor microenvironment (TME) characteristics using both hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) stained pathology samples. The company will use its AI models to identify biomarkers associated with therapeutic response and outcome prediction before subsequent clinical trial phases begin.
One of the most important aspects of the collaboration is Waiv’s ability to address one of oncology drug development’s most difficult problems: identifying clinically relevant biomarkers from very small patient populations. According to the company, many early-stage ADC programs involve fewer than 100 patients, making traditional biomarker discovery approaches difficult due to limited datasets.
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Waiv stated that its proprietary AI platform was specifically designed for low-data environments and is powered by foundation models trained on hundreds of thousands of pathology images collected through an international network of hospitals, laboratories, and academic institutions. The technology is capable of extracting predictive biological signals directly from whole-slide pathology images while identifying previously unknown histopathological biomarkers beyond predefined molecular features.
The company emphasized that its AI-generated outputs are designed to be reproducible, interpretable, and clinically actionable, allowing pharmaceutical companies to potentially accelerate precision medicine development and optimize future trial designs.
ADC Development Continues to Drive Oncology Innovation
The collaboration reflects the growing pharmaceutical industry focus on integrating AI-powered diagnostics into oncology drug pipelines. ADC therapies have become one of the fastest-growing therapeutic modalities in cancer treatment due to their ability to deliver highly targeted therapies against difficult-to-treat tumors.
Daiichi Sankyo has emerged as one of the global leaders in ADC development through its expanding oncology portfolio and strategic collaborations. By incorporating AI-driven biomarker discovery into clinical programs, pharmaceutical companies aim to improve patient selection, identify responders earlier, and increase the probability of clinical trial success.
Experts believe computational pathology and machine learning could significantly improve biomarker development timelines by enabling more efficient interpretation of tissue morphology, tumor heterogeneity, and microenvironment interactions. The integration of AI into pathology workflows may also help reduce diagnostic variability while enhancing personalized treatment decisions.
Waiv executives noted that identifying which patients will respond to a therapy directly from pathology slides remains one of the most important opportunities in oncology precision medicine. The company stated that its platform was developed specifically to support the translation of AI-discovered biomarkers into clinically deployable diagnostic tests capable of guiding treatment decisions in real-world settings.
Waiv Expands Global Precision Medicine Strategy
The Daiichi Sankyo collaboration further strengthens Waiv’s position in the rapidly growing AI healthcare and computational pathology market. The company has spent more than seven years developing validated medical AI technologies and building one of Europe’s largest multi-institutional pathology data networks.
Waiv collaborates with pharmaceutical companies, healthcare systems, diagnostic organizations, and research institutions to develop AI-powered clinical testing solutions aimed at accelerating precision medicine adoption globally. The company recently secured $35 million in financing backed by investors including OTB Ventures, Alpha Intelligence Capital, Serena Data Ventures, Karista, SistaFund, and CRB Health Tech to support commercial expansion and clinical development initiatives.
As pharmaceutical companies continue increasing investments in AI-enabled oncology research, collaborations like the Waiv-Daiichi Sankyo partnership are expected to play a growing role in the future of biomarker-driven cancer therapeutics and precision medicine innovation.
Source: Waiv, Daiichi Sankyo press release
