BAAR, Switzerland, July 29, 2026
Evinova, an AI-native clinical development technology company within the AstraZeneca group, has entered into a multi-year strategic collaboration with Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany to accelerate the future of AI-driven clinical research. The partnership will leverage Evinova’s end-to-end AI-native Study Designer platform to streamline study design, protocol authoring, automation, and operational planning, with the goal of reducing clinical trial timelines, lowering development costs, and improving research efficiency across global drug development programs.
Strategic Collaboration to Modernize Clinical Trial Design
Under the agreement, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany will deploy the complete Evinova AI-native platform, including advanced modules for study design, endpoint optimization, schedule of assessments, feasibility analysis, timeline planning, costing models, document authoring, and downstream workflow automation. The platform also supports automatic conversion to USDM 4.0, enabling standardized digital clinical study documentation while integrating AI agents that help reduce protocol amendments, improve document quality, and align studies with evolving regulatory expectations. Merck KGaA will also join Evinova’s Strategic Roadmap Steering Committee, providing direct input into future platform innovations and participating in the company’s cross-industry operational data consortium.
AI Platform Designed to Improve Speed, Quality and Efficiency
The collaboration focuses on creating a more intelligent clinical development ecosystem through multi-scenario simulation, patient and site burden analysis, complexity reduction, and integrated protocol optimization. Evinova’s multi-agent AI architecture is designed to automate document creation, improve study consistency, and accelerate clinical operations while supporting regulatory compliance. The platform also incorporates cross-company operational intelligence, allowing participating organizations to benchmark performance and make more informed study design decisions based on aggregated industry data.
Advertisement
Supporting the Next Generation of Clinical Development
According to Cristina Duran, President of Evinova, Merck KGaA’s commitment to transforming clinical development establishes a new benchmark for the pharmaceutical industry and strengthens Evinova’s mission to accelerate the delivery of high-quality medicines. The collaboration aims to combine advanced artificial intelligence, digital automation, and real-world operational insights to reshape the clinical development lifecycle. Previous outcomes published for Evinova’s technology have demonstrated up to a 60% improvement in patient experience, a six-month reduction in trial timelines, and a 32% decrease in development costs, reinforcing the platform’s potential to improve research productivity and patient-centered innovation across the life sciences sector.
Source: Evinova press release
