Conference Programme
The full agenda from the Life Sciences Industry Conference 2026 — keynote, presentations and panels across the morning and afternoon at the Crowne Plaza, Santry on Thursday 22 October 2026.
Hour by hour.
Keynote, presentations and panels across the morning and afternoon.
Welcome & Keynote
Registration
Chair’s Welcome & Introduction
Brendan McGrath — Former Ireland Site Head & VP Manufacturing, Wuxi Biologics
The future of biopharma manufacturing in the age of AI
How AI could transform operations, accelerate innovation and redefine the future of manufacturing, and how organisations can prepare for the changes to come.
William Fahey, Director Data Science, Pfizer
From Research to Reality: How AI Is Transforming Pharma R&D
How modelling, AI and machine learning are being integrated into pharmaceutical R&D, and the skills the next generation of scientists will need.
Prof. Damien Thompson, Professor of Molecular Modelling, University of Limerick / Director, Rinn Pharma & Biopharma
Trust, Governance & Responsible AI
Building Trust in AI: The Foundations for Responsible Adoption
From governance, validation and data integrity to transparency, compliance and workforce confidence, building trust while meeting regulated-industry standards.
Ger McCabe, COO, Biostór Ireland
Can we trust AI enough to scale it?
Governance, regulation, data quality, cybersecurity, validation, IP and accountability, balancing innovation with the controls needed to scale AI responsibly.
Moderator: Brendan McGrath · Dr Araz Raoof (ARC Hub for Therapeutics) · James Murphy (Eirgen Pharma) · Matt Moran (Matt Moran Consulting)
Refreshment break
Scaling AI — From Pilot to Production
The journey from experimentation to enterprise scale
The technical, organisational and cultural barriers to enterprise-wide adoption, and how to deliver measurable value at scale.
Trevor Marshall, Head of Consulting — Life Science Manufacturing, Cognizant
Why do so many AI projects never scale?
Data challenges, integration, change management, governance and proving business value on the path from pilot to enterprise deployment.
Moderator: Brendan McGrath · Trevor Marshall (Cognizant) · Colm Bambury (Amgen) · Meg Leahey (Sanofi)
Lunch break
People, Skills & Organisational Change
Digital & AI Maturity in Biopharma Manufacturing: What Industry Leaders Really Think
Drawing on in-depth interviews with senior executives across leading global biopharma organisations, an unfiltered view of where the sector genuinely sits on the digital & AI maturity curve, where it is heading and what is holding progress back. The biggest barriers are not technical but rooted in workforce readiness.
Fergal Wall, Director of Technology, Digital & Data, NIBRT and ATU
The human side of AI adoption
Preparing the workforce, developing new skills, overcoming resistance, and keeping human expertise at the centre of decision-making.
Moderator: Brendan McGrath · Dinny Crowe (ABM) · Domhnall Carroll (Digital Manufacturing Ireland) · Dr Hisham Al-Obaidi (University of Reading) · Susan Costello (BioPharmaChem Skillnet)
The AI-Ready Enterprise
The AI-ready enterprise: What leaders need to do now
From vision and governance to digital capabilities and aligning technology investment with business goals.
Cormac Byrne, Head of Digital, APC / VLE
How will AI redefine manufacturing leadership?
Strategy, investment priorities, competitive advantage and the long-term implications of AI for manufacturing businesses.
Moderator: Domhnall Carroll · Alice Redmond (CAI) · Matt Moran (Matt Moran Consulting) · Brendan McGrath (Wuxi Biologics) · Tom Quinn (Novo Nordisk)
Chair’s Closing Remarks
Brendan McGrath — Former Ireland Site Head & VP Manufacturing, Wuxi Biologics
Timings and speakers are subject to change.