Where is AI creating meaningful value in commercial pharma today, and where are expectations still ahead of reality?
That question was at the center of Where AI is (and isn’t) Changing Commercial Work, the second installment of MATTER’s AI in Commercial Pharma series. Faruk Capan, Founder of our agency and Chief Innovation Officer at EVERSANA, joined leaders from Sanofi and Lundbeck to explore how organizations are approaching AI, the challenges impacting adoption and how commercial models could evolve in the years ahead.
Throughout the conversation, it became clear that realizing AI’s full potential will require more than introducing new tools. It means rethinking how work gets done, how teams work together and where AI can remove complexity across the commercial organization.
Breaking Down Silos
For Faruk, that starts with breaking down departmental silos.
He illustrated how much complexity has become embedded in traditional ways of working, noting that something as simple as a banner campaign could historically involve as many as 50 people across different teams and stages of the process. With AI connecting more of that work, organizations can reduce unnecessary handoffs and rethink how teams collaborate from strategy through execution.
The bigger opportunity is to create a more connected commercial model, an approach we’re advancing by connecting AI capabilities across marketing, medical, market access and other functions.
From AI Ambition to Business Priorities
The panel also offered a practical example of what that evolution can look like within an organization.
For Lundbeck, they’ve identified nine areas of focus tied to business goals and partnered with us to help accelerate its commercial engine across those priorities. Their approach starts with identifying where the business wants to create impact and determining how technology can help get there.
The distinction is important. AI adoption doesn’t need to start with the technology. It can start with the business challenge and work backward to determine where AI can make a meaningful difference.
Rethinking the Role of the Partner
AI is also changing what clients may need from their commercialization partners.
Faruk described our company’s ambition in deliberately provocative terms: “working our way out of a job.”
The goal isn’t to replace expertise, but to use AI to empower clients to become more capable and self-sufficient, while shifting the role of partners toward where they can add the greatest value.
Our evolving AI model reflects that shift. Clients can own and use our AI platform, while we continue to provide expertise, training, implementation and operational support based on their individual needs.
Looking Ahead: A World of AI Agents
When asked where he sees AI in pharma two years from now, Faruk’s perspective extended beyond the industry itself.
He envisioned a future in which individuals have AI agents supporting different aspects of everyday life, from health to shopping and beyond. If that becomes reality, it could fundamentally change how people find information, make decisions and interact with organizations.
As AI becomes more integrated into everyday life, the commercial world will evolve with it, changing how organizations connect with and create value for the people they serve.
Ultimately, the opportunity goes well beyond automation. It’s about rethinking how commercial organizations work today while preparing a future that may look very different from the one we know now.