Pharma innovation is slow now due to increased R&D costs. More investment in pharma is key to solve.

Over the past six decades, tremendous progress has been made in the scientific, technological, and managerial areas that drive pharmaceutical research and development (R&D). Paradoxically, the efficiency of drug development has significantly declined during this same period. The number of new drugs approved per billion dollars invested has decreased dramatically, a phenomenon termed "Eroom's Law." This trend stands in stark contrast to Moore's Law, which describes the exponential growth patterns seen in Computer technology.

Researchers and industry experts have worked diligently to understand and enhance the commercial R&D process. Studies have pinpointed reasons for project overruns, factors impacting financial returns, techniques for outsourcing, and regulatory considerations. Despite these efforts, R&D efficiency continues to dwindle. While improvements in our grasp of project management and financial models are valuable, they have failed to reverse the central trend: less innovation for more money spent.

The underlying cause of this decline is multifaceted. The sheer complexity of biological systems poses a fundamental challenge far greater than that found in the predictable realm of solid-state physics that underpins Moore's Law as well as the fact that understanding how drugs interact with intricate biological pathways is far less straightforward than refining circuit designs.

Ultimately, the pharmaceutical industry is grappling with a critical problem. Even as scientific knowledge expands and sophisticated management tools are adopted, rising R&D investments simply aren't producing the expected increase in new and effective drugs. Reversing this trend will require a deeper examination of the factors impeding innovation and perhaps a fundamental shift in how drug discovery and development are approached.