The Birmingham Biotechnology Hub is being granted a $44 million grant by the U.S. Department of Commerce. According to the city, the grant will allow Birmingham to be positioned as a global leader in drug, vaccine and diagnostics development.
The funds received will support the application of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven biotechnology to increase diverse representation in clinical genomic data and clinical trials. City leaders say this will lead to more jobs and better health outcomes, not only for the Magic City and Alabama, but potentially, the world.
“This is a game changing opportunity,” said Mayor Randall L. Woodfin in a press release. “Birmingham was the poster child of the industrial revolution in the south. Our legacy was carved out of the iron ore that was embedded in Red Mountain. In the years that followed, we pivoted from metal to medicine with UAB. Now, we’re taking our next steps toward another technological revolution. This grant opens the door to equitable AI-driven biotechnology. This will be the breakthrough that can shatter the generational cycle of poverty.”
The funds for the Birmingham Biotechnology Hub, which is a consortium of partners in technology, education, medicine and more, are being awarded to Southern Research and University of Alabama at Birmingham to create artificial intelligence drug discovery platforms.
Funds will also go to Alabama Community College Systems, Lawson State Community College, and The PROPEL Center to provide biotechnology training and workforce development.
City officials said the hub will seek to leverage artificial intelligence to shorten the drug development pipeline and deliver affordable drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics to treat a global patient population and increase the efficacy of biotechnological products.
The Birmingham Biotechnology Hub is among 31 Tech Hubs designated in Oct. 2023 by Pres. Joe Biden to increase the production of critical technologies, create jobs in innovative industries, strengthen U.S. economic competitiveness and national security and accelerate the growth of industries of the future in regions across the United States.
Last year, the Birmingham Biotechnology Hub received a $500,000 Consortium Accelerator Award to continue implementing their strategies, including the pursuit of additional capital.
