GSK and Fleming Initiative scientists announce their goal to target AMR with advanced AI

GSK and the Fleming Initiative have recently announced six major new research programmes, called ‘Grand Challenges’ which harness some of the best scientific expertise and the latest technologies, including advanced AI, to find new ways to slow the progress of antimicrobial resistance.

All of the new programmes announced today will begin by early 2026, are fully funded for 3 years and will cover six key themes:

• Supercharging the discovery of new antibiotics for Gram-negative bacterial infections
• Accelerating the discovery of new drugs to combat fungal infections
• Improving understanding of how our immune systems respond to drug-resistant bacteria, starting with Staphylococcus aureus, to stimulate vaccines research
• Using disease surveillance and environmental data to create AI models that predict how drug-resistant pathogens emerge and spread
• Running an innovative clinical trial to improve how and when antibiotics are prescribed
• Using international research data and insights to inform policy and public engagement, embed preventative interventions, accelerate continued R&D, and amplify societal and government action to get ahead of AMR

The Fleming Initiative is a collaboration established by Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust – brings together research scientists, policymakers, clinicians, behavioural experts, public and commercial partners to provide the networks, expertise and skills to provide equitable solutions to AMR at a global scale. GSK became the first founding partner of the Initiative, pledging £45m in funding in 2024 and backing the Fleming’s mission to help tackle AMR around the world and setting out a series of Grand Challenges.

Note that one of the new research initiatives aims to find solutions to one of the major scientific hurdles in AMR which has consistently challenged the experts – breaking through the defences of Gram-negative bacteria, one of the most concerning threats to human health. These bacteria (which include E. coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae) have a complex cell envelope defence system which prevents antibiotics from accumulating inside the cell, and efflux pumps that can eject those that do. Turning the power of supercomputers on the superbugs, chemists, microbiologists and AI experts at Imperial’s Drug Discovery Hub will partner with GSK’s scientists and Agilent Technologies to use advanced automation and generate novel data sets on diverse molecules to create an AI/ML model that will enhance our ability to design antibiotics for multi-drug-resistant Gram-negative infections. These data and AI models will be made available to scientists around the world in the hope of accelerating the development of a new generation of antimicrobial drugs.

In a second Challenge scientists will drive the discovery of new drugs to combat fungal infections, starting with Aspergillus. Around two million cases of Aspergillus infection occur annually, with mortality rates upwards of 46% further confounded by the spread of antifungal resistance. Only four types of drugs currently exist, typically targeting the same sites within the fungal cells. This new programme will use AI to identify the unique vulnerabilities of fungi to support the development of new, targeted drugs.

In addition, a third new team of experts will begin modelling the human immune response to infection, starting with Staphylococcus aureus, one of the most dangerous drug-resistant pathogens worldwide, leading to more than one million deaths annually. Vaccines against this pathogen have so far failed in clinical trials due to a lack of detailed, human-relevant data on bacterial behaviour and immune responses. The new team will replicate, under strictly controlled and safe conditions, surgical site infections to provide key data on infection progression and the human immune response to S. aureus to inform new vaccine development.

Professor Lord Ara Darzi, Head of the Fleming Initiative, said: “In the 12 months since we announced our landmark partnership between GSK and the Fleming Initiative, a huge amount of progress has been made. Through our convening power, we have the world-leading expertise, facilities, capacity and vision in place to be able to launch these ambitious Grand Challenges.

“Today, in the shadow of 80 years since the Nobel prize for the discovery of penicillin, we’re delighted to see this research progress. We hope this research will be a beacon for the global scientific community and highlight the urgent need for collaborative efforts to tackle the rising global threat of antimicrobial resistance.”

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