2MM: AI Roundup –Lilly launches TuneLab AI drug discovery, smart wound healing bandage, and Punjab cancer screening [September 25th, 2025]

Lilly unveils TuneLab AI platform for biotechs

On September 9, 2025, Eli Lilly officially unveiled TuneLab, a federated AI platform that provides smaller biotech firms access to models built on more than $1 billion worth of Lilly’s internal R&D data. This news, announced just two weeks ago, is already generating debate about collaboration versus competition in pharma AI. The platform contains models trained on hundreds of thousands of molecules and is designed to guide safety, disposition, and discovery decisions. Early partners, including Circle Pharma and insitro, are already uploading proprietary datasets, showing that uptake has started within days of the launch. Analysts project that spending on AI for drug discovery could rise to $30–40 billion by 2040. Lilly’s move this month signals that large pharma is ready to make AI platforms part of mainstream R&D rather than experimental pilots. For biotech startups, TuneLab could collapse years of infrastructure building into immediate model access. For clinicians, the downstream benefit could be faster pipelines to early trials. This is brand-new policy in action, less than two weeks old, and the industry is watching closely. Next, we shift to even more recent research on AI in wound healing.

AI bandage cuts wound healing time in new study

Researchers, on September 24, 2025,  announced a breakthrough with an AI-enabled bandage called a-Heal that reduced wound healing time by about 25 percent in preclinical models. This report came out just last week, underscoring how fast the field is moving. The device uses sensors to track perfusion, inflammation, and cellular repair, then applies microcurrent stimulation guided by algorithms. The approach is aimed at diabetic foot ulcers, which affect nearly 750,000 Americans each year. Earlier this summer, first-in-human trials of similar “smart dressings” were reported, and the September update confirms measurable acceleration in healing. Chronic wounds cost the U.S. more than $25 billion annually, so even modest improvements are significant. The bandage announcement from last week is already sparking discussion about how fast regulators can evaluate “active” wound devices. For patients, the idea of a dressing that thinks and heals is no longer hypothetical, it is being tested in labs right now. This is timely science that could reach trials in the near future.

Punjab launches AI screening program this week

A few weeks ago, the government of Punjab launched an AI-enabled screening initiative for breast cancer, cervical cancer, and vision impairment across eight districts. This program is only a week old and represents India’s first state-level rollout of such technology. Cancer incidence in Punjab reached 42,288 cases in 2024, a 7 percent increase from the prior year, with screening rates among women as low as 0.3 percent. Devices such as Thermalytix, Smart Scope, and Forus Health autorefractometers are already being deployed. The government aims to complete 600 eye exams and 300 cancer screenings daily in rural clinics. AI outputs guide referrals, but physicians remain responsible for final decisions. Experts stress that this is a critical equity measure for underserved communities. Because the rollout began just last week, it is attracting international attention as a real-time case study. If successful, Punjab could set a template for AI use in low-resource health systems. This is unfolding right now and is one of the most recent examples of AI moving from labs into public health.

Image: PD

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