The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has officially entered a strategic partnership with US‑based life sciences firm PromptBio to accelerate AI‑driven precision medicine research tailored to African populations.
Under the terms of a newly signed memorandum of understanding and licensing agreement, the collaboration will enhance capabilities for integrated multi-omic data analysis — combining genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic data using artificial intelligence — to power cutting‑edge insights into disease biology.
Boosting Clin‑MAP with Advanced AI
At the heart of the initiative is the Clinical Multiome Atlas Platform (Clin‑MAP), hosted by the CSIR. The platform aims to build a pan‑African clinical multiome data repository — a foundational resource designed to support local precision medicine initiatives, facilitate sustainable research, and stimulate health innovation across the continent.
PromptBio’s AI tools will be integrated with CSIR’s existing multiome profiling technologies to accelerate the identification of disease targets relevant to African populations, addressing conditions ranging from cancer to cardiovascular disease.
“Access to PromptBio’s platform and AI‑guided insights represents a game‑changing advantage as we seek to translate multiome datasets into African‑relevant translational technologies,” said Dr Jerolen Naidoo, co‑principal investigator of Clin‑MAP. He also emphasized the partnership’s role in developing critical skills in data science and empowering young African researchers.
Bridging Capability Gaps and Advancing Local Research
Dr Setobane Mangena, CSIR executive manager of the Future Production chemicals cluster, highlighted the synergistic value of combining PromptBio’s AI analytics with the CSIR’s deep scientific expertise — a collaboration expected to support Africa’s march toward medical sovereignty.
PromptBio CEO Dr Xiao Yang said the partnership marks an essential step in bringing advanced multiomics technologies to diverse populations, with the potential to inform diagnostics and therapeutics explicitly tailored to Africa’s unique genetic landscapes.
He added that insights generated through the Clin‑MAP initiative could yield discoveries with global impact.
Context: AI and Precision Medicine in Africa
This collaboration comes amid broader momentum across the continent to harness AI and genomics for improved public health outcomes. Efforts such as national AI policies in public healthcare and genomic research programs — like a major human genome sequencing initiative launched in South Africa — underscore growing investment in technology‑driven healthcare innovation.
By weaving AI into precision medicine research infrastructure, the CSIR–PromptBio partnership aims to help close longstanding gaps in representation, data availability, and tailored clinical insights for African populations — shifting the continent from passive data donor to active driver of cutting‑edge biomedical discovery.