Philanthropic partnership unlocks £32m for the future of 'best-in-class' UK Biobank

Former CEO and Chairman of Google Eric Schmidt, and Ken Griffin, founder and CEO of Citadel and founder of Griffin Catalyst, are today (Monday 30 October) being announced as the first members of a new consortium that will shape the future of the best-in-class UK Biobank, starting with £16m funding matched by Government.

Their donations will support UK Biobank to grow its already-unrivalled wealth of health data, to enable research unlocking the next great leaps in our understanding of health and disease.

This could include using AI’s ability to rapidly analyse vast quantities of data to draw new insights from UK Biobank’s data, such as in the analysis of cancer samples – the sort of uptake of AI in health and research being encouraged by the new AI Life Sciences Accelerator Mission, announced by the Prime Minister, last week.

UK Biobank is the world’s most significant resource for health research, and one of the country’s most important scientific assets. It is a database of in-depth genetic, health and lifestyle information from half a million UK volunteers, giving approved researchers worldwide access to an unparalleled source of data that is enabling medical breakthroughs, from treating cardiac disease to Alzheimer’s.

UK Biobank has supported ground-breaking advancements in healthcare, such as the development of a genetic test to detect people born with an increased risk of coronary heart disease1, only made possible via analysis of UK Biobank’s genomic data. During the pandemic, UK Biobank data helped researchers deepen their understanding of how lifestyle and inherited factors impacted how patients were affected by Covid-19.

The more than £16m being donated by Eric Schmidt and Ken Griffin will be matched by the Government, which will provide up to £25m in funding in total for the UK Biobank, provided that an equal amount of private and philanthropic donations are also secured. The ultimate aim is to achieve at least £50m in contributions for UK Biobank.

Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology Michelle Donelan said: “UK Biobank is one of the jewels in the crown of UK science, making an unparalleled contribution to improving everyone’s health through the sheer scale of information it puts at researchers’ fingertips.”

Citadel founder and CEO Ken Griffin said: “UK Biobank is revolutionizing our understanding and treatment of disease. I am honored to support this groundbreaking initiative to advance scientific discoveries, improve public health and save lives.”

Eric Schmidt, former CEO & chairman of Google said: “Scientific advancements have the potential to bring profound transformations to humanity for generations to come. It is vital that we cultivate an environment that fosters and supports revolutionary applications of science and technology, such as UK Biobank, while creating opportunities for further innovation for public benefit.”

Professor Sir Rory Collins, chief executive officer and principal investigator of UK Biobank, said: “We are immensely grateful for today’s funding, which will allow us to pilot new projects that will add further depth to our already rich goldmine of data for scientific researchers everywhere.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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