Researchers discuss intersection of technology and health care at Fast Company Innovation Festival

From tackling the challenges of accurate dosages for pediatric medicines to addressing the importance of scalability as new treatments are discovered and tested, these innovative approaches are fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration to overcome some of the world’s most devastating diseases.

These efforts served as a focal point during Fast Company’s Innovation Festival, a multi-day event held in New York City, where business leaders, innovators and creatives shared insights and explored groundbreaking ideas across technology, design, business and culture. Dr. Mansoor Khan, dean of the Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy, and Dr. Simrit Parmar, associate professor in the Texas A&M University Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine, joined Dr. Dominic King, vice president of health at Microsoft AI, for the “Leaping to New Heights: The Unparalleled Progress in Healthcare” panel. The trio discussed how breathtaking medical advancements, technological innovations and strategic partnerships are reshaping the industry and shaping solutions as a force for good.

Golden Age of Innovation

Conventional uses of new technologies continue to be tested, and even challenged, to make advances that positively impact patient outcomes. 3D printing has shifted from developing only cost-effective, rapid prototypes to exploring the scalable production of life-changing pharmaceuticals. Cellular therapy has the potential to cure genetic diseases and interrupt the inflammation-injury loop in autoimmune diseases. The power of AI is being harnessed to help detect cancer and the early onset of other health concerns, and augmented reality brings teachable moments to real-life scenarios with a lower risk for students.

Khan discussed advancements in technology that streamline medical processes, noting that the time it now takes for an innovation to successfully advance to market has decreased dramatically. He and his team are working on a 3D-printed dosage form platform that accommodates a variety of drugs and drug combinations to address drug shortages for children.

From the perspective of 3D printing, Khan explained the value of creating personalized medications, especially for pediatric patients. His research specifically works to address the current inefficiencies of administering adult-strength pills to children by crushing the medication, which ruins the coating, taste and stability. Creating pills with the exact dosage and improvements in adding flavors to enhance the palatability of medicines for children become viable options by printing on demand. 

This remarkable research on 3D-printed medications for children was selected as an honoree of Fast Company’s 2025 Innovation by Design Awards, hosted in New York City, which recognizes some of the most forward-thinking minds in the business and academic worlds.

Parmar pointed to the fact that diseases like sickle cell anemia have the potential to be curable through cell therapy, an idea she has cultivated through her company to develop an “off-the-shelf” regulatory T-cell therapy to treat inflammation from autoimmune diseases. She also noted her invention of using T regulatory cells derived from the umbilical cord to generate products that are off the shelf, cryopreserved and can be administered in a doctor’s office through the peripheral line.

She has treated over 80 patients with different clinical diseases. A single infusion of her cells can lead to durable independence from blood and platelet transfusion in patients suffering from aplastic anemia, a rare autoimmune disease of the bone marrow. She has also treated patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, where patients show disease stabilization and a decrease in their plasma neurofilament levels. These data were published in the journal NEJM Evidence. 

Transformative Power of AI

Seeking transformative opportunities in health care pushes the boundaries of technological advancements and their uses. From the perspective of King at Microsoft AI, harnessing the power of AI can offer unimaginable benefits for patients and their health journeys. One Microsoft study in particular demonstrated the value of further investigating this opportunity. The published results of that study noted an AI model correctly diagnosed complex cases from the New England Journal of Medicine 80% of the time, compared to expert physicians who had a 20% success rate.

King believes the most impactful innovations are those that tackle specific, high-friction problems. A relatable example includes AI-based skin screening tools that can replace a dermatologist visit and digital mental health solutions for depression and anxiety that offer outcomes similar to in-person therapy.

Partnerships Are Vital to Innovation

Like advancements made in 3D printing and AI supporting patient experience and outcomes, cell therapy offers hope for those with devastating diseases.

Parmar also expressed excitement about the potential of “digital twins” for clinical trials, where a virtual representation of a patient’s disease progression can replace traditional placebo-controlled trials, making the development of much-needed medicines faster and more cost-effective.

Scalability and intentional partnerships between academic institutions and the private industry are important to advance innovation and bring these solutions to life.

Grounded in the founding principles to serve the state, the nation and the world, the collaborative efforts underway at Texas A&M — both in cross-disciplinary research and in partnership with industry leaders — are building a brighter, safer world.

Fast Company is a world-leading business media brand, with an editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world-changing ideas, creativity and design. The magazine, launched 30 years ago by two former Harvard Business Review editors, chronicles how changing companies create and compete, highlights new business practices and showcases the teams and individuals who are inventing the future and reinventing business. The Most Innovative Companies list has, since 2008, been the definitive source for recognizing organizations that are transforming industries and shaping society.