Press release: UK and France launch landmark biomedical and AI health alliance to accelerate research into major diseases
A new partnership will unite expertise, infrastructure and data across borders to accelerate diagnosis, treatment and ultimately prevention of major diseases – starting with women’s health, infectious diseases and pandemic preparedness.
The University of Oxford, Université Paris Cité, the Institut Pasteur, Diamond Light Source and Synchrotron SOLEIL have signed a landmark agreement establishing a major new UK-France scientific alliance designed to strengthen how diseases are understood, diagnosed, treated and ultimately prevented.
The partnership comes at a time when advances in science and technology are generating unprecedented amounts of biological and clinical data, and transforming understanding of human health. But turning that information into faster diagnoses, better treatments and improved disease prevention remains a major challenge across disciplines, institutions and national systems.
The UK-France Strategic Interdisciplinary Alliance in Health and AI (Health Alliance) is established to address that challenge by connecting world-leading expertise and national infrastructure that are rarely integrated within a single collaboration. The interdisciplinary model will unite clinical research, molecular biology, engineering, advanced imaging, data science, artificial intelligence and translational medicine across both countries, making it faster and easier for researchers to connect the technologies, expertise and data needed to tackle complex disease.
The Health Alliance establishes a new interdisciplinary approach to linking infrastructure, data and biomedical science, combining discovery research with clinical expertise and advanced imaging at national scale: Oxford’s expertise in basic science, structural biology, infectious diseases, translational medicine and global health data science; Université Paris Cité’s interdisciplinary health research capabilities; the Institut Pasteur’s leadership in infectious diseases and pathogen biology; and the advanced imaging infrastructure of the UK’s Diamond Light Source and France’s Synchrotron SOLEIL.
Together, the partners will support research spanning molecular science through to population health and pandemic preparedness. The Alliance will operate a series of programmes looking at the most pressing global health challenges, including:
- Women’s health, including conditions that remain underdiagnosed or poorly understood, such as endometriosis and pregnancy-related complications;
- Pandemic preparedness, improving understanding of emerging infectious diseases and strengthening resilience against future health threats;
- Pathogenic threats and antimicrobial resistance, accelerating detection, monitoring and understanding of resistant organisms and emerging pathogens.
Professor Richard Cornall, Head of the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, said: “At a time of growing global health threats and rapid technological change, the Alliance brings together leading expertise in AI, advanced imaging and biomedical science to better understand, predict and treat complex disease. Starting with accelerating progress in women’s health, infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance, we will create a powerful UK-France capability for biomedical innovation and the joint development of world-leading new technology.”
Professor Philippe Guérin, Director of the Infectious Diseases Data Observatory (IDDO) at the University of Oxford, said: “Through this Alliance we will be able to see disease in new ways - combining the technology of two of the world’s most powerful synchrotrons, with the world’s greatest research minds, to understand how infections develop, spread and respond to treatment at an unprecedented level of detail. That deeper understanding will drive innovation in diagnostics and therapies, helping improve outcomes for patients and at the same time strengthening preparedness for future health threats worldwide.”
Doctor Jean Susini, Director General of Synchrotron SOLEIL said: “Synchrotron SOLEIL and Diamond Light Source are internationally recognized players in research in the fields of health and, more broadly, life sciences. This partnership offers a unique opportunity to optimize the use of research infrastructures based on synchrotron radiation by fostering close collaboration between scientific and technical teams, as well as a mutual understanding of methodological needs, both for fundamental research and for the development of innovative diagnostic strategies.”
Doctor Odette Tomescu-Hatto, Executive Vice-President of International Affairs at the Institut Pasteur, said: “At the Institut Pasteur, we firmly believe that major scientific breakthroughs emerge at the intersection of disciplines, expertise, and international partnerships. This partnership fully aligns with our international cooperation strategy, building on areas of scientific excellence where French and British partners bring strong and complementary expertise. By strengthening our collective ability to better understand infectious diseases, harness the potential of health data, and advance major issues such as endometriosis, this collaboration will ultimately benefit patients and global health. Our ambition is to go further together by developing not only European projects, but also broader international consortia in close connection with partners across the Pasteur Network.”
Professor Gianluigi Botton, Chief Executive of Diamond Light Source, said:
“This collaboration represents an exciting step forward in harnessing the full potential of advanced synchrotron imaging, data and AI in healthcare. By strengthening links between UK and French research communities, we are creating new opportunities to better understand disease, accelerate innovation and improve patient care. Diamond is delighted to support this shared ambition to deliver scientific breakthroughs that will have a lasting global impact.”
Matthieu Resche-Rigon, Dean of the Faculty of Health at Université Paris Cité, said: “This is a historic partnership between France and the UK post-Brexit: it marks the beginning of a truly interdisciplinary alliance, bringing together scientists, clinicians, public health experts, social scientists, innovators and policymakers to tackle some of the greatest health challenges of our time. This partnership recognises that breakthroughs happen when countries and disciplines work together — connecting biomedical research with data science, social insight, clinical practice and global health policy. Together, we are committed to advancing science and building fairer and healthier futures for women and stronger resilience against emerging health threats.”
Catherine Deneux, Co-Director of iWISH (Institute for Women and Interdisciplinary Research in Science and Health) at Université Paris Cité, said: “The UK-France Strategic Interdisciplinary Alliance in Health and AI is a unique partnership bringing together the most powerful technology and world-leading researchers in all disciplines to fight for women’s health and to combat infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance."
The Memorandum of Understanding establishing the Alliance was signed at the Executive Committee (COMEX) meeting in France this week by representatives from the University of Oxford, Université Paris Cité, the Institut Pasteur, Diamond Light Source and Synchrotron SOLEIL, marking a major new chapter in scientific collaboration between the UK and France.