Back when regulatory constraints hindered our founders’ data applications, it was their vision to create a solution that enabled data without borders. They made that dream a reality by creating a platform that moves the algorithm, not the data, allowing all the benefits of data sharing without the drawbacks. No more intricate, costly, predetermined sharing agreements, no more implicit trust, and no more regulatory roadblocks. Just simple, secure data collaboration.
Since then, data has only become more vital for achieving meaningful progress, and the need to collaborate on it to unlock new insights – across all industries – has only become more urgent, particularly when it comes to the anticipated mass adoption of AI.
At the same time, changing regulations have only made this goal harder to reach as they make it more difficult for sensitive industries and businesses to collaborate on data and AI across borders. New data privacy regulations like the upcoming AI Act, Data Act and Data Governance Act, created by the European Commission, are being introduced to enforce the legal, ethical and safe use of AI and data, yet in reality they will only pose more barriers to true data collaboration. This is especially true for organizations with data in multiple geolocations, or those that work with data partners in different geographies. It’s these organizations that need fair, federated data without borders.
Unlike data sharing agreements, which are taxing on time, energy, and purse strings, federated data allows organizations worldwide to collaborate, utilize AI to its fullest, and derive new value without sacrificing the integrity of their critical data.
Genomic data analysis company Congencia is already engaging in such collaboration. To better understand the relationships between health, lifestyle factors, and disease incidences, the company created a global data collaboration ecosystem that enabled researchers and organizations to collaborate on a vast pool of datasets. Armed with more data, Congenica was able to increase the speed and efficiency of its life-saving work.
According to Congenica CIO, Rob Denison, this was made possible by federated data. “Our approach aligns with the WEF proposal of taking a federated approach rather than trying to centralize data in a single database." As a result, Congenica created “the highest quality aggregation of proprietary in-house, public, and partnership-generated data sources in one federated capability.”
In a similar fashion, sustainability experts announced the formation of The Global Resilience Index Initiative (GRII) during the recent COP27. The multi-partner group was formed to champion the global introduction of standard data metrics to measure and ultimately solve climate issues facing communities, infrastructure, and ecosystems. For this to work, GRII Patron Mami Mizutori called for “more data feeds.” And for that to work, collaboration on federated data is a must.
Today, the world shares our founders’ vision of data without borders. Organizations across the globe are quickly waking up to the need for safe, hassle-free data collaboration, be it across cloud, multi-cloud or hybrid environments – without the limitations, barriers, and security issues associated with data sharing.
In the years since, the Apheris platform for federated data collaboration has continued to make that dream a reality for some of the world’s largest organizations. They’ve realized the need for increased collaboration in unlocking the next stage of growth, innovation, and success, and have turned to us to enable effective collaboration; across borders, teams, and organizations.
Our Compute Gateway has been critical in helping our customers unlock new value and insights, improve their machine learning capabilities and accelerated the speed of innovation. The question is, are you ready to follow in their footsteps?
Benefits of federated data ecosystems in pharma and healthcare