Genomics nation 2023: A genomics-powered UK life science ecosystem

The UK’s genomics sector stands at an important inflection point. It has already become world-leading, building upon the heritage of Franklin, Watson, Crick, and later the Human Genome Project, delivered by the Wellcome Sanger Institute around the year 2000 and most recently the 100,000 Genomes Project delivered by Genomics England. Now, with more start-ups and scale-ups in the genomics space than ever before, we are on the cusp of this technology becoming one that is embedded within our healthcare system to improve patients’ lives: ensuring we are a real genomics nation.

There exists a tendency to group all genomics companies under one umbrella and therefore obscure the wide range of innovations that they offer. Working at the intersection of biology and data science, these companies unlock the human genome, applying their findings to the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Genomics has applications across healthcare, from the initial process of sequencing, through diagnostics to AI-enabled drug discovery. Linking these processes up will deliver immense benefits for patients, facilitating preventative and personalised medicine which will form the backbone of the NHS of the future.