2026 ISCT North America Regional Signature Series - International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy

ABOUT THE EVENT

The International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy (ISCT) North America Regional Signature Series on Artificial Intelligence will convene leading experts for a one-day thought leadership event exploring the transformative role of AI across the cell and gene therapy (CGT) sector.

As AI continues to reshape advanced therapies, the program will examine the opportunities associated with integrating AI into CGT manufacturing, quality systems, analytics, clinical applications, and collaborative data ecosystems. Through keynote presentations, fireside discussions, and expert-led panels, attendees will gain insight into the current state of AI adoption, emerging technologies, regulatory considerations, and future directions for the field.

Developed in collaboration with the MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation, the program is designed to bridge innovation with practical implementation, highlighting how AI is advancing manufacturing optimization, quality and analytical systems, clinical applications, and data-driven collaboration across the advanced therapy ecosystem.

Registration opening soon

DATE & TIME

November 17, 2026
08:00–17:30 Eastern Time

LOCATION

The Engine, MIT Campus
Cambridge, MA, United States

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

Check back for detailed program and speaker updates

08:00 – 9:00	Opening Session and Keynote
08:30 - 09:00	Setting the Stage Moderator: Dalip Sethi, PhD, MBA, Commercial Leader, Cell Therapy Technologies, Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies Speaker: Sadik Kassim, PhD, MBA, CSO, CTO, Danaher Omics Group
09:00 – 10:30	Session I – AI/ML-Driven Optimization in Cell & Gene Therapy Process Development and Manufacturing Moderator: Dominic Clarke Speakers: Geoffrey Stephens, PhD, MBA, Founder and CEO, AiCella Richard Braatz, MS, PhD, Edwin R. Gilliland Professor of Chemical Engineering, MIT Kapil Bharti, PhD, Senior Investigator and Scientific Director, NEI, NIH Panelist: Irene Rombel, PhD, President and CEO, BioCurie
10:30 – 11:00	Coffee break
11:00 – 12:30	Session II – AI-driven Advances in CGT Quality Systems: From Rapid Detection to Advanced Analytics Moderator: Stacy Springs, PhD, Executive Director, MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation Speakers: Xiaokui Zhang, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer, Aspen Neuroscience Jongyoon Han, PhD, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Biological Engineering, MIT Laurent Leblanc, MS, 3P Ecosystem R&X Sr. Manager, Biomerieux
12:30 – 01:30	Lunch
01:30 – 03:00	Session III – Clinical Applicability of AI in CGT: Opportunities and Challenges Moderator: Joseph Schwartz, MD, PMPH, Senior Medical Officer, FACT Speakers: Jyotiska Biswas, CEO and Founder, ThinkTrends Omar Asaker, CEO, Mytrials Yafit Lev-Aretz, LLB, LLM, SJD, Law Professor, UPenn Law School, Director of Tech Ethics Program, Zicklin Center for Corporate Integrity Panelist: Stephan Kadauke, MD, PhD, Medical Director of Cell and Gene Therapy Informatics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
03:00 – 03:30	Coffee break
03:30 – 04:00	Session IV – Learning From Each Other: How Pre-competitive Collaboration & Data Sharing Can Advance CGT Speaker: Alexander Tropsha, PhD, KH Lee Distinguished Professor, Chief Domain Scientific for Molecular Informatics, Renaissance Computing Institute, Adjunct Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy
04:00 – 05:30	Closing Session and Networking