Sanofi strengthens its presence in Barcelona. The French pharmaceutical group will locate a global research and development (R&D) hub dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI) in the Catalan capital, a technology expected to revolutionize medicine. The center, which will be located in 22@, plans to start hiring this year, with the forecast of reaching a workforce of 300 employees by 2026. Professionals specialized in data science, AI engineering, digital product development, and advanced analytics will be sought.
For Sanofi's Executive Vice President, Madeleine Roach, the new R&D center represents "an opportunity to develop smarter and faster solutions for patients worldwide from one of Europe's leading innovation centers." The hub will use AI to develop new treatments for diseases such as multiple sclerosis, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, and atopic dermatitis. Precisely, at the last Mobile World Congress (MWC), Sanofi presented results on how AI can improve early diagnosis, optimize drug development, and adapt treatments to each patient with multiple sclerosis. The technology will also serve to reduce the timelines of clinical trials testing new drugs. Likewise, it will support the pharmaceutical company's medical and scientific teams, as well as the R&D and supply chain areas.
The decision comes after Barcelona has hosted another global digital hub of the multinational, the Global Innovation Center, since 2016, located in the Meridian building, next to Avenida Meridiana, in the Can Dragó area. Here is also located the group's headquarters for Spain, occupying a total of six of the 18 floors of the building. "This new hub is a sign of confidence in the innovation ecosystem of Barcelona, Catalonia, and Spain, due to its growing role in Europe's digital and scientific leadership. By establishing an AI-driven global initiative in Barcelona, we are not only creating high-value jobs and capabilities locally, but we are also helping to position Spain as a key driver in the transformation of the European healthcare system," values Sanofi's General Manager in Spain, Raquel Tapia.
As of today, Sanofi's first R&D hub in the Catalan capital employs 400 highly qualified professionals from 40 countries. The Global Innovation Center specializes in multiple strategic digital transformation programs that the pharmaceutical company executes from the city for central business areas in the company such as the finance department or supply chain management.
Specifically, the center began its activity almost 10 years ago with the launch of iShift, a program for continuous optimization of the French group's financial and manufacturing processes. This tool has ended up becoming the group's largest ERP (management software) and is expected to eventually manage all its revenues. The other major pillar of the Meridian building center, the SCCore Program, revolves around optimizing the supply chain in all countries where the company operates. It is a software that allows, for example, to plan demand, manage production, logistics or reduce inventories.
Sanofi concentrates its activity in Spain in Catalonia, where it employs 1,400 workersAs the Global Innovation Center team grew, AI innovation also crept into its competencies and will now be reinforced with a specific center to find new solutions. In fact, a few years ago, a Global Digital Data Organization was located in the Barcelona offices with the mission of making Sanofi "a first-class organization in artificial intelligence" by extracting the maximum value and potential from data.
With headquarters in Paris and a presence in a hundred countries, Sanofi concentrates its activity in Spain in Catalonia, where it employs 1,400 workers. In addition to the headquarters in the Meridian building, it has smaller offices in Madrid. In Riells i Viabrea (Girona), it has a factory specialized in tablets and capsules. In 2024, the group invested 30 million euros in R&D in Spain, a figure that rises to 215 million euros if the last five years are taken into account. Globally, it invoiced 41,081 million euros in 2024, 11% more. In addition to the hubs in Barcelona, the French company has innovation centers in Malaysia, Colombia and Hungary.
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