Over the past year, the pharmaceutical and medical device sector has undergone one of its fastest periods of digital acceleration. While headlines have focused on AI-powered drug discovery and next generation research partnerships, a quieter but equally significant transformation is unfolding in commercial operations. The same technologies driving innovation in the lab are now reshaping how products are ordered, distributed and managed across global supply chains.
This shift is not theoretical. It is happening now, at scale.
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AI Investment in Pharma Signals a Data Driven Future
Several major announcements in 2025 underscore how quickly AI has moved from experimental to essential within the pharmaceutical industry.
Eli Lilly’s partnership with Nvidia to build an AI supercomputer for drug discovery and manufacturing represents a step change in computational power and automation. AstraZeneca’s agreement worth up to 555 million dollars to develop AI and CRISPR driven immunology treatments highlights the strategic role of machine learning in pipeline development. Industry experts quoted across global news outlets describe AI as one of the most important technology shifts in pharmaceutical research in decades, with potential to shorten discovery timelines and improve precision.
Research firms tracking the sector forecast that AI adoption will continue to accelerate across R&D, supply chain management and manufacturing. ZS Associates’ pharmaceutical trends report points to AI enabled forecasting, supply optimisation and end to end data integration as core competitive levers for 2025 and beyond.
The message is consistent. Pharma is becoming an AI powered industry at every level.
The Same Shift Is Now Hitting Pharma Commerce
What is often missed in headline coverage is how this institutional move toward AI and data centricity is now reshaping the commercial side of healthcare.
B2B ordering in pharma has traditionally relied on older systems, manual processes, siloed data and disconnected customer experiences. While scientific functions advance rapidly, many organisations still process large volumes of orders through spreadsheets, EDI, email or legacy portals with limited integration into core systems.
The gap between lab digitisation and commercial digitisation is widening. And that gap brings operational friction, compliance risk and customer frustration. For example;
A large pharmaceutical supplier may already run an online ordering portal where hospitals, clinics and distributors can place replenishment orders. The catalogue is digital. Ordering is digital. Customers are comfortable buying online.
But behind the scenes, the platform often relies on older integrations or batch file exchanges. The ERP updates pricing overnight, but the portal only refreshes once every 24 hours. A hospital buyer might see a product marked as available, place an order, and only later receive a message that the item is restricted, out of stock, or requires batch specific documentation.
Meanwhile, the organisation is using advanced AI tools in its manufacturing and R&D functions to optimise production, plan capacity and model risk, yet none of that intelligence flows through to the commercial layer.
The gap shows up in real operational challenges:
- controlled items requiring manual validation
- temperature sensitive products needing specific delivery windows
- batch or lot numbers not syncing quickly enough between ERP and the portal
- customer specific pricing not updating at the same pace as ERP changes
- duplication of effort between ecommerce, ERP, WMS and customer service
So even though customers are ordering online, the experience is still fragmented. Stock inaccuracies frustrate buyers. Manual compliance checks slow down fulfilment. Customer service teams spend time resolving issues that connected systems should prevent.
This is the gap between lab level digitisation and fully modernised commercial digitisation, and it is exactly where pharma organisations are now focusing their next phase of transformation.
Pharma and medical device companies now need the same principles powering AI led R&D to be embedded into their commerce stack. Clean data. Automated workflows. Real time visibility. Connected systems. And the ability to scale globally without adding manual burden.
Legacy Systems Struggle with Pharma’s New Reality
Modern pharmaceutical distribution demands a level of integration and accuracy that many legacy commerce systems cannot support.
Challenges include:
- Customer specific pricing that must match ERP contracts
- Multi warehouse inventory that changes by the minute
- Controlled product catalogues with strict compliance rules
- Batch and lot tracking requirements
- Approval flows across large healthcare organisations
- Documentation and auditability at every step
As AI driven forecasting and supply chain automation advance, manual ordering processes create bottlenecks that undermine the benefits of upstream innovation. The commercial layer must evolve in parallel with scientific and operational systems.
As pharma teams invest heavily in AI to speed up discovery and strengthen manufacturing, there is a growing expectation that the commercial side of the business should feel just as connected and intelligent.
What we see every day is that buyers want accurate stock, clear pricing and confidence that the information they rely on is always up to date. When the lab is operating with cutting edge technology but if the ordering experience feels out of sync with what is happening elsewhere in the business, everyone feels the strain. Bridging that gap is becoming one of the most important priorities for the sector, and it is exactly the space where Cloudfy is helping organisations modernise with confidence.”
Integrated, API First Commerce Is Becoming a Competitive Requirement
To meet these demands, leading pharma companies are shifting toward modern, integration led B2B commerce platforms. These platforms act as the connective layer between ERP, CRM, WMS, regulatory systems and procurement networks.
Benefits include:
- Real time synchronisation of pricing, stock, documentation and account rules.
- Reduced manual reconciliation work across finance and customer service.
- Improved order accuracy through automated validation.
- Faster onboarding of new customers and distributors.
- Simplified compliance through structured workflows and centralised data.
- Scalable architecture prepared for AI driven predictions and ordering
The healthcare ecommerce market is forecast to grow significantly through 2034, driven by organisations modernising procurement, distribution and digital sales. As transformation accelerates across R&D, the expectation for connected digital commerce will only increase.
Cloudfy and the Future of Pharma Commerce
Cloudfy is built for the realities of modern pharmaceutical and medical device commerce. It is used by organisations that need accuracy, compliance, controlled catalogues and a secure connection between ERP systems and customer facing ordering. With an API first foundation and deep ERP integration, Cloudfy gives pharma teams a platform that matches the speed and intelligence they are building in their research and manufacturing functions.
Cloudfy translates complex ERP data into clean, reliable buying experiences. This reduces manual work, improves accuracy and brings ordering, fulfilment and compliance into one joined up environment. For companies already investing in AI across discovery or production, Cloudfy becomes the digital layer that allows that intelligence to flow through into commercial operations.
Simon, Cloudfy’s MD talks about how this looks in practice...
As we work with pharma and healthcare organisations, we are seeing very real shifts in how teams want their digital operations to run. One medical logistics provider we support used to rely on daily manual checks across multiple systems just to confirm stock for temperature controlled products. With Cloudfy connected directly to their ERP, those checks now happen automatically and buyers only see what can be fulfilled.
Another example is a pharmaceutical distributor serving large hospital networks. Their account hierarchies, pricing rules and product visibility were difficult to manage across different systems, but Cloudfy now mirrors their ERP structures with complete accuracy. It has reduced errors and made ordering far smoother for clinical buyers.
We also work with a medical device manufacturer who needed a better way to handle documentation. Batch certificates and safety sheets now flow directly into the order process without manual effort.
These are small windows into what is happening across the sector. Pharma organisations want connected systems that reduce risk, increase accuracy and respect the complexity of their work, and that is exactly where Cloudfy is helping.
Pharma’s Next Competitive Edge
The next competitive advantage in pharma will not be won in the lab alone. It will be shaped by the digital infrastructure that delivers products safely, accurately and efficiently to customers, distributors and patients. This is the shift that is now gathering pace across the sector.
AI is accelerating discovery and improving how medicines are made, but it can only unlock its full value when the commercial systems behind it are equally modern and connected. Many organisations are already recognising this and beginning to reassess the platforms that support ordering, fulfilment and compliance. Others are still working with legacy systems that were never designed for the speed, accuracy and intelligence that the next chapter of pharma will require.
This is where expert guidance matters. Cloudfy helps pharma companies modernise their digital foundations with the right integration approach, the right architecture and the right migration path. The goal is simple. A connected, future ready commerce layer that can support the complexity of the sector and the opportunities created by AI.
Pharma teams that start this journey now will be ready for the reality that is coming, not just the theory. They will be the ones able to turn scientific progress into commercial strength with clarity, confidence and minimal friction.
Simon concludes.
When people see Cloudfy in action, the reaction is often the same. Surprise and delight! They realise very quickly that the level of B2B depth and integration intelligence available to them is far greater than they expected. Many pharma organisations have lived with complex, ageing systems for years, and it can be hard to imagine a future where everything connects cleanly and simply. That is exactly what Cloudfy is proving possible. Our team has worked across almost every type of legacy environment, and that experience means we can guide companies into a digital future that once felt out of reach. It is incredibly rewarding to see the sense of relief and excitement when they understand what a modern, connected commerce operation can look like.
