Bringing Patients, Sites, and AI Together at The End. Barcelona 2026

On October 15, Biorce hosted the Barcelona 2026 edition of The End., its conference series on AI in clinical trials. The name says it all: the end of clinical trials as we knew them.

Around 200 senior leaders from pharma, biotech, CROs, regulators, and investors spent the day in keynotes, panels, and debates. The goal: honest conversation that gets better trials to patients faster.

The Debates Under the Microscope

From morning keynotes to the closing session, speakers covered topics ranging from AI governance, protocol complexity, the CRO operating model, the site experience, and the human role in AI-led trials.

Reid Blackman, Founder and CEO of Virtue, opened the day with a keynote on scientific judgment in the age of AI. Joana Claverol, from Barcelona Children’s Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, brought the site perspective: every sponsor platform adds friction, especially in pediatric and decentralized, at-home trials. Sites need technology that removes burden for patients.

In the “Protocols as Data”, Hugh Levaux, Zachary Smith, Jonathan Crowther, and Shenika Vilton showed how treating protocol as data, not a document, exposes conflicts between endpoints, eligibility, and schedules while they’re still easy to fix.

Barry Cymerman added that change management must start on day one, or adoption stalls. He then joined Jonathan Harris on the CRO operating model panel, moderated by Craig Lipset, who later returned to the stage to unpack what stalls trial innovation.

On the AI governance panel, Willem Baralt, Álex Turpin, Xavier Casasus, John E. Milad, and Ali Nobakht agreed that AI should be treated as a fast intern, while the decision, and the responsibility, stay with a person.

Xavier Luria, Graham Belgrave, and William Hariri were split on whether Europe can win back pivotal trials. Still, regulators named site contracting, more than regulation, as the real bottleneck.

Patients as Partners, Not Numbers

After a live look at Aika 2.0 from Clara Bernardes, the day closed with a candid conversation between Magda Kurtz (Biorce) and Victoria Gray, the first patient in the US treated with CRISPR gene editing for sickle cell disease. In a deeply personal reflection, Victoria shared what it was like to wait more than a year between hearing about her trial and receiving treatment. Together, they made the case for treating patients as active partners, not numbers moved through clinical steps.

Until Next Time: Boston, Spring 2027

Thank you to every speaker, attendee, and partner who brought their curiosity to Barcelona. A special thanks to registrants, whose donations go directly to the Clinical Trials Unit at Sant Joan de Déu.

The next edition of The End. comes to Boston in spring 2027. Follow us for updates.