Kyowa Kirin Taps Cognizant and Benchling to Digitalize R&D Labs

The pharmaceutical giant, which specializes in rare diseases and hematology, faces an expanding pipeline that requires more sophisticated data management. By integrating Benchling, Kyowa Kirin intends to connect laboratory instruments directly to a centralized system. This shift allows researchers to capture experimental data as searchable, structured records, effectively eliminating the bottleneck of manual documentation.

Cognizant will manage the end-to-end implementation, including platform setup, data migration, and ongoing maintenance. According to Takashi Shimada, head of Kyowa Kirin’s research division, the partnership serves as a foundation for a next-generation discovery model. The platform provides researchers with agentic AI capabilities designed to interpret scientific context, assist in molecular design, and analyze historical experimental data to inform future trials. By moving to this integrated environment, the company expects to gain better cost predictability and operational flexibility while significantly tightening the cycle from target identification to candidate selection.