Neuroscience Drug Development: How Novel Applications of AI Could Meaningfully Disrupt Traditional Development Strategies

(Moderator) Todd Rudo, MD, EVP, Chief Medical Officer, Clario

Dr. Todd Rudo is EVP and Chief Medical Officer at Clario, providing medical and scientific leadership across the organization. He has nearly 20 years of clinical cardiology and pharmaceutical research experience, with a career predominantly focused on drug safety.

Dr. Rudo has board certifications in cardiology, cardiac electrophysiology, nuclear cardiology, adult echocardiography and internal medicine. His team provides expert consulting to clients on scientific and regulatory strategy, and ensures Clario’s product portfolio is scientifically robust, generating high-quality clinical trial endpoint data. Dr. Rudo has a particular interest in applying innovative technologies to improve the scientific rigor of clinical trials, while maintaining focus on the customer experience, including minimizing patient and site burden.

Mark Opler, PhD, Chief Research Officer, eCOA Neuroscience, Clario

Dr. Mark Opler is the Chief Research Officer of eCOA Neuroscience at Clario. In this role, he directs scientific research and leads ongoing studies in psychiatry, measurement development, psychometric validation and other areas of neuroscience. He is also the Executive Director of the PANSS Institute. He has served as a Faculty Member in the Department of Psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine and in the Department of Neuroscience at Columbia University, College of Physicians and Surgeons. His academic research focuses on the etiology, phenomenology and treatment of serious and persistent mental disorders. He is a co-author and developer of several clinical assessment tools, including the SNAPSI, CGI-DS and NY-AACENT. He is also a contributor to the latest edition of the PANSS Manual©.

Dr. Opler has received research support from the US NIMH, the Brain & Behavior Foundation (formerly NARSAD), the Stanley Medical Research Institute and the Qatar National Research Fund. He has co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed publications and has contributed to multiple book chapters and review articles on clinical assessment, research methodology and mental health.

He received his PhD and MPH from Columbia University, as well as his BSc from SUNY at Stony Brook. He is a graduate of the Psychiatric Epidemiology Training Program at Columbia University and completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the New York State Psychiatric Institute.

Alex Boudreau, Director, AI, Clario

Alex Boudreau is the Director of AI at Clario. He leads the company’s innovative Generative AI department and oversees the development of the company’s advanced multimodal GenAI Platform, encompassing cutting-edge cloud engineering, AI engineering and foundational AI research.

Alex previously pioneered Deep Learning speech analysis systems for automotive applications, led cloud-based enterprise fraud detection solutions, advanced conversational AI technologies and groundbreaking projects in medical image analysis. His expertise in leading high-impact initiatives positions him uniquely to drive forward the boundaries of AI technology in the business world.

Joël Schaerer, PhD, Senior Director, Imaging AI, Clario

Joël Schaerer, PhD is Senior Director of Imaging AI at Clario, where he leads initiatives at the intersection of medical imaging, artificial intelligence and clinical research. He has extensive experience in the design, development and validation of image analysis and AI-based solutions for clinical trials, with a particular focus on quantitative imaging and neuroimaging applications.

Dr. Schaerer holds a PhD in Medical Image Processing from the National Institute of Applied Sciences (INSA) in Lyon, France, and has over a decade of experience spanning academic research and industry. His work has included the development of advanced image-processing algorithms, longitudinal disease-progression metrics and scalable AI platforms that support global clinical studies. At Clario, he has held leadership roles overseeing multidisciplinary teams that translate advanced imaging and AI technologies into robust, regulated solutions for clinical development.