The UAB Systems Pharmacology AI Research Center (SPARC) has launched the 2026 SPARC Drug Discovery CollaboFest, a collaborative challenge inviting multidisciplinary teams to turn promising biomedical insights into experimentally testable therapeutic strategies.
CollaboFest is designed to help investigators move a disease mechanism, clinical observation, candidate therapy, or valuable dataset toward a defined drug-discovery solution. Projects may focus on therapeutic targets, chemicals and biologics, patient cohorts, or an integrated approach connecting mechanism, therapeutic design, validation, and the patients most likely to benefit. The program aims to generate pilot evidence that can support future grants, publications, partnerships, and potential UAB intellectual property.
Three selected teams will each receive a jointly developed package valued at up to $40,000 in combined, in-kind services from SPARC and Southern Research. SPARC will provide AI design, computational analysis, and systems-pharmacology expertise, while Southern Research will contribute scoped wet-laboratory support. Each winning team will also receive $1,000 in prize money provided through the Marnix E. Heersink Institute for Biomedical Innovation.
A partnership built to move ideas into validation
The 2026 challenge is presented by SPARC and supported by partners representing biomedical informatics, translational science, innovation, and experimental drug discovery:
- UAB Department of Biomedical Informatics and Data Science
- UAB-led Center for Clinical and Translational Science
- Marnix E. Heersink Institute for Biomedical Innovation
- Southern Research
Together, these partners will contribute expertise to the organization, review, and delivery of the challenge. Southern Research’s wet-lab capabilities expand the program’s ability to move computational findings toward experimental validation, while the Heersink Institute is providing prize funding for the selected teams. Representatives from SPARC and the co-sponsoring organizations will also participate in the judging process.
Applicants will submit a concise, three-page proposal describing the unmet need, central hypothesis, scientific foundation, proposed solution, requested SPARC support, team readiness, validation plan, and next milestone. Proposals may address therapeutic targets, chemical or biologic candidates, patient cohorts, or projects that connect multiple areas of the drug-discovery process.
Key Dates
A three-page proposal is due on September 30, 2026, through the CollaboFest application portal.
By October 20, 2026, three winning teams will be announced and begin working with SPARC and Southern Research to define project scope, deliverables, and validation plans.
Complete application requirements, award details, supporting documents, the information session recording, and the full program timeline are available on the 2026 SPARC Drug Discovery CollaboFest website.