Today, more than 55 million people worldwide have AD or related dementias.

The World Health Organization estimates that worldwide it costs $1.3 trillion per year to treat people with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. And as the world’s elderly population grows, the number of dementia patients worldwide and the disease’s financial cost will increase as well. Yet, we still lack meaningful therapies that can slow or reverse its course. These costs are already squeezing healthcare budgets in developed countries. If they aren’t addressed, the burden placed on health systems around the world will be debilitating.

In 2018, a coalition of organizations and industry partners who were interested in improving Alzheimer’s disease data sharing was brought together by Bill Gates—to move innovation further and faster by connecting researchers with the data they need.