Accelerating discoveries through collaborative science

In 2020, the AD Data Initiative coalition came together around a simple and proven idea: expanding access to data can dramatically accelerate innovation.  


Our Scientific Strategy, Explained

Nearly six years ago, members of the Alzheimer’s Disease Data Initiative Coalition came together around a simple thesis: expanding access to data can dramatically accelerate innovation.  

This thesis has already been proven in many other scientific arenas, including in the fights against Parkinson’s Disease, childhood stunting, and malaria. As progress on Alzheimer’s disease (AD) was slow to advance in 2018, it was time to test it in our field. Coalition members, representing leading academic, governmental, philanthropic, and industry organizations, sought to identify easier ways to share data and analytical tools to accelerate progress.  

Today, the AD Data Initiative coalition and its partners continue to lead efforts to ensure that researchers and individual and institutional collaborators have the data, the analytic tools and resources and the collaborative research environment to speed up progress toward breakthroughs. This work is guided by our scientific strategy.  

Strategic Direction through Thematic Alignment

Since the launch of the AD Data Initiative in 2020, our coalition’s efforts have been guided by an evolving list of priority research questions that are shaped by insights from our Advisory Board, community feedback and engagement with thought leaders in the Alzheimer’s research space.  

With these priority questions as our lodestar, and with AD Workbench as the data sharing and analytics environment and our flagship product offering, we are focused on two complementary goals: (1) continuing to expand datasets, interoperability and functionality via the AD Workbench; and (2) designing strategies that encourage researchers to use the AD Workbench in innovative ways to further inquiries into the priority questions.   

We envision this list of questions as a dynamic blueprint that will drive innovation, inform strategic decisions, and inspire the next generation of collaborative breakthroughs.   

The priority research questions are mapped to 8 key themes:   

Biological Pathways & Trials

Driver Projects

Research Collaborations

Fellows

Cognitive Function Measures

Research Collaborations

Data Challenges

Driver Projects

Disease Progression Tracking

Data Challenges

Research Collaborations

Driver Projects

Novel Biomarkers & Diagnostics

Data Challenges

Fellows

Research Collaborations

Driver Projects

Prevention

Research Collaborations

Driver Projects

Subtypes

Data Challenges

Fellows

Research Collaborations

Driver Projects

Risk prediction in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs)

Research Collaborations

Fellows

Driver Projects

Risk Factors for Amyloid-Related Imaging Abnormalities (ARIA)

Driving Research Forward – Together

Further Your Research: Visit the AD Discovery Portal today to explore datasets and request access via AD Workbench.  

Interested in accelerating innovation by sharing ADRD data? Learn more here.