Optum and Syneos Health Partner to Advance an Adaptive Clinical Development Model

Partnership Will Transform How Clinical Development is Designed and Executed

MORRISVILLE, N.C., Oct. 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Syneos Health® today announced a partnership with Optum to build a more adaptive and connected model for clinical development, helping biopharmaceutical companies deliver promising therapies to patients sooner.

The collaboration will bring together Optum’s healthcare industry knowledge, specialized expertise and AI resources with Syneos Health’s clinical development expertise, global trial operations and technology solutions. The resulting model is designed to strengthen development strategies and execute more precise, efficient trials by improving recruitment and trial performance, reducing operational complexity and enhancing predictability across development timelines and costs.

Under the agreement, Syneos Health and Optum will partner closely in the development of:

• Adaptive clinical development planning to enable development teams to simulate trial scenarios, evaluate protocol assumptions, identify possible risks and assess interventions before and during trial implementation.
  
  
• Patient, site and investigator access to help clinical trial sponsors more easily identify eligible patient populations to expand patient access and optimize locations so trials can begin faster. Syneos Health will be Optum’s preferred partner for the development of their site management organization (SMO).
  
  
• Data, technology and governance infrastructure to responsibly scale these improvements while maintaining rigorous standards for scientific validation, privacy, evidence traceability and human oversight.
  

“Clinical development is at an inflection point. The future belongs to organizations that can connect data, human expertise and AI technology to make better decisions faster,” said Costa Panagos, Chief Executive Officer of Syneos Health. “Our collaboration with Optum brings deep healthcare expertise that can help improve trial design and implementation with greater precision and predictability.”

“Clinical research is one of the most complex and data-intensive activities in healthcare, yet necessary connections are fragmented all too often,” said Sandeep Dadlani, Chief Executive Officer of Optum Insight. “By connecting our responsible use of technology and network with Syneos Health’s global clinical development capabilities, we can make the health system work better for everyone.”

This announcement builds on Syneos Health's broader commitment to shape the future of clinical development. As part of its AI ecosystem, the Company continues to invest in technologies and collaborations that enhance decision-making, streamline execution and unlock new value from clinical and real-world data. Recent initiatives have included expanding agentic solutions that connect insights, workflows and expertise across operations.

About Syneos Health

Syneos Health® is a leading fully integrated biopharmaceutical solutions organization built to accelerate customer success. We translate unique clinical, commercial and real world insights into outcomes to address modern market realities. 

We bring together a talented team of professionals with a deep understanding of patient and physician behaviors and market dynamics. Together we share diverse insights, use the latest technologies and apply advanced business practices to speed our customers’ delivery of important therapies to patients.

Syneos Health is powered by an authentic, inclusive and high-performance culture that cares for colleagues, customers, patients, communities and the environment.

Learn more about how our expert team members can help accelerate your success. Visit syneoshealth.com.

About Optum

Optum is a leading information and technology-enabled health services business dedicated to helping make the health system work better for everyone. With more than 310,000 people worldwide, Optum delivers intelligent, integrated solutions that help to modernize the health system and improve overall population health. Optum is part of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH). For more information, visit www.optum.com.

Press/Media Contact:
Meg Byers
Director, External Communications
Meg.byers@syneoshealth.com