ARPA-H Launches SURPASS Program to accelerate Clinical Trials
The initiative aims to reduce clinical trial timelines to less than four years through artificial intelligence, predictive computational models and adaptive trial designs.
The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has launched the SURPASS program to make clinical trials faster, more efficient and less costly.
SURPASS (Simulation-augmented, Real-time Platform Adaptive Seamless Trials) aims to address longstanding challenges in drug development, including lengthy timelines, high costs and high failure rates. Its goal is to shorten clinical trial timelines to less than four years while maintaining scientific rigor.
The program will focus on three key areas: predictive trial design using computational models and digital twins; real-time statistical analysis to support adaptive trial decisions; and automated trial operations to streamline study start-up, data management and the addition of new treatment arms.
By integrating these technologies, ARPA-H aims to move beyond traditional, sequential clinical trial models toward more flexible and continuous approaches that could accelerate the evaluation of promising treatments.
SURPASS is part of a broader ARPA-H effort to modernize clinical research, alongside initiatives targeting trial site capacity, research data access and patient participation.
The agency is seeking multidisciplinary teams with expertise in artificial intelligence, biostatistics, clinical research and regulatory science. According to the official program page, the deadline for solution summaries is November 30, 2026, followed by a full proposal deadline of January 22, 2027.
If successful, SURPASS could help reduce research costs, improve trial efficiency and bring effective treatments to patients sooner.
More information is available on the official ARPA-H SURPASS program page.
