262 - Pharma Outsourcing in 2026: CDMO Capacity, Trust & AI | Raman Sehgal

Pharma outsourcing, CDMO selection, and contract manufacturing are changing as biotech funding, manufacturing capacity, and sponsor expectations shift. Raman Sehgal joins Subhi Saadeh to discuss the CDMO market in 2026, what makes a reliable manufacturing partner, and how AI in drug discovery could shape demand for outsourced development and manufacturing.

Recorded at CDMO Live Americas, this conversation examines what happens when a supplier’s capabilities look right on paper, but the experience of working with them falls short. Raman shares his perspective on how the industry grew, why some biotech clients feel overlooked by large CDMOs, and where smaller providers have an opportunity to compete.

We discuss:

• How pharma outsourcing evolved from transactional manufacturing to strategic partnerships

• What site visits, employee enthusiasm, and company culture reveal about a supplier

• Why customer experience matters from the first RFP through batch delivery

• How biotech funding and post-COVID changes affected CDMO demand

• Differences in capacity across oral solid dose and sterile fill-finish manufacturing

• Risk-sharing, pricing models, and aligned incentives between sponsors and CDMOs

• How GLP-1s and peptides created opportunities for some manufacturers

• AI-driven drug discovery, preclinical research, and the lag before new molecules reach manufacturing

• Why Raman recommends starting AI adoption with business processes

ABOUT RAMAN SEHGAL

Raman Sehgal is the founder of ramarketing and host of the Molecule to Market podcast. He also co-founded Lead Candidate, a talent acquisition business serving the pharmaceutical outsourcing sector. He brings more than two decades of experience working with CDMOs and pharmaceutical service providers.

ABOUT SUBHI SAADEH

Subhi Saadeh is a combination product quality consultant, founder of Combinate, and host of Let’s Combinate. His experience spans pharmaceutical and medical device quality, supplier and contract manufacturer oversight, audits, and quality systems. He helps pharma companies solve device problems and device companies solve pharma problems.

Find Raman on LinkedIn and listen to Molecule to Market. Subscribe to Let’s Combinate for conversations on combination products, drug delivery, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and quality.

Thank you to the CDMO Live Americas team for making this conversation possible.