Ross will lead the company’s next phase of growth as it scales its proprietary patient-derived AI model designed to address the most persistent constraint in pharmaceutical development: lack of direct access to engaged patients and AI-ready real-world data.
Ross said: “AI in clinical research only works if it is grounded and begins with real patients and their connected data.
“What makes StuffThatWorks fundamentally different is that the model is built on a proprietary patient foundation and produces structured, research-grade outputs you can actually act on.
“That’s what allows us to deliver order-of-magnitude improvements across feasibility, recruitment, and execution.”
Despite billions invested annually in drug development, more than 70 per cent of clinical trials are delayed, most often due to protocol feasibility failures, inefficient recruitment, and limited real-world patient insight.
In today’s AI landscape, the limiting factor is no longer algorithms; it is proprietary, structured patient-reported experience data and the ability to produce grounded, research-grade outputs that can be trusted in clinical decision-making.
StuffThatWorks was built to solve this foundational problem.
The company operates a self-perpetuating patient data engine connecting over 3 million patients across 1,250 conditions, generating 1.3 billion structured, longitudinal data points purpose-built for learning.
Julie A. Ross
This dataset is consistent, cross-condition, and continuously updated—making it uniquely suited for training and operating AI systems in regulated clinical environments.
At the core of the platform is a patient-derived AI model that produces hallucination-free, structured research outputs, not generated text.
Instead of summarising or speculating, the model executes analytical programs directly on live patient data—delivering statistically grounded answers for feasibility assessment, subgroup identification, participation prediction, bias reduction, and real-world safety and effectiveness analysis.
Already, StuffThatWorks is delivering 10× efficiency gains in patient insights and patient recruitment, enabling sponsors to identify eligible patients faster, design more feasible protocols, and significantly reduce time-to-enrollment, often the single largest driver of clinical trial cost and delay.
Ross brings more than 30 years of leadership experience across trial operations, commercialisation, and M&A.
As CEO of Advanced Clinical, she grew the company to US$200 million in revenue, with CRO and FSP growth boasting a 25 per cent CAGR over 10 years.
During her tenure, she built global operations and long-term partnerships with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.
Her appointment underscores StuffThatWorks’ focus on translating patient intelligence into scalable, execution-ready solutions for the clinical trial industry.
Yael Elish is founder and chief product & strategy officer of StuffThatWorks.
Elish said: “Julie has scaled clinical research organizations by understanding both patient realities and operational complexity.
“Her leadership positions StuffThatWorks to turn our unique model and fully AI-native, patient-connected data into a solution to address the broken system for how trials are designed, recruited, and executed.”
Under Ross’s leadership, StuffThatWorks will expand its clinical trial offerings, deepen longitudinal and EMR-connected data, and scale its centralized patient intelligence layer—enabling faster trials, at lower risk, resulting in earlier access to better treatments for patients worldwide.
Furthermore, StuffThatWorks will be presenting during the following two sessions at the upcoming 17th Annual SCOPE Summit being held in Orlando, Florida from February 2-5, 2026.
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