Scientific research and innovations are one of the key ingredients for sustainable economic growth. However, the contribution of science to economic development is not always apparent, especially when there are no practical solutions or tangible products on offer. This has caused science to be sometimes underappreciated by the lay public. The biennial International Conference on Drug Discovery and Translational Medicine (ICDDTM), now recognised in the Asia Pacific region as a premier conference series, aims to bring to the fore the crucial role of science in advancing a nation’s economy.

The inaugural ICDDTM’18 and its successor, ICDDTM’21, have served as a global platform for researchers and clinicians to network, exchange ideas, and discuss their latest discoveries pertinent to precision medicine and its collateral disciplines. ICDDTM has also given rise to ‘spin-off’ satellite symposiums tackling a variety of issues. With the conference theme “Scientific Discoveries: Impacting Healthcare and Driving Economic Growth”, ICDDTM’23 is geared to examine the symbiotic relationship between science and economy.