Biochemist warns

“The 32-hour week won’t get us anywhere”

Dr. Norbert Bischofberger lives and researches in the USA.

(Bild: ÖAW)

Vorarlberg biochemist Norbert Bischofberger was the keynote speaker at the Academy of Austrian Sciences - and was not sparing with his criticism.

An air of entrepreneurial spirit wafted through the ballroom of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) when biochemist Norbert Bischofberger took to the stage and spoke about his more than impressive career. Born in 1956 in Mellau in the Bregenzerwald, "Nori" was already interested in chemistry in his early childhood, which led, among other things, to the village letterbox exploding during an experiment with black powder. He studied in Innsbruck, at ETH Zurich and at Harvard University. In the 1990s, the Vorarlberg native built up the largest biotech company in the USA. Under his aegis, "Gilead Sciences" brought highly effective drugs against influenza, HIV and hepatitis C onto the market. Bischofberger estimates that 30 million people worldwide now benefit from them - and his inventions have also saved the lives of many.

Norbert Bischofberger is the brother of "Krone" journalist Conny Bischofberger.

(Bild: zVg)

At 62, the great strategist against deadly viruses started all over again, "because I felt 42 and behaved like a 22-year-old," he laughs. And in a completely different field. His start-up "Kronos Bio" is researching therapies for sarcoma, breast, ovarian and lung cancer.

Bischofberger's scientific work was made possible by the unique infrastructure of the San Francisco Bay Area: easy access to venture capital and stock markets, an attractive climate, but above all the start-up mentality that he misses in Europe. "Risk is a positive thing in California, mistakes are accepted. There is this basic optimism that tomorrow will be better than today thanks to technology." In Europe, bureaucracy and regulatory madness slow down the important work of excellent researchers. "When Chat GPT came along, people in the USA said: Oh, that's unbeleivable! In Europe, the first reaction was how to regulate this new development." The old continent is sleeping through the fourth industrial revolution.

ÖWA President Heinz Faßmann with this year's - critical - keynote speaker.

(Bild: ÖAW/Daniel Hinterramskogler)

Bischofberger was not sparing in his criticism of Austrian politics. The 32-hour week was the wrong way to go, he said, and would not help the country move forward. "The Austrian national anthem says happy to work and full of hope, not work-shy and hopeless." Instead, the government should invest more money in institutions such as the ÖWA, the IST in Klosterneuburg or the CeMM at Vienna General Hospital as well as in basic research, "because they secure the future and the standard of living."

Speaking of the fourth industrial revolution: Bischofberger is also a member of the board of a company that uses artificial intelligence in genetic research. "Gingko" does not feed the AI with languages or images, like Chat GPT, for example, but with DNA sequences. In future, this will massively accelerate research work because AI will be able to access 2.7 billion such DNA sequences from humans, animals, plants, bacteria and viruses. This is particularly relevant for cancer and antibody research.

Former Federal President Heinz Fischer and his wife Margit were among the guests at the ceremony

(Bild: ÖÄW/Daniel Hinterramskogler)

Could AI have invented what he succeeded in doing as a researcher? "No," says Bischofberger, "AI can only find exactly what humans are looking for. In research, however, we are looking for something that we don't yet know what it could be."