SHI helps global pharma leader avoid $250K in costs with smarter AI architecture guidance

Faced with rising costs and performance roadblocks in a critical AI platform, our customer turned to SHI for trusted guidance— and avoided a $250K misstep.

Challenge:

Our customer, a global pharmaceutical leader, had a plan to accelerate their research and development efforts using a leading AI-based image analysis platform. This platform was intended to support critical workflows like clinical decision-making and clinical trial research by scanning and analyzing large volumes of imaging data to detect cancerous markers. However, as the customer began planning to scale their usage of the platform, limitations in its architecture became apparent. It scaled adequately to two GPUs, but struggled beyond that due to software inefficiencies. Worse, the licensing model — charged per node rather than per GPU — posed significant cost challenges. Without intervention, the customer risked investing upwards of $250,000 in hardware and software that would not meet their long-term needs.

Solution:

SHI’s engineering and account teams, building on a trusted 15-year relationship with the customer, proactively recommended a different approach. Instead of immediately purchasing the planned hardware, SHI leveraged internal AI lab resources to simulate the proposed environment and rigorously test the performance of the platform at scale. These tests confirmed major inefficiencies, validating that the customer’s intended hardware investment would not resolve the scaling issues. We advised the customer on architectural alternatives, steering them toward cloud-based solutions better suited for large-scale image analysis without the node-based licensing cost penalty. Throughout the process, SHI acted as a true advisor, prioritizing the customer’s business success over immediate sales opportunities.

Outcome:

By following SHI’s guidance, the customer avoided an initial $200,000–$250,000 investment in a system that would not have met their needs, including $150,000 in unnecessary licensing fees alone. More importantly, SHI’s intervention helped the customer pivot to a more scalable, cloud-based solution, ensuring faster image analysis at a sustainable cost. Beyond the financial savings, our approach strengthened our relationship and reinforced our reputation as a trusted, long-term advisor committed to doing what’s right for the customer.