Thermo Fisher Scientific agreed to acquire clinical trial data firm Clario for $8.8 billion, a deal that will expand Thermo Fisher’s digital offerings across trial operations and data management. The purchase folds Clario into Thermo Fisher’s Laboratory Products and Biopharma Services segment and underscores the continued strategic push by instrument and services giants to own end‑to‑end clinical development workflows. Executives highlighted the deal’s ability to accelerate trial execution and strengthen digital capabilities in decentralized and hybrid trials. For biopharma customers, the combination promises integrated tools for patient recruitment, eCOA, eConsent and data capture tied to laboratory services. The acquisition marks another wave of consolidation where large life‑science suppliers buy software and data players to lock in clinical R&D spending and cross‑sell platforms to sponsors and CROs.