Summary

40 years since the first cases of HIV were identified, we often reflect on the enormous advances that have been made to combat the disease. From the vantage point of 2021, there is a lot to celebrate: an unknown virus identified, characterised, and sequenced; treatments developed and refined; health systems strengthened to deliver those treatments; an HIV response that has shaped health systems and global health. However, when considered alongside the rapid response to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and COVID-19 the HIV response seems practically sluggish.