According to a report by The Wall Street Journal on the 26th, InSilico Medicine, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company driven by generative AI, is working on developing a 'miracle drug' that can significantly extend human lifespan.
This pharmaceutical company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is the first company in the world to use generative AI to develop candidate drugs and advance them to the clinical trial stage. It has long been involved in the research and development of drugs for cancer, Parkinson's disease, and pulmonary fibrosis. The company believes that anti-aging therapies will drive its next phase of growth.
"My job is to make sure you all live longer," said CEO Alex Zhavoronkov, "We're building the Mount Olympus of drug discovery."
In order to stand out in the competitive biopharmaceutical field, like many foreign companies, this company has adopted a strategy of 'being rooted in China'. Zavolonkov aims to secure a leading position in the fierce pharmaceutical industry in China, while also achieving corporate profitability.
Zavorkov believes that the success or failure of InSi Intelligence lies in China. According to reports, although the company is located in Boston, it has established its core business operations in China.
Today, China has become the core engine of biopharmaceutical innovation worldwide. As Chinese companies make continuous breakthroughs in drug research and development, a number of local leading enterprises have emerged, and more foreign companies have attracted to enter China. According to Zavrokov, establishing a business foundation in China is an inevitable choice for companies.
"All of our competitors are now in China. If we do not give it our full effort, we will be defeated," he said.
The rise of China's biotech industry has led to several major collaborations between overseas pharmaceutical giants. Among them, a cooperation project recently established between the US pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb and Hengrui Medicine has a potential total transaction value of approximately $15.2 billion.
"China Pharmaceutical Company has successfully bridged the gap in certain niche fields," said Chenxing Analyst Wang Kai, "and their R&D pipeline now holds even more innovative drugs."
Zavolonkov further pointed out that it takes overseas large pharmaceutical companies an average of four and a half years from the screening of new drug targets to pre-clinical trials, while Chinese domestic companies only need about two and a half years. The CEO frankly stated, “In some sectors, Western companies have already lost their competitive edge.”
In this context, Yingsi Intelligence plans to fully implement its development strategy of 'based in China and serving China'.
According to reports, leveraging AI technology, the company can reduce the drug development cycle from several years to as short as 9 months. Its research and development pipeline will be tailored to meet local clinical needs in China, and the innovation of the developed drugs will surpass that of locally developed products by domestic pharmaceutical companies. Sinovation Health hopes to seize the local market by taking advantage of its early-mover position and to launch products ahead of competitors.
"The best way to compete with China is to compete in China. Otherwise, you will lose the world's largest market ever witnessed," said Zavolokov.
According to reports, there are 13 candidate drugs for the British company SmartSilicon that have obtained clinical trial permits or approvals in China. Among them, 10 are in the clinical trial stage. Additionally, 5 drugs are jointly developed by the company and local partners, or they are licensed for commercialization by local companies.
InSight AI has recently reached several significant cooperation agreements. Among them, the cooperation with Eli Lilly and Company could potentially amount to up to $2.75 billion. However, the company has not yet achieved profitability. Zarovnikov is confident that the company will achieve its profitability targets within the next three years.
Only the upfront payments from Eli Lilly are expected to double Insilys' revenue this year. The CEO revealed that several significant partnerships are in the process of being finalized. He also stated that Insilys has enough cash reserves to last for five to six years, so there is no immediate need for urgent financing at this stage.
InSight AI, developed by InSight Smart, is its core source of revenue. Although optimistic about the AI drug development sector, Zavroykov believes that the AI industry is about to experience a period of valuation correction. This is because many companies with meager revenues, low research outputs, and no tangible assets have inflated their valuations, which has sparked skepticism among investors.
Evidently, there is a huge bubble. (When it bursts), the impact may be even larger than in 2008 (Financial crisis) ,” he told American media,” those who are neither narcotics experts nor AI experts suddenly want to make a fortune of tens of billions of dollars by relying on meager income. This is like an F1 racing team made up of horse groomers."
"We have made preparations for battle, in order to survive long term and fight." Zhavorynkov added.
