Earnings Season | After a decade of focus, Jacobio reaps first harvest in KRAS with approved drug and $2B+ deal

The most direct manifestation of this in the financial report is the improvement in Jacobio's financial data.

During 2025, Jacobio recorded revenue of RMB 53.5 million, a significant decrease from RMB 156 million in 2024, primarily due to a reduction in revenue related to licensing agreements and associated clinical trial services. Gross profit decreased from RMB 156 million to RMB 52.9 million, mainly attributable to the decline in revenue. Research and development expenses decreased substantially, from RMB 330 million as of the end of 2024 to RMB 189 million, a reduction of 42.9%, due to the absence of large-scale pivotal clinical trial costs during the reporting period, including clinical trial drug supply.

As of the end of 2025, Jacobio's cash and cash equivalents and bank credit facilities totaled approximately RMB 1.53 billion, achieving a positive balance between revenue and expenditure. Jacobio expressed strong confidence in its future financial performance, stating that it expects its cash balance to exceed RMB 2.0 billion in the first quarter of 2026 and to achieve profitability by turning losses into gains in 2026.

The arrival of this financial inflection point is inextricably linked to the launch of commercial sales for its products.

In 2025, Jacobio's core product, the KRAS G12C inhibitor glecirasib, was approved for marketing in China for the treatment of second-line and beyond non-small cell lung cancer patients. More critically, it was rapidly added to the National Reimbursement Drug List in December of the same year. Although it was only six months from its approval in June 2025 to the year-end, Jacobio recognized revenue of RMB 8.55 million through its commercialization collaboration with Allist Pharma.

Behind this RMB 8.55 million figure lies the validation of a complete closed loop for a biotech company, from research and development to commercialization. It also signifies that Jacobio's innovative capabilities have been translated into tangible market value.

Another major highlight is the growth driven by licensing transactions. In December 2025, Jacobio entered into a licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for the pan-KRAS inhibitor JAB-23E73. This transaction has a total value of up to US$2.015 billion, including a US$100 million upfront payment. Jacobio disclosed in communications with media including VCBeat that this upfront payment is expected to be received in the first quarter of 2026, serving as a core guarantee for Jacobio's anticipated substantial increase in cash flow and its path to profitability in 2026.

In the current environment for licensing transactions, the selection criteria of multinational corporations for small molecule drugs are undeniably stringent.

Dr. Yinxiang Wang explained to media including VCBeat that the decision to partner with AstraZeneca after the release of Phase I clinical data was based on multiple strategic considerations: "First, to seize a first-mover advantage in the global market, and AstraZeneca's capabilities in promoting oncology targeted therapies are beyond doubt. Second, the future of oncology treatment will undoubtedly be an era of combination therapies. AstraZeneca has a rich internal pipeline, including EGFR inhibitors and ADCs, which can be combined with our pan-KRAS inhibitor to maximize synergistic effects." This decision demonstrates Jacobio's global commercial vision at an early stage of drug development.

If the launch and sales of glecirasib addressed Jacobio's immediate survival needs, then the licensing deal with AstraZeneca has created more room for Jacobio's future development.

Dr. Wang told VCBeat: "JAB-23E73 is one of the few cases among small molecule anti-tumor drugs in licensing transactions, and both the total contract value and upfront payment are among the highest for assets at the Phase I clinical stage. We will continue to actively pursue licensing opportunities in the future, but we will make comprehensive considerations based on product characteristics and clinical stages."

Looking at the industry as a whole, Dr. Wang believes that licensing activities in 2026 will follow the trend of 2025, but there will not be exponential growth, as such growth requires the accumulation of clinical data. In the past few years, licensing has been concentrated in narrow fields—for example, in oncology, mainly ADCs and bispecific antibodies, and in the metabolic field, GLP-1s. In these hot areas of traditional ADCs, bispecific antibodies, and GLP-1s, multiple players have already laid out most of the available targets, making it difficult to achieve significant additional growth.

Although its first product has been successfully launched, Jacobio still faces formidable challenges ahead.

The KRAS target represents perhaps the most intense area of global oncology research and development today. In the small molecule field especially, competition has reached a fever pitch. The market's focus is on the following: Facing competition from other technological approaches such as molecular glues, where does Jacobio's moat lie? Following glecirasib, what will be Jacobio's second growth curve?

Based on the information disclosed in this financial report, Jacobio has chosen to deepen its focus on KRAS-targeted therapies while horizontally expanding into the innovative xADC platform.

Jacobio is attempting to construct its moat through differentiated clinical data and technological iteration.

For example, the pan-KRAS inhibitor JAB-23E73 is currently undergoing clinical research in China and the United States. In terms of safety, based on data from 42 patients, the incidence of Grade 3 treatment-related adverse events for JAB-23E73 is 11.9%, significantly lower than the 34% reported for RMC-6236. Particularly noteworthy is the skin toxicity that troubles both physicians and patients: the all-grade rash incidence for JAB-23E73 is only 14.3%, with no Grade 3 or higher toxicity observed. In comparison, RMC-6236's skin toxicity incidence reaches 91%, with Grade 3 or higher at 8%.

Regarding the competitive landscape between JAB-23E73 and Revolution Medicines' molecular glue RMC-6236—a topic of significant market interest—Dr. Yinxiang Wang stated that there is a fundamental mechanistic difference between the two: molecular glues simultaneously inhibit HRAS, NRAS, and KRAS, whereas small molecules inhibit KRAS alone.

Beyond the data, there is also industry concern regarding the potential for patent overlap with other small molecules. On this point, Dr. Wang stated directly: "In the field of small molecule pan-KRAS inhibitors, patents are very difficult to navigate, and it will be very challenging for later-stage companies to enter." Dr. Wang emphasized, "Our patent coverage is very broad."

This suggests that in the specific niche of oral small molecule pan-KRAS inhibitors, Jacobio may have already constructed extremely high intellectual property barriers, positioning itself very favorably for the future.

Looking ahead to potential resistance issues and the safety window limitations of existing therapies, Jacobio has turned its focus to functional payload-based ADCs—its xADC platform.

Traditional ADCs carry highly toxic payloads. While they offer good efficacy, they also come with significant side effects. Jacobio is advancing two differentiated ADC platforms.

The first is tADC, or targeted therapy payload ADC. Its representative program, JAB-BX600, conjugates a KRAS G12D inhibitor to an EGFR antibody. Clinical data suggests that due to the payload's extremely high activity—with cellular activity at the picomolar level, 1,000 times that of oral small molecules—and its specific release within the tumor microenvironment—with tumor concentrations 2,000 times higher than in plasma—it theoretically achieves a broader therapeutic window and holds promise for overcoming resistance to KRAS inhibitors.

Another avenue of exploration is iADC, or immune-stimulating payload ADC. Its representative program, JAB-BX467, uses HER2 as the antibody and carries a STING agonist payload. The goal here is not direct tumor killing, but rather to convert "cold" tumors into "hot" tumors. Preclinical data indicates that it not only induces sustained tumor regression but also mediates long-term immune memory, with effects significantly superior to DS-8201 and PD-1 monotherapy.

Jacobio has indicated that Investigational New Drug applications for both programs are expected to be submitted in the second half of 2026.

At a time when the industry is mired in homogenized competition around traditional ADCs, this distinctive approach to functional payload design offers the market a different avenue for exploration. This direction aligns with current global trends in ADC evolution. While previous ADC efforts focused on upgrading to more potent toxins, pioneers are now emerging who are exploring deeper functional expansions toward immune modulation and tumor microenvironment remodeling.