Second $5B BD Deal Strikes: AstraZeneca Announces AI-Powered Drug Discovery Collaboration with CSPC

Jun 13, 2025 17:49 CST Updated 17:49

CSPC

Innovative Drug Research and Development, Manufacturer

AstraZeneca

Biopharmaceutical Manufacturer

On June 13, AstraZeneca and CSPC reached a strategic research collaboration. Both parties will jointly focus on high-priority targets to advance the discovery and development of novel oral drug candidates for the treatment of various diseases.

According to the agreement, CSPC will receive an upfront payment of $110 million and is eligible to receive up to $1.62 billion in potential development milestone payments as well as up to $3.6 billion in sales milestone payments.In addition, there are potential single-digit royalties based on the product's annual net sales. AstraZeneca will have the right to opt for an exclusive license to develop and commercialize the candidate drugs identified through this agreement on a global scale.

AstraZeneca and CSPC will discover and develop preclinical candidate drugs targeting multiple pathways, which are expected to treat chronic diseases, including a preclinical small-molecule oral therapy for immune disorders.

The study will be conducted by CSPC in Shijiazhuang City, utilizing its AI-driven dual-engine high-efficiency drug discovery platform. This platform uses AI technology to analyze the binding patterns of target proteins with existing compound molecules and carries out targeted optimization, aiming to screen out highly effective small molecules with good developability.

Sharon Barr, Executive Vice President and Head of AstraZeneca Biopharmaceuticals R&D, said: "This strategic research collaboration underscores our commitment to innovation in tackling chronic diseases that impact more than 2 billion people globally. Building strong partnerships enables us to leverage complementary scientific expertise, support the rapid discovery of high-quality novel therapeutic molecules, and deliver the next generation of medicines."

In terms of AI pharmaceuticals, the two parties had previously reached a cooperation.

In October 2024, AstraZeneca paid an upfront fee of $100 million to collaborate with CSPC on the development of YS2302018, a preclinical innovative small molecule lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) inhibitor. The compound was discovered by CSPC's AI-driven small molecule drug design platform.

Notably, this is also the second BD deal announced by CSPC since the beginning of June.

On May 30, CSPC PHARMACEUTICAL GROUP LIMITED announced that it was in deep negotiations with multiple independent third parties regarding three potential licensing collaborations, which can be summarized into three key aspects:

Including multiple products such as EGFR ADC, involving a total of three potential transactions;
The potential upfront payment, milestone payment, and commercialization share for each transaction is approximately US$5 billion;
One of the deals is already in the final stage and is expected to be completed within a month.

Once the news was released, the secondary market provided clear feedback: the intraday increase once exceeded 12%.

On June 6, the first deal was finalized. CSPC's subsidiary, New Stone Biologics, granted LigaChem BioScience of South Korea the global exclusive rights for the development and commercialization of two novel antibodies, intended for use in antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) targeting solid tumors such as lung cancer and colorectal cancer. The specific financial details were not disclosed.

Recently, 3SBio's bispecific antibody reached a whopping $1.25 billion upfront BD deal with Pfizer; Hansoh Pharma’s GLP-1/GIP dual-target agonist secured an $80 million upfront payment in an overseas rights cooperation agreement with Regeneron; CSPC announced three upcoming BD deals, while China Biologic Products Holdings revealed multiple products have received collaboration interests, with at least one major out-license deal expected to close this year… China's innovative drug sector is once again riding a wave of overseas expansion.

First Trial | Huang Jia

Second Review | Li Fangchen

Third Review | Li Jingzhi

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