End-to-end CDMO, Samsung Biologics, has reported a record-setting quarter, with a 37% increase in sales, driven primarily by its biosimilars unit, Samsung Bioepis. The company achieved significant year-over-year growth, including a 107% rise in biosimilars sales, largely due to successful products like Hadlima, a Humira biosimilars, increasing profits by 71%.

Agilent Technologies has recently announced an agreement to acquire leading, specialized CDMO, BIOVECTRA, for $925mn as the company looks to expand on its existing CDMO specialization in oligonucleotides and CRISPR. Utilizing BIOVECTRA’s specialization in biologics, highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients, and other molecules for targeted therapeutics, Agilent will eventually be able to expand its capabilities in biologics, HPAPIs, and gene editing technologies.

GLP-1 drugs - Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and others - first attracted attention for their ability to manage and aid weight loss in diabetes patients. With such profound results, the drugs soon found Hollywood notoriety, before becoming popular with everyday users looking to fast track their weight loss efforts. Unsurprisingly, expenditure of semaglutide - the active ingredient in these medications - reached $38.6bn in 2023.

Pharmaceutical manufacturing is under a heavy spotlight. Policymakers are focused on the relationships between pharma companies and their manufacturing partners, and high-demand medications are stretching the limits of production. Join Endpoints for sessions focused on the latest trends and pressure points, and hear how leading experts are reacting to a fast-changing landscape.

Eurofins CDMO Alphora Inc. - has expanded its API capacity with a new manufacturing facility in Mississauga, Canada, as the company looks to better serve their growing client base and address increasing demand for life-saving therapies from Phase 1 to commercialization. The 15,000 sq.-ft. facility enhances the company’s existing capabilities with additional GMP processing and warehousing space that will support API batches up to 125 and handling of Safebridge Class 3 compounds.

Roche has received CE mark approval for its AI-enabled Accu-Chek SmartGuide continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system, designed for adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes on flexible insulin therapy. The system, which features a 14-day wear time and a one-step application process, uses predictive AI to provide real-time glucose predictions and assess hypoglycemia risk with clinical evaluations showing high accuracy, with 99.8% of glucose values within acceptable zones.

Thermo Fisher Scientific has announced plans to acquire Sweden-based Olink Holding AB for approximately $3.1 bn in order to leverage Olink’s validated protein biomarker targets and advanced proteomics solutions, including its Proximity Extension Assay (PEA) technology. The transaction is expected to close by mid-2024, subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions.

Pharmaceutical Multinational, Novartis, has filed notice to close its San Diego R&D facility by mid-2025, eliminating 100 jobs. The facility, which is currently being used for oncology, neuroscience and immunology R&D, will be moved to other existing U.S. locations. The company says it plans to maintain a presence in San Diego.

MedPharm and Tergus Pharma have announced a merger to create a leading CDMO specializing in topical and transepithelial pharmaceuticals, and will continue to operate using the MedPharm name.

The merger allows the new company to offer comprehensive drug development and manufacturing services.

South Korean CDMO, Lotte Biologics, has acquired land in Songdo, South Korea, to construct three biomanufacturing plants to increase production capacity to 360,000L, and in the process is expected to create 37,000 jobs.

Aptamer Group and AstraZeneca have announced a strategic collaboration following promising initial results with Aptamer's fibrotic liver delivery vehicles.

The partnership will focus on addressing the challenges of precise siRNA delivery, with the hope of revolutionizing therapeutic applications with Aptamer’s Optimer® technology.

CordenPharma has announced that it is investing €900 mn (c.$982 mn) over the next three years to expand its peptide manufacturing capacity in the U.S. and Europe, driven by rising demand for GLP-1 drugs. The Swiss CDMO plans to build a third facility and add new manufacturing lines to its Boulder, Colorado site, and construct a new large-scale manufacturing facility elsewhere in Europe.

Wolfgang Wienand has been announced as the new CEO of Lonza Group (starting July 1), succeeding Albert M. Baehny, who served as interim CEO since October 2023 and was Chairman of the Board until May 2024.

Samsung Biologics voluntarily disclosed that it has secured a six-year deal with an unnamed U.S.-based pharmaceutical company, having secured a letter of intent signed in June. The contract runs through to the end of 2030.

A recently published report from Future Market Insights highlights significant potential for global CMO/CDMO market growth; with projections suggesting a significant increase in value from $22.5 bn in 2023 to $39.4 bn by 2033.

Following a previous announcement just a few days earlier that it would layoff 158 of its workers, Ginkgo Bioworks, the cell programming company, expanded the number of people affected to 400, or around 35% of its workforce.

The FDA has issued a Complete Response Letter (CRL) to AbbVie for its Parkinson’s treatment ABBV-951 due to issues with a third-party manufacturer. The regulator did not highlight safety or efficacy concerns with the drug or its administration device.

Formation Bio has raised $372mn in series-D funding to enhance its drug development pipeline and expand its AI-driven platform, with plans to deploy the new capital to continue acquiring and in-licensing clinical stage assets from biotech and pharma partners.

Eli Lilly has announced a partnership with OpenAI to leverage generative AI to invent novel antimicrobials to address drug-resistant pathogens and their worldwide impact on antimicrobial resistance.

The collaboration comes through the initiative of Lilly’s Social Impact Venture Capital Portfolio, with $100mn committed to provide patients with two to four new antibiotics by 2030.

Two CDMOs, Abzena and Argonaut Manufacturing Services, have announced a strategic partnership to provide an integrated drug substance and product manufacturing solution for biopharmaceutical companies to streamline drug development from early discovery to commercial manufacturing.