shutterstock_521453077_rolandmagnusson
Roland Magnusson / Shutterstock.com
11 November 2019Big PharmaSaman Javed

AstraZeneca announces new R&D, AI centres in China

AstraZeneca is planning to build a new global research and development centre in China.

On Wednesday, November 6, the pharmaceutical company said the Shanghai-based centre will focus on the development of innovative new medicines.

Its primary focus will be on diseases that are prevalent in China and other parts of Asia, the advancement of global medicine development, and creating new partnerships within China’s research and development ecosystem.

Announcing the news at the second annual China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai, AstraZeneca said it will also be building an artificial intelligence (AI) innovation centre in Shanghai.

The AI innovation centre will “capitalise on the latest digital technology, manufacturing, operations and commercialisation in order to accelerate the delivery of medicines to patients in China and globally”, the company said.

The centre will also collaborate with technology companies and local start-ups to develop AI solutions.

AstraZeneca also announced the creation of a “Healthcare Industrial Fund” in collaboration with China International Capital Corporation (CICC), a Chinese investment firm.

The agreement with CICC will seek to drive innovation in China’s healthcare system. The fund’s target size is $1 billion and, as a first step, it will support domestic companies and partners, as well as international companies looking to establish a presence in China.

AstraZeneca’s chief executive officer, Pascal Soriot, said China is “rapidly emerging as a global scientific powerhouse”.

“We will make the most of our global resources and network to strengthen the connections between China and the rest of the world in the field of healthcare innovation and, ultimately, bring the benefits of that work to patients everywhere,” Soriot said.

Leon Wang, executive vice president at CICC, said the Healthcare Industrial Fund will “inject vitality into small and medium enterprises” and help them grow.

“With this new commitment, AstraZeneca will further increase its contribution to the development of healthcare in China, and to exporting domestic innovations that benefit patients worldwide,” Wang said.

Did you enjoy reading this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories sent like this straight to your inbox.


More on this story

Big Pharma
2 May 2019   AstraZeneca has begun collaborating with UK-headquartered artificial intelligence company BenevolentAI to use AI and machine learning for the discovery and development of new treatments.
Big Pharma
30 July 2020   Biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has struck a deal with Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo to jointly develop and market a new medicine to treat lung, breast and other cancers.

More on this story

Big Pharma
2 May 2019   AstraZeneca has begun collaborating with UK-headquartered artificial intelligence company BenevolentAI to use AI and machine learning for the discovery and development of new treatments.
Big Pharma
30 July 2020   Biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has struck a deal with Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo to jointly develop and market a new medicine to treat lung, breast and other cancers.