March 29 (Reuters) – Generative-AI drug developer Insilico Medicine said on Sunday it has agreed a global licensing and research deal with U.S. drugmaker Eli Lilly, that could be worth up to $2.75 billion, including milestone payments.
Pharmaceutical companies are increasingly turning to AI to accelerate R&D, betting on new modelling tools and automated labs to unlock efficiency gains across their pipeline, and in line with a push by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to reduce animal testing in the near future.
Under the agreement, Lilly will receive an exclusive licence to develop, manufacture and commercialize preclinical oral drug candidates by Insilico Medicine for selected disease areas, the Hong Kong‑listed company said in a regulatory filing.
Insilico Medicine also said that it will receive an upfront payment of $115 million and is eligible for development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments that could take the total deal value to about $2.75 billion, as well as tiered royalties on future sales.
The Financial Times had earlier reported on this deal. The newspaper, citing unnamed sources, said that Lilly will acquire exclusive rights to sell a GLP-1 drug for diabetes from Insilico Medicine.
(Reporting by Rishabh Jaiswal in Bengaluru; Editing by Mark Potter and Susan Fenton)
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