Generating buzz around early-stage science can win biotechs investments, but some companies are opting against a pipeline reveal to keep competitors at bay.
Several biotechs recently told the Wall Street Journal that Chinese competitors, in particular, are a concern, because they’re quick to replicate early science and can move new drugs through clinical trials as much as 50% to 70% faster than in the U.S. That advantage could help a Chinese biotech potentially beat the first company to market.
In a recent survey by the nonprofit U.S.-China Business Council, companies doing business in China, including some life sciences firms, said that protecting trade secrets has become a top concern. Respondents ranked IP protection as their seventh-largest business challenge overall.
But while protecting pipeline information could avoid tipping a hand to competitors, it’s not without drawbacks. Some experienced biotech founders might attract investors based on their track record, but most first-timers need to reveal more details to drum up interest in their work, according to JP Morgan.
Here are three companies being selective about releasing pipeline details, although not all of them are playing their cards close to the chest for the same reason.
Altos Labs
Altos Labs says it’s on a mission to roll back the clock on cellular aging to reverse the progression of diseases, injuries and disabilities. But the company has released few specifics about its pipeline. An Altos spokesperson said that's by design, noting the company is waiting for the right time to reveal information.
The company came out of the gate in January 2022, with big backers, including Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and Israeli business magnate Yuri Milner, and $3 billion in initial funding. Its work builds on the discoveries of Kyoto University professor Shinya Yamanaka, who discovered that it’s possible to reprogram cells to change their function and age, essentially turning them into stem cells. Altos’s founding scientist, Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, furthered that work, showing that partially reprogramming cells could rejuvenate them without changing their function, providing a potential repair mechanism for aging or damaged cells.
Many longevity medicine companies are beginning to move their science into the clinic, and Altos may be among them in the near future, according to an analysis from Longevity Technology.
Breakthru Medicine
This oncology focused biotech boasts an experienced team that hopes to move the needle on developing therapies for hard-to-treat solid tumors.
“Our approach attacks the specific molecular drivers behind each tumor, enabling us to design precision therapies for patients whose cancers have become resistant to current treatments,” states the company website. Dubbing itself as “science-driven” and “modality agnostic,” Breakthru plans to match its approach — whether it’s a molecular glue, small molecule or antibody drug conjugate — to the application.
Aside from that, the company offers few specifics about its programs.
That decision to limit information about its pipeline, CEO Steve Potts told the Wall Street Journal, was to prevent a Chinese company from beating Breakthru to market. The company is able to avoid releasing those details, he said, thanks to a small group of financial backers, which include universities and individual investors.
Breakthru did not respond to a request for more information about its programs, but the company’s website says it will reveal more details once it’s entering the clinic.
RayThera
Biogen announced plans to acquire another tight-lipped company, RayThera, last month in a deal valued up to $1 billion that includes upfront and potential milestone payments. The news offered little additional information about RayThera’s assets. But the goal of the deal is to target immune-mediated conditions across several indications and allow Biogen to expand into new disease areas, Dr. Priya Singhal, executive vice president and head of development at Biogen, said in a press release.
RayThera’s own pipeline disclosures have been similarly thin, only listing three “anti-inflammatory” indications. The frontrunner among those assets is expected to enter phase 1 in the third quarter of this year, according to Biogen, which may reveal more about the science that has largely been kept out of public view. RayThera did not respond to an email from PharmaVoice.
