AstraZeneca is investing $2.5 billion in Beijing to establish its sixth global strategic R&D center together with major research and manufacturing agreements in China. This investment over the next five years is part of a strategic partnership with the Beijing Municipal Government and the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area Administrative Office and includes agreements with three biotechs; Harbour BioMed, Syneron Bio, and BioKangtai, and follows the recent Fibrogen announcement. AstraZeneca expects its Beijing workforce to grow to 1,700 employees.

The new R&D center in Beijing, AstraZeneca’s second in China following the opening of the Shanghai R&D center, will work to advance early-stage research and clinical development enabled by a new state-of-the-art AI and data science lab. The new R&D center will be located in the Beijing International Pharmaceutical Innovation Park. 

AstraZeneca is also establishing new R&D collaborations in Beijing with the Beijing Cancer Hospital in translational research, data science, and clinical development, and two collaboration and licensing agreements with Harbour BioMed to discover multi-specific antibodies, and with Syneron Bio to develop macro-cyclic peptides.

AstraZeneca is also launching a new joint venture with BioKangtai, to develop, manufacture, and commercialize vaccines for respiratory and other infectious diseases in China and around the world. This will be AstraZeneca’s first vaccine manufacturing facility in China, which will be located in the Beijing BioPark.

Pascal Soriot, CEO AstraZeneca, has been invited to join the Beijing International Business Leaders Advisory Council (IBLAC).