Bin Jun-gil, co-CEO of Neurophet, said, "We aim to supply imaging diagnostic solutions for brain diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, to hospitals domestically and internationally, achieve sales of 15 billion won next year through collaborations with pharmaceutical companies for new drug clinical trials, and turn a profit by 2027."
Co-CEO Bin noted at an initial public offering (IPO) briefing held at the CCMM Building in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 11th, "By expanding our overseas hospital solution supply and collaborations with big pharma, we expect that overseas sales, which currently account for 30% of our total sales this year, will exceed half next year."
Neurophet is a company that researches and develops software and therapeutic devices based on artificial intelligence (AI) technology for analyzing brain images. Founded in 2016 by Bin Jun-gil and Kim Dong-hyun, co-CEOs of Neurophet, who developed the next-generation neuro-navigation system at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), the company plans to go public on the KOSDAQ market on the 25th of this month through a technology exception.
Neuro-navigation is a software that creates a 3D model of a patient's magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to analyze where and how much electrical stimulation should be applied for effectiveness, forming the foundational technology of Neurophet.
Neurophet focuses particularly on the diagnosis, treatment, and side effect analysis of Alzheimer's disease among brain disorders. Alzheimer's disease is a representative degenerative brain disorder that accounts for 70-80% of dementia patients worldwide. The accumulation of amyloid-beta (Aβ) proteins in the brain leads to damage and atrophy of brain tissue, gradually reducing memory and cognitive abilities.
The company's core technologies include 'AQUA', which helps early diagnosis of dementia by identifying abnormal brain atrophy based on MRI and positron emission tomography (PET); software 'SCALE PET', which quantitatively analyzes PET images; and 'AQUA AD', which prescribes dementia medications and monitors treatment and side effects.
Among these, Neurophet's AQUA AD can verify the occurrence of intracranial hemorrhage, a major side effect associated with Alzheimer's treatments, and quantitatively assess changes in a patient's condition after medication. Following the recent market release of Alzheimer's treatments such as 'Leqembi' by Japanese pharmaceutical company Eisai and American company Biogen, along with ongoing development of several new drugs, AQUA AD is noted as a key product driving Neurophet's sales growth.
Neurophet has signed a data-sharing agreement with Eli Lilly for the development of Alzheimer's medications. The company will use Lilly's multi-center, multi-ethnic data to analyze brain images and ascertain their correlation with clinical variables. Aribio, a domestic biotech company developing oral dementia treatments, is also utilizing AQUA AD in its Phase 3 clinical trials.
AQUA AD is also being used in several medical institutions in Korea. Since the domestic prescription of Leqembi began at the end of last year, Neurophet's AQUA AD has been introduced as a research demo in 31 major hospitals in Korea until April of this year. It is expected to transition from a research demo to a formal product in the second half of this year.
Co-CEO Bin stated, "Currently, the analysis of side effects has become crucial in the development of Alzheimer's medications, and Neurophet is the only company in Asia offering such software technology. As we hold a dominant market share in Asia, we expect this will grow into a major source of revenue next year."
Neurophet also provides imaging contract research organization (CRO) services specializing in the analysis of clinical trial images for new drug development by global pharmaceutical companies. The company plans to expand its business through collaborative research with Eli Lilly and Swiss Roche.
Co-CEO Bin noted, "We are currently discussing collaborations with global big pharma, including Lilly and Roche. We will focus on enhancing key solution-centered products and targeting the global market with the capital secured through our public listing."