On the 22nd (local time), San Diego Convention Center in California. On the opening day of Bio USA, global big pharma and investors crowded into booths of Korean bio corporations, keeping meetings nonstop.
The scale of advance meetings by major corporations is already in the hundreds. Based on pre-bookings, about 90 for Samsung Biologics, about 120 for Celltrion, about 50 for Lotte Biologics, about 200 for SK Biopharmaceuticals, and about 30 for Alteogen have been set.
However, on the ground, the assessment is that "this is only the first-day figure." The total tends to rise toward the latter half of the event as additional meetings are added. Beyond pre-bookings, Bio USA continually generates informal meetings through booth visits, networking sessions, and roundtables. For this reason, the final tally typically far exceeds the preliminary figures.
A change mentioned more often than the numbers is the depth of discussion. An industry official said, "It's not just that the number of meetings has increased; the topics on the table have changed." As the scope of discussion expands beyond contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) to platform technologies, Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC), and RNA-based new drugs, the stage of negotiations is also becoming more specific.
Some corporations also hinted at expectations for concrete business results. Vivek Senoy, chief business officer (CBO) at Alteogen, said, "We expect to close two technology transfer deals within the year," adding, "We will be able to share news soon."
Meanwhile, Shin Yoo-yeol, head of Lotte Biologics, who visited Bio USA last year, did not appear at this event. The company said it was due to another business trip. In the industry, some said the absence is unusual given that securing large orders is crucial ahead of the completion of the Songdo plant.