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Increased participation of Korean businesses seen at the 2025 BIO International Convention in the USA

Major Korean biotech companies, such as Samsung Biologics and Celltrion, displayed technological advancements at the 2025 BIO International Convention held in Boston, despite global political frictions and intense competition from China. Approximately 80 businesses took part in the event.

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Major South Korean biotech companies, such as Samsung Biologics and Celltrion, displayed...
Major South Korean biotech companies, such as Samsung Biologics and Celltrion, displayed cutting-edge advancements at the 2025 BIO International Convention in Boston, despite international friction and Chinese rivalry. Approximately 80 companies took part in the event.

Increased participation of Korean businesses seen at the 2025 BIO International Convention in the USA

Fresh Take:

The Korea Pavilion, a hub hosted by the Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization and funded by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, expanded significantly this year at the 2025 BIO International Convention in Boston, hosting 51 companies from June 16 to 19. Among these companies, Samsung Biologics stood out, showcasing its expansion into the contract research organization (CRO) sector.

Samsung Biologics' booth displayed their aims in the CRO space, aiming to broaden their core portfolio beyond contract manufacturing. This move signifies a strategic expansion for the company.

Meanwhile, Celltrion highlighted its new drug development efforts at its booth during the same event.

Interestingly, Lotte Biologics' CEO and Lotte Corporation's Executive Vice President engaged in discussions with an executive from India's Dr. Reddy's Laboratories at the event.

  • Samsung Biologics set to showcase CDMO capabilities at BIO USA
  • CHA Bio Group to exhibit cell and gene therapy abilities at BIO USA
  • Samsung Biologics to go big on CDMO at BIO USA 2023

Insights:

Recent developments surrounding Samsung Biologics involve a mix of strategic shifts and internal changes within its business model. While the recent focus has primarily been on the aforementioned spin-off of the biosimilar business to become a pure-play Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), there have also been advancements into service-oriented research areas.

For instance, Samsung Biologics has launched a new organoid drug screening service, which aims to reduce reliance on animal testing and provides more predictive and ethical preclinical testing for pharmaceutical clients. This initiative is part of Samsung Biologics' broader strategy for global growth and portfolio diversification.

While the company primarily targets CDMO and biosimilar manufacturing, the introduction of organoid-based screening signals an expansion into areas of preclinical research, potentially overlapping with some services traditionally offered by Contract Research Organizations (CROs), though Samsung Biologics remains away from a full-fledged CRO model.

Context & Crossover:

In the CDMO space, major competitors include Lonza, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Catalent, and WuXi Biologics. These companies provide a broad range of manufacturing and development services. In the CRO space, leaders such as IQVIA, LabCorp, and Charles River Laboratories offer specialized preclinical and clinical research services, with Samsung Biologics' recent initiatives bringing it closer to the preclinical research segment.

A quick glance:

Samsung Biologics' move into the CRO space manifests through its introduction of organoid-based drug screening services, aligning with its broader strategy of global growth and service diversification. While competitors remain dominant in the traditional CRO and CDMO markets, Samsung Biologics is gradually expanding into preclinical research and drug discovery support.

Comparison:

| Company | Core Business | Expansion into CRO/CRO-like Services | Notable Recent Moves ||------------------------|----------------------|--------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------|| Samsung Biologics | CDMO | Organoid screening, preclinical tech | Spin-off of biosimilar business[2][5] || Lonza | CDMO | Limited CRO overlap | Focus on large-scale production || Thermo Fisher Scientific | CDMO, CRO | Full CRO (clinical and preclinical) | Broad service portfolio || IQVIA | CRO | Full CRO | Global clinical research leadership || WuXi Biologics | CDMO | Limited preclinical research | Expanding biologics manufacturing |

  1. Samsung Biologics' foray into organoid-based drug screening services indicates an international expansion of its business into preclinical research, drawing parallels with the functions of a Contract Research Organization (CRO).
  2. As Samsung Biologics moves towards offering preclinical research services like organoid drug screening, it begins to challenge the dominant players in the CRO industry, such as IQVIA and LabCorp.
  3. With its focus on CDMO technology and the recent introduction of organoid-based screening, Samsung Biologics is bridging the gap between the Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization sector and the Contract Research Organization sector, highlighting its broader strategy for global growth and industry diversification.

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