KBIOHealth unveils strategy to support Korean biotech firms' global advance

OSONG Medical Innovation Foundation (KBIOHealth) has announced a new management strategy that centers on supporting Korean bio-health companies to go global.

“Under the new vision of becoming the center of Korea's advanced medical industry heading to the world, we will promote globalization, future, innovation, technology, communication, and customer-centric strategies,” KBIOHealth Chairman and CEO Lee Myung-su said at a news conference on Tuesday, presenting the achievements of his first 100 days in office and future plans.

KBIOHealth Chairman and CEO Lee Myung-su revealed the foundation’s plans at Tuesday's news conference.

One of KBIOHealth's most notable success stories in supporting biotech companies is Alteogen. In 2019, Alteogen signed a contract manufacturing (CMO) agreement with the foundation's Biopharmaceutical Production Center to produce human hyaluronidase ALT-B4.

In 2020, the company signed a technology transfer agreement worth 4.67 trillion won ($3.21 billion) with global pharmaceutical giant MSD. In February 2024, the agreement was expanded to 5.24 trillion won by granting exclusive rights to the Keytruda (pembrolizumab) product line. Alteogen now continues to work closely with the foundation.

“Recently, we won the Innovation Award for our augmented reality (AR) glasses for the visually impaired with Cellico at the U.S. Consumer Electronics Show (CES),” Lee said. “We are making tangible results by signing agreements with small- and medium-sized venture companies to enter the global market.”

The foundation will focus on creating tangible results beyond simple overseas exchanges. To this end, it will participate in the world's largest bio event, BIO USA, in Boston, Mass., in June to support Korean companies' global IR.

In addition, it will promote investment and technical cooperation with Korean companies in the field of new drug development, including anticancer drugs, through cooperation with bio clusters in Texas and Boston. This month, he will visit the Kobe Biomedical Innovation Cluster in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, to build a platform to foster the latest technologies and human resources for advanced regenerative medicine.

“This is an era of open innovation, where we must cooperate with advanced countries, such as the U.S., Germany, and Japan, sometimes as competitors, and sometimes as collaborators,” Lee said. “We will serve as a bridge to help Korean companies perform in the global market.

Lee added that KBIOHealth will build a comprehensive support program, from discovering promising companies to conducting clinical trials to attracting funds to become a hub for global expansion.

The foundation also plans to strengthen cooperation with Korean medical industry clusters, including KMEDIhub (Daegu-Gyeongbuk Advanced Medical Industry Promotion Foundation).

“We will promote the functional integration of medical industry clusters scattered across the country beyond the Chungcheong region,” Lee said. “Our goal is to create synergy as a leading bio powerhouse through integration rather than separation.”

Besides, Lee has pledged to transform the management system. To this end, the foundation operates a TFT composed of three teams. The TFT has established innovative measures, including redefining the vision and mission, organizational and personnel innovation, and improving employee treatment and welfare. Based on this, the foundation has reorganized itself by establishing a global cooperation team and a future strategy office.

The foundation is also participating in the Fifth Comprehensive Plan for Advanced Medical Complexes (2025-2029), which the Ministry of Health and Welfare is establishing.

“We are proactively establishing and proposing measures to revitalize the high-tech medical complex and create tangible results,” Lee said. “While the first to fourth comprehensive plans focused on infrastructure construction, the fifth plan will focus on creating tangible results.”

The foundation is also focusing on training bio-industry professionals. Currently, it is training bio CDMO (contract development manufacturing organization) personnel and professionals in regenerative medicine. It trains 300 job seekers annually, and the number of trainees will expand to 1,500 if other programs, such as training for the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) inspectors, are included. In particular, the program focuses on fostering practical talents needed in the industrial field.

“We are producing the talents needed in the field through practical education centered on experiments and hands-on training,” Lee said. “In the future, we plan to expand bio-talent training programs related to artificial intelligence (AI).”