HQ Team
January 21, 2025: Daiichi Sankyo, the second-largest pharmaceutical company in Japan in terms of revenue, has set up a laboratory in the US for robotic development, automation and software.
The laboratory will expedite the company’s overall drug discovery efforts, according to a statement. Daiichi did not reveal the costs involved in establishing the centre.
Technology developed at the laboratory in San Diego, California, will automate drug discovery tasks that generate data for downstream analysis.
The laboratory will develop a comprehensive collection of software and hardware tools to collect massive amounts of data necessary to generate potential drug candidates faster and to support AI-based approaches in drug discovery, enhancing Daiichi Sankyo’s capability to innovate.
‘Efficiently as possible”
“Ultimately, Daiichi Sankyo aims to accelerate the development of life-changing medicines and deliver them to patients around the world as quickly and efficiently as possible,” said Ken Takeshita, MD, Global Head, R&D, Daiichi Sankyo.
“By leveraging the extensive data collected by our autonomous robotics that operate continuously and cutting-edge software for automated orchestration and data management, the laboratory is set to revolutionise our research processes.
“It will not only achieve unprecedented levels of repeatability and productivity but also enable our scientists to concentrate on intellectual advancements and leverage AI-based analytical tools,” he said.
Daiichi Sankyo Company, Ltd., is headquartered in Tokyo and clocked 882.7 billion yen in revenue in the six months ended September 2024 — a rise of 21.5% compared to the same period the previous year.
21.5% rise in revenue
Revenue increased year on year due to increased sales of mainstay products such as Enhertu (trastuzumab deruxtecan) and Lixiana (edoxaban). The positive effect of foreign exchange by the depreciation of the yen was 39.6 billion yen.
It owns the US-based pharmaceutical company American Regent.
Daiichi Sankyo, Inc., started its US operations in 2006 — a year after it was established through the merger of Sankyo Company, Limited and Daiichi Pharmaceutical Company, Limited.
