China could approve first fully AI-designed drug next year, Merck executive says

Mainland China could become one of the first markets in the world to approve a drug fully designed by artificial intelligence, as advances in AI and human genetics combine to create a “seismic shift” in drug development, according to executives of pharmaceutical giants.“We will see in 2026 that we move from AI-assisted discovery to fully AI-designed compounds, perhaps entering the pipeline,” said Marc Horn, president of Merck China, at the Asian Financial Forum on Tuesday in Hong Kong. “We already see some very exciting examples in China.”His comments came as China’s biopharmaceutical sector has evolved from a manufacturer of generics to a global innovation powerhouse over the past decade. Chinese drug makers signed a record US$135.7 billion in out-licensing deals last year, more than double 2024’s total of US$51.9 billion.“At the moment, around 30 per cent of new drug pipelines are coming out of China,” Horn said. “China has huge patient data sets, and the government just announced the ‘AI Plus’ programme for the next couple of years, which should give a pretty good push to this field.”“We might see a truly AI-designed compound approved in China next year,” he added.AI Plus is a decade-long national blueprint designed to propel China into a new phase of development described as the age of “intelligent civilisation”.