The 2024 Drug Discovery Outlook presents a comprehensive analysis of the current trends, innovations, and market dynamics that shape the pharmaceutical industry. This year sees advancement driven by technological integration, particularly in artificial intelligence, gene editing, and data analytics. Key areas such as synthetic biology, gene therapy, and molecule therapeutics. These address complex medical challenges to improve patient outcomes globally. This report delves into these trends, firmographic data, and investment patterns within the sector.
This report was last updated in July 2024.
This drug discovery report serves as a reference for stakeholders within the industry, investors, policymakers, and economic analysts, providing a snapshot of the industry’s health to map its trajectory for innovation and growth in the coming years.
StartUs Insights Drug Discovery Outlook 2024
- Executive Summary
- Introduction to the Drug Discovery Report 2024
- What data is used in this Drug Discovery Report?
- Snapshot of the Global Drug Discovery Industry
- Funding Landscape in the Drug Discovery Industry
- Who is Investing in Drug Discovery?
- Emerging Trends in the Drug Discovery Industry
- 5 Drug Discovery Startups impacting the Industry
Executive Summary: Drug Discovery Report 2024
This report is created using data obtained from the Big Data and AI-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering more than 4.7 million global companies, as well as 20K+ technologies and emerging trends. We also analyzed a sample of 1200+ drug discovery startups developing innovative solutions to present five examples from emerging drug discovery industry trends.
- Industry Growth Overview: The drug discovery industry grew at a rate of 8.91% over the past year. It showcases over 8500 companies operating within the sector.
- Manpower & Employment Growth: The industry employs approximately 278000 professionals globally. In the last year, the workforce expanded by more than 28100 new employees.
- Patents & Grants: Over 32900 patents were issued to the industry reflecting the industry’s focus on innovation. Moreover, the sector secured more than 4820 grants as research funding.
- Global Footprint: The top country hubs are the USA, UK, India, Japan, and China. Key city hubs include Cambridge, San Diego, London, New York City, and Tokyo.
- Investment Landscape: The average investment value per funding round stands at USD 26.6 million. The industry closed over 5920 funding rounds, with more than 1600 investors participating. More than 2150 companies received investments.
- Top Investors: A few of the top investors include RA Capital Management, Softbank Vision, Orbimed, and more. They invested a total of USD 5.3 billion.
- Startup Ecosystem: Five startup features include Xellar Biosystems (organ-on-a-chip technology), CLOVERNA (non-coding RNA targeted drug discovery), Elnora AI (AI-based antiviral drug discovery), Isomorphic Labs (isomorphic mapping), and Celtarys (fluorescent ligand technology).
- Recommendations for Stakeholders: Investments should be made in companies that leverage technologies such as AI-driven drug design, genomics, and personalized medicine to accelerate discovery and development processes. Opportunities in novel therapeutic areas and innovative research methodologies that address unmet medical needs will assist entrepreneurs. Governments must create supportive regulatory frameworks and provide grants to encourage research and development, while also facilitating partnerships between public institutions and private enterprises.
Explore the Data-driven Drug Discovery Report for 2024
The Drug Discovery Report 2024 uses data from the Discovery Platform and encapsulates the key metrics that underline the sector’s dynamic growth and innovation. The heatmap presents an overview of the drug discovery market by highlighting data points that underscore its growth and innovation. Our database includes a collection of 8500+ companies and highlights 1242 startups that develop technologies in drug discovery and development.
Over the past year, this segment experienced a growth rate of 8.91%. This reflects the ongoing advancement and increased investment in research and development. The industry’s innovation capacity is demonstrated by over 32900 patents, alongside securing more than 4820 grants. These figures illustrate the market’s expansion in medical research and the development of new therapies.
The drug discovery segment employs approximately 278000 employees worldwide. In the last year alone, the workforce expanded by 28100 employees to indicate a demand for expertise in this field. The top five countries leading in this segment are the USA, UK, India, Japan, and China. The key city hubs include Cambridge, San Diego, London, New York City, and Tokyo, which foster biotech ecosystems and boost their contributions to the industry.
What data is used to create this drug discovery report?
Based on the data provided by our Discovery Platform, we observe that the drug discovery industry ranks among the top 5% in the following categories relative to all 20K topics in our database. These categories provide a comprehensive overview of the industry’s key metrics and inform the short-term future direction of the industry.
- News Coverage & Publications: More than 10420 news articles were published on the drug discovery segment.
- Funding Rounds: Our database includes data on over 5920 funding rounds to indicate financial support and investment in this sector.
- Manpower: The industry employs more than 278000 workers, with an addition of over 28100 new employees in the past year alone.
- Patents: Over 32900 patents were filed by the drug discovery sector.
- Grants: The sector secured more than 4820 grants for research and development projects.
- Yearly Global Search Growth: The industry experienced a yearly global search growth of 1.56% indicating rising interest and engagement from the global community.
A Snapshot of the Global Drug Discovery Industry
The drug discovery industry demonstrates growth and activity across various metrics to reflect its nature and importance in the global market. The industry employs more than 278000 employees globally. It indicates its role in providing employment and contributing to economic growth. Over the past year, the industry added more than 28100 new employees. This growth highlights the demand for skilled professionals in drug discovery and development.
Explore the Funding Landscape of the Drug Discovery Industry
Over 8500 companies operate within the drug discovery sector. This number of companies underscores the market’s scale and the landscape in which these companies operate. The average investment value per funding round stands at approximately USD 26.6 million. This investment reflects the costs associated with drug development and the financial backing required to bring new therapies to market.
The industry attracts financial support with more than 1600 investors participating in funding rounds. This investor base highlights the interest in new drug discoveries. The sector closed over 5920 funding rounds to indicate the financial activity level and ongoing capital inflow necessary for research and development efforts. More than 2150 companies receiving investments showcased the support across different stages of drug discovery, from early-stage startups to more established firms.
Who is Investing in Drug Discovery?
The drug discovery industry attracted investments from venture capital and investment firms. The combined investment value from the top investors in the sector exceeds USD 5.3 billion. Here are some of the top investors along with their invested values and the number of companies they have invested in:
- RA Capital Management invested USD 1.4 billion across 21 companies.
- Softbank Vision Fund contributed USD 1.1 billion to 7 companies.
- OrbiMed spread USD 742.5 million across 16 companies.
- Column Group backed 10 companies with USD 718.6 million.
- Patient Square infused USD 697.9 million in 2 companies.
- ARCH Venture Partners funded 12 companies with USD 645.7 million.
Access Top Drug Discovery Innovations & Trends with the Discovery Platform
Explore the key trends in the drug discovery sector including the firmographic data:
- Synthetic Biology includes over 1210 companies. It employs a total of 49000 employees. In the past year alone, the industry added 6700 new employees. The annual trend growth rate of 9.27% indicates interest and investment in synthetic biology that is driven by advancements in gene editing, bioengineering, and biotechnology.
- Gene Therapy includes 2508 companies globally. It employs 341700 individuals with 23800 new employees joining in the past year. This highlights its nature and the focus on genetic treatments. Despite an annual trend growth rate of 0.16%, the workforce and the number of companies involved highlight its role in developing therapies to treat or cure genetic disorders.
- Molecule Therapeutics comprises 368 companies and employs 21800 people. In the last year, the sector saw an influx of 2200 new employees to indicate expansion and interest in this area. With an annual trend growth rate of 10.15%, molecule therapeutics focuses on the development of new molecular entities that serve as effective treatments for a variety of diseases.
5 Top Examples from 1200+ Innovative Drug Discovery Startups
The five innovative startups showcased below are picked based on data including the trend they operate within and their relevance, founding year, funding status, and more. Book a demo to find promising startups, emerging trends, or industry data specific to your company’s needs and objectives.
Xellar Biosystems develops Organ-on-a-Chip Technology
US-based startup Xellar Biosystems develops a high-throughput organ chip culture system for replicating human organs’ multi-cellular environment in a laboratory setting. The micro-organ matrix recreates tissue interfaces, mimics vascular fluid flow, and integrates immune cells. Xellar Biosystems’ preclinical development platform studies disease progression and drug responses in 3D organ chip models. Its imaging platform utilizes high-throughput, high-content imaging to analyze cellular and tissue responses. The startup’s computation platform uses AI and ML algorithms to decode complex biological and imaging data. These platforms develop multiplexed profiles of different cellular populations and detect biologically relevant phenotypes and responses.
CLOVERNA explores Non-Coding RNA Targeted Drugs
Japanese startup CLOVERNA offers non-coding RNA-targeted drug discovery using clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)/dCas13-based target identification technology. The startup’s platform identifies novel disease-associated RNA interactions and focuses on long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) as emerging drug discovery targets. CLOVERNA’s approach identifies sequences for disease-specific interactions on lncRNA and discovers selective RNA-interaction modifiers (SRiM), a concept of oligonucleotide drug targeting lncRNA.
Elnora AI makes AI-driven Antiviral Drugs
Estonian startup Elnora AI develops an AI-driven platform for antiviral drug discovery that focuses on host cells rather than viruses. The platform addresses the challenges posed by viral mutations and the limited size of viral genomes. It accelerates the research process and reduces costs by using AI to analyze data. Moreover, it uses a knowledge graph for data searching and validation. Also, its wet-lab testing feature ensures the scientific usefulness and applicability of identified targets and drugs. Thus, Elnora AI’s platform summarizes scientific information and provides insights into disease mechanisms.
Isomorphic Labs offers Isomorphic Mapping
UK-based startup Isomorphic Labs leverages AI to improve the traditional drug discovery process. By considering biology as an information processing system, Isomorphic Labs applies machine learning advancement to model biological principles. It uses techniques like deep learning, reinforcement learning, and active learning to solve complex challenges in drug discovery. Its predictive and generative models assist in understanding and curing diseases.
Celtarys builds Fluorescent Ligand Technology
Spanish startup Celtarys creates tailor-suited fluorescent ligands for druggable targets. Its conjugation technology develops fluorescent probes efficiently and cost-effectively. These probes allow quantitative assays in drug discovery programs and are compatible with high-throughput screening. They use rational, convergent, and efficient synthetic strategies to enhance fluorescence assays in medicinal chemistry and address the lack of optimal fluorescent tools for many proteins.
Gain Comprehensive Insights into Drug Discovery Trends, Startups, or Technologies
The 2024 Drug Discovery Outlook highlights growth and innovation driven by advancements in AI, gene editing, and data analytics. The industry is actively addressing numerous pharmaceutical challenges with new solutions. Moving forward, these developments will enhance therapeutic outcomes and treatments, further solidifying the role of drug discovery in global healthcare. Get in touch to explore all 1200+ startups and scaleups, as well as all industry trends impacting drug discovery companies.
