In this collaboration, Chugai will create novel antibody drug candidates using its proprietary antibody engineering technologies for new drug targets discovered by Gero through analysis of human datasets using their unique artificial intelligence (AI) target discovery platform.

Under this agreement, Gero grants Chugai exclusive worldwide rights for the creation, research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of antibodies for the identified targets. In addition to an upfront payment, Chugai will potentially pay up to approximately $250 million in total if predetermined development or sales milestones are achieved. If Chugai successfully launches a product, it will also pay royalties on sales to Gero.

“We believe that open innovation with external partners, including leading global players, is extremely important for achieving global first-class drug discovery outlined in our growth strategy toward 2030, TOP I 2030. By combining Gero’s target discovery technology with Chugai’s drug discovery technologies, we will accelerate the creation of innovation,” said Chugai’s President and CEO, Dr Osamu Okuda.

“Our AI platform is built to identify therapeutic targets that drive multiple age-related diseases and potentially aging itself,” said Peter Fedichev, CEO of Gero. “In this collaboration, we aim to translate those insights into therapeutics that can help restore the lost function. This partnership with Chugai is an important step toward achieving Gero’s mission: to meaningfully target the biological processes of human ageing.”