Leon 'Jun' Tang: Inside the Rise of China's Biotech Industry

How did China become a serious force in global biotech in just over a decade?

This is the insider story of China's biotech boom!

Dr. Leon 'Jun' Tang, founding partner of InScienceWeTrust BioAdvisory, joins Cures & Capital to unpack the rise of Chinese biopharma.

From talent migration and government planning to innovation in ADCs and the challenges of commercialization.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction & Leon’s global background

01:13 - Guest introduction - Leon 'Jun' Tang

05:35 - Impact of Chinese biotech innovation at biomedical conferences

14:30 - The wave of China-to-West licensing deals

18:00 - Understanding the rise of China's biotech industry

22:00 - Push & pull: why Chinese scientists leave the West

24:40 - Government strategy & capital markets as biotech catalysts

34:30 - Could India, Africa, or the Middle East replicate China’s path?

37:25 - How do Chinese biotech industry parks look in practice?

46:46 - How fast and cost-effective are Chinese biotech companies?

52:05 - Impact of Chinese biotech on the US and EU

59:26 - When will China have its own Pfizer or Eli Lilly?

01:05:30 - Closing reflections by Martin & Simon

If you want to connect with us - we would love to hear from you:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cures-capital-podcast

If you prefer to get the episodes as just audio, you can also get the podcast from Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

If you want to connect with Leon:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leontangbiotech/

Here's a link to Leon's article in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery:

Analysis of China-to-West pharmaceutical licensing deals in 2024

Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 24, 411-412 (2025)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41573-025-00068-0

Disclaimer: This podcast and activities related to it are completely independent from our day jobs. All the views and opinions expressed through this channel are solely our own and do not represent or in any way reflect the views and opinions of the companies we work for.