In order to take advantage of China’s medical data, global pharmaceutical giants are pursuing cooperation with local Chinese companies. The Japanese pharmaceutical company Shionogi has established a joint venture with China’s Ping An Insurance, including a research base in Shanghai.
Ping An Insurance has a focus on life insurance and a related financial business that utilizes the latest technology, and is involved in online diagnosis and treatment. Shionogi hopes to use artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze the big data obtained through cooperation to facilitate drug research.
China is burdened with a rapidly aging population, leading to an excessive waiting time in hospitals and high medical expenses. Pharmaceutical giants hope to gain a foothold by working with local companies that have an established customer base.
Eisai, another Japanese pharmaceutical giant, also announced in October last year that it had established a joint venture with JD.com, a top Chinese e-commerce company. In 2021, it plans to launch online diagnosis and treatment for patients with dementia. German pharmaceutical giant Merck has also decided to cooperate with Alibaba Health Information Technology (AliHealth), a subsidiary of the Alibaba Group, in the field of artificial intelligence.
Source: Kyodo News, January 22, 2021
https://china.kyodonews.net/news/2021/01/86bac79d2244.html