A New Era of Biotech Innovation: Market Impact of AI-Based Drug Development and Personalized Medicine
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Acceleration of AI Innovation in the Biotech Industry
As of 2026, the global biotechnology market is experiencing fundamental changes with the rapid adoption of AI and machine learning technologies. According to the latest report by market research firm Frost & Sullivan, the AI-based drug development market is expected to grow from $3.5 billion in 2025 to $14.8 billion in 2030, with an average annual growth rate of 33.4%. This rapid growth is reducing the traditional drug development period from 10-15 years to 5-7 years and cutting development costs from an average of $2.6 billion to around $1.5 billion.
Particularly noteworthy are the innovations in protein structure prediction and molecular design. Since the release of AI models like AlphaFold, around 20,000 biotech companies worldwide have been utilizing them to discover new drug candidates, significantly improving the success rate of candidate discovery from 18% to 34%. Genentech, a subsidiary of Switzerland’s Roche, announced that its AI-developed Alzheimer’s treatment candidate showed over 70% improvement in cognitive function in Phase 2 clinical trials by the fourth quarter of 2025, causing a significant stir in the biotech industry.
Korea’s biotechnology industry is also rapidly evolving to keep pace with these global trends. Samsung Biologics reported a 23% improvement in production efficiency by implementing an AI-based biopharmaceutical production optimization system by the end of 2025, expecting to save approximately 120 billion won in annual operating costs. Additionally, Celltrion achieved a reduction in biosimilar development time from 7 years to 4 years using its proprietary AI platform, securing an average 18-month time advantage over competitors.
The background of these technological innovations lies in the rapid advancement of computing power and the explosive increase in biological data. Currently, approximately 2.5 exabytes (2.5×10¹⁸ bytes) of genomic data are generated globally each day, a 340% increase compared to 2023. The development of AI technology capable of effectively analyzing and utilizing this big data is a key driver of innovation in the biotech industry.
Acceleration of Commercialization of Personalized Medicine
The field of precision medicine has entered a full-fledged commercialization stage by 2026. The global precision medicine market is expected to grow from $98.6 billion in 2025 to $124.7 billion in 2026, a 26.5% increase, significantly altering the revenue structure of major pharmaceutical companies. Particularly in cancer treatment, the success stories of CAR-T cell therapy and tumor-specific immunotherapies are increasing rapidly, accelerating the shift from the traditional blockbuster drug model to a small-volume, high-value treatment model.
Johnson & Johnson in the U.S. recorded $8.7 billion in revenue from the personalized medicine sector in 2025, accounting for 18.3% of its total revenue. Notably, its CAR-T therapy ‘Carvykti’ achieved $2.3 billion in sales as a single product in 2025, despite an average treatment cost of $460,000 per patient, thanks to a high treatment success rate (complete remission rate of 83%). This represents 15-20 times higher revenue per patient compared to traditional cancer drugs, showcasing the economic potential of personalized therapies.
The commercialization of gene editing technology CRISPR is also playing a significant role in the expansion of personalized medicine. In December 2025, the U.S. FDA approved the CRISPR therapy ‘Casgevy’ for sickle cell disease, which edits the patient’s bone marrow cells ex vivo and reintroduces them, with clinical results showing a 96% treatment success rate. Although priced at $2.2 million per patient, the total treatment cost is analyzed to be 30% lower than existing lifelong therapies.
Meanwhile, advancements in liquid biopsy technology are accelerating the popularization of personalized medicine. With the commercialization of tests that can detect over 50 types of cancer early from a single drop of blood, the entry barriers to personalized treatment are significantly lowered. The ‘Galleri’ test developed by GRAIL, a subsidiary of Illumina, currently costs $949 per test, a 32% decrease from $1,400 in 2023, and is expected to drop to $500 by 2027.
In Korea, investment and R&D in the field of personalized medicine are actively underway. The government announced a total investment of 2.3 trillion won over the next five years through the ‘Comprehensive Plan for Fostering Precision Medicine’ in 2025, with 60% (1.38 trillion won) allocated for direct and indirect support to private biotech companies. Based on this policy support, domestic biotech companies are accelerating the development of personalized therapies, particularly in the fields of immuno-oncology and cell therapy, to secure global competitiveness.
The global pharmaceutical industry is pursuing a fundamental restructuring of its business model to respond to these trends. Novartis of Switzerland announced that 45% of its total R&D budget would be focused on personalized therapies by 2025, a significant increase from 28% in 2022. Additionally, the company reported a 23% improvement in treatment success rates by establishing an ‘Adaptive Treatment’ platform that monitors patients’ treatment responses in real-time and adjusts therapies accordingly.
Market experts predict that the spread of personalized therapies will reshape the entire value chain of the healthcare industry. According to McKinsey’s latest report, personalized therapies are expected to account for 35% of the total new drug market by 2030, promoting the establishment of a new healthcare ecosystem integrating diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring. Real-time patient monitoring and treatment optimization services linked with digital healthcare platforms are expected to emerge as new revenue sources.
However, there are many challenges to address alongside the spread of personalized therapies. The most significant issue is the widening gap in healthcare accessibility due to high treatment costs. Currently, the average price of personalized therapies is 10-50 times higher than traditional treatments, necessitating a redefinition of insurance coverage and reimbursement standards. Additionally, issues related to the collection and use of personal genetic information, and the development of biomarkers to accurately predict individual treatment effects, are identified as major challenges to be addressed.
Despite these challenges, personalized therapies are expected to become a key growth driver in the biotech industry. The continued decline in genomic analysis costs, advancements in AI technology, and the expansion of digital healthcare infrastructure are expected to accelerate the popularization of personalized therapies. This is analyzed to provide new business opportunities not only for traditional pharmaceutical companies but also for IT companies, diagnostic specialists, and healthcare service providers.
From an investment perspective, the field of personalized therapies presents high growth potential along with considerable risk. While successful development can secure significantly higher profitability compared to existing treatments, the scale of losses can be equally large in case of failure. Therefore, investors need a cautious investment approach considering the company’s technological capabilities, pipeline diversity, and regulatory approval potential. Companies with platform technologies are expected to be relatively stable investment targets compared to those developing single therapies.
This content is intended for general informational purposes and is not investment advice or a recommendation. Please consult a professional before making investment decisions.
