A New Turning Point in Biotechnology Innovation: Global Market Restructuring Driven by Synthetic Biology and Precision Medicine by 2025
Editor
As of the end of 2025, the global biotechnology industry is charting a new growth trajectory amidst an unprecedented wave of innovation. According to the latest report from the McKinsey Global Institute, the global biotechnology market size is expected to reach approximately $2.4 trillion by 2025, with an average annual growth rate of 15.3%. The key drivers of this growth are the rapid technological advancements in the fields of Synthetic Biology and Precision Medicine, fundamentally altering the traditional paradigm of drug development. Notably, the market share in the Asia-Pacific region surged from 23% in 2024 to 27% in 2025, indicating the prominence of biotech companies from South Korea and China in the global competition.
South Korea’s biotechnology ecosystem has achieved remarkable milestones in 2025. Samsung Biologics, headquartered in Incheon, recorded a 34% increase in revenue to 2.8 trillion won in the third quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year, further solidifying its dominant position in the global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) market for biopharmaceuticals. The company secured new contracts worth a total of $4.7 billion in the first half of this year alone, with 78% related to the production of mRNA vaccines and Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs). With the full operation of its fourth plant in Songdo, Incheon, Samsung Biologics currently possesses an annual biopharmaceutical production capacity of 364,000 liters, significantly surpassing Switzerland’s Lonza at 280,000 liters and Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim at 200,000 liters.
Celltrion is also experiencing strong growth in the biosimilar market in 2025. The company, based in Incheon, achieved $1.2 billion in sales in the U.S. market alone through its FDA-approved bevacizumab biosimilar ‘Vegaly’. Notably, Celltrion’s next-generation antibody platform technology has improved production efficiency by 40% compared to existing methods, significantly enhancing the price competitiveness of biosimilars. The global biosimilar market is estimated to be worth $58 billion by 2025 and is projected to grow at an average annual rate of 13.8% to reach $110 billion by 2030.
The Synthetic Biology Revolution and Market Restructuring
The field of synthetic biology has emerged as a new growth engine for the biotechnology industry, entering the stage of commercial practicality in 2025. Ginkgo Bioworks, headquartered in Boston, USA, recorded $120 million in revenue in the third quarter of this year, an 89% increase from the same period last year, primarily driven by the surge in demand for customized microbial design services. The company’s automated biological design platform currently has the capability to test over 100,000 genetic circuits daily, reducing development time by an average of 65% compared to traditional R&D methods.
Innovative advancements are also continuing in the field of precision medicine. Gilead Sciences, headquartered in Foster City, California, achieved $4.6 billion in revenue through its CAR-T cell therapies ‘Yescarta’ and ‘Tecartus’ in 2025, a 28% increase from the previous year. The company’s next-generation CAR-T platform significantly improved the complete remission rate from 73% to 89% compared to existing therapies. The global cell therapy market is expected to be worth $19 billion by 2025 and is projected to grow at an average annual rate of 22.4% to reach $52 billion by 2030.
Roche, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, has established a unique position in the field of personalized medicine. Through its Foundation Medicine subsidiary, the company processes over 250,000 comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) tests annually as of 2025, a 35% increase from the previous year. Roche’s personalized medicine portfolio recorded a total of $14.2 billion in revenue this year, with the oncology segment accounting for 78%. Notably, the company’s HER2-positive breast cancer treatment ‘Herceptin Deruxtecan’ demonstrated a 28% extension in disease-free survival compared to existing Herceptin, proving the effectiveness of personalized treatment.
Meanwhile, Novartis maintains a leading position in the field of gene therapy. The company, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, achieved $1.8 billion in revenue through its spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) treatment ‘Zolgensma’ in 2025, recognized as a commercial success case for a gene therapy that can be cured with a single dose. Zolgensma’s treatment success rate is over 95%, showing a long-term cost-effectiveness advantage over the existing standard treatment, Spinraza (annual cost of $400,000). The global gene therapy market is expected to be worth $8.5 billion by 2025, with an average annual growth rate of 34.5% to reach $36 billion by 2030.
Global Competitive Landscape and Investment Trends
The global investment patterns in the biotechnology sector in 2025 show a clear shift. According to the latest analysis by PwC, global biotech venture capital investment totaled $24.7 billion this year, an 18% increase from the previous year, with Asia accounting for a record high of 32%. Notably, South Korean biotech startups received a total of $3.4 billion in investment, a 156% increase from the previous year. This surge in investment is largely attributed to the high global clinical trial success rate of K-bio companies, which stands at 68%, significantly exceeding the global average of 52%.
Pfizer, headquartered in New York, USA, is focusing on developing next-generation vaccines using mRNA platform technology in 2025. The company invested $4.5 billion in mRNA research and development in the first half of this year alone, accounting for 38% of its total R&D budget. Notably, Pfizer’s universal influenza vaccine under development showed an antibody response rate of over 95% in Phase 2 clinical trials, three times more effective than existing seasonal flu vaccines. Based on these achievements, Pfizer’s vaccine division recorded $18.9 billion in revenue in 2025, a 23% increase from the previous year.
Johnson & Johnson is also expanding its market dominance through the development of innovative immuno-oncology drugs. The company, headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, has established a unique position in the treatment of multiple myeloma through combination therapies based on the CD38-targeted antibody ‘Daratumumab’. Daratumumab-related revenue reached $6.7 billion in 2025, accounting for 42% of the global multiple myeloma treatment market. Notably, the company’s subcutaneous Daratumumab administration reduces administration time by 90% compared to intravenous injection while maintaining equivalent therapeutic efficacy, significantly contributing to patient convenience and healthcare cost savings.
Chinese biotech companies are also expanding their presence in the global competition. BeiGene, headquartered in Shanghai, recorded $2.8 billion in revenue in the U.S. and European markets through its BTK inhibitor ‘Brukinsa’, a 67% increase from the previous year. Brukinsa achieved rapid market share expansion based on clinical results showing a 40% reduction in side effects compared to the first-generation BTK inhibitor, Ibrutinib, while maintaining equivalent therapeutic efficacy. The market share of Chinese companies in the global hematologic cancer treatment market is expected to be 12% by 2025, up significantly from 3% in 2020.
The future outlook for the biotechnology industry is positive in many aspects. The introduction of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies is continuously improving the success rate of new drug development, expected to increase from the current 15% to 25% by 2030. Additionally, the spread of personalized medicine is expected to enhance treatment efficacy while reducing side effects. The aging population and increased healthcare spending in the Asia region provide new growth opportunities for biotech companies. In South Korea, the population aged 65 and over is expected to account for 18.4% of the total population by 2025, with healthcare spending reaching 8.9% of GDP, supporting the sustained growth of the biotech market.
However, several challenges also exist. Increasing complexity in regulatory environments, rising clinical trial costs, and global supply chain instability are cited as major risk factors. Particularly, as FDA and EMA approval standards become more stringent, the average drug development period is extended to 12-15 years, with total development costs increasing to an average of $2.8 billion. In this environment, biotech companies must secure competitiveness through efficient capital allocation and strategic partnerships. As of the end of 2025, the global biotechnology industry is finding a new balance between opportunities for technological innovation and market expansion and challenges of regulatory tightening and increased development costs, which are expected to significantly reshape the industry landscape over the next five years.
*This analysis is based on publicly available market data and industry reports, and additional due diligence is required for investment decisions. Actual financial performance and market data of the mentioned companies should be verified through official announcements.*
