With open innovation emerging as a key topic for fostering a bio ecosystem, scalability based on networking has become a necessity rather than a choice.

BIO KOREA 2025, which opened on the 7th, also kicked off its three-day journey with various programs under the theme of “Innovation and Collaboration: Building the Future Together,” marking its 20th anniversary.

In particular, amid various crises and concerns such as investment contraction and the anticipated U.S. tariffs on pharmaceuticals, cooperation for business exchange and synergy creation were emphasized.


Yuhan Corp and Celltrion take center stage…Amgen’s first participation draws attention

Last year, the main booths at the exhibition were occupied mainly by contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs), but this year, Yuhan Corporation and Celltrion’s booths were positioned at the entrance, in the most visible spots.

Both companies have recently expanded their influence in the global market based on Leclaza (Lazertinib) and biosimilars, respectively.

On the day of the exhibition, Yuhan Corp placed Leclaza at the center of its booth and emphasized that it was the first domestic anticancer drug to be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

Leclaza has recently been approved by the US FDA as a combination therapy and is rapidly advancing into the global market. Through this event, Yuhan Corp sought to highlight the global competitiveness of Leclaza and expand opportunities for cooperation with overseas partners.


Celltrion was the first company visited by key guests during the exhibition tour. Vice President Bumsung Kim, who introduced the company, emphasized the company’s position in the global market, highlighting that Celltrion is the world's first developer of antibody biosimilars.

Celltrion set out to actively engage in communication at the exhibition as it is seeking global expansion through new drug development and open innovation projects using ADCs in addition to biosimilars.

Among multinational pharmaceutical companies, Johnson & Johnson (J&J), which participated last year, and Amgen, which set up an independent booth for the first time this year, stood out.

Amgen was the only multinational pharmaceutical company to be certified as a “Korea innovative pharmaceutical company” by the Ministry of Health and Welfare at the end of last year, in recognition of its contribution to research and development and investment for the creation of an innovative ecosystem for new drug development in Korea.

Amgen’s main purpose for participating in this exhibition was to expand its network by increasing contact with domestic companies.

Amgen highlighted that it has expanded its open innovation program “Bio Day & Pitching Day,” which it has been conducting with the Korea Health Industry Development Institute since 2024, to nurture domestic biotech ventures into a global program called “Golden Ticket.”

Seung-Jae Lee, Medical TA Lead at Amgen, said, “We are operating open innovation programs such as the Golden Ticket program with the Korea Health Industry Development Institute to create a domestic bio ecosystem and discover and foster venture companies. We will continue to grow together with Korean bio companies through continuous investment in open innovation.”


Sweden participates for the second consecutive year, Netherlands participates for the first time... Operating National Pavilions, seeking to strengthen cooperation

In addition to Australia, which has participated every year, Sweden and the Netherlands operated booths in the form of national pavilions this year to actively explore possibilities for cooperation in the bio industry.

Currently, the Swedish government has designated the life sciences industry as a core area of national competitiveness and is promoting global cooperation and innovation based on government-led strategies and world-class research infrastructure.

In particular, on the same day, an official from the Swedish Trade and Investment Council in Korea expressed interest in creating synergy in the field of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMP) in conjunction with the revision and implementation of Korea's Advanced Regenerative-Bio Act.

Sweden is a leading country in the field of advanced regenerative medicine, and CCRM Nordic (Center for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine Nordic), a Swedish non-profit organization, is responsible for ATMP research and development, industrial ecosystem development, and business growth support across Northern Europe and Europe.

An official from the Swedish Trade and Investment Council in Korea said, “We believe that there is still a lack of awareness about Sweden's life science industry in Korea, so we decided to participate for the first time for two consecutive years. We have been actively promoting industry awareness since last year, and as BIO EUROPE was held in Sweden last year, we plan to continue discussions in line with that as well.”


The Netherlands also emphasized the technological capabilities and the will to cooperate of its companies and expressed its hope for expanded partnerships with Korean biotech companies.

As this is its first participation, the Netherlands plans to use this event to identify the needs of companies and expand cooperation in the future.

A representative from the Dutch Embassy said, “There are various bio companies in the Netherlands, so we decided to participate to help them enter the Korean market. Currently, there are consulting companies and early-stage companies seeking to enter the market, and we plan to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in the future.”

Seeking to expand Bio Korea partnerships... still lacks substance

Business partnering at the exhibition, which has become increasingly important recently, has significantly expanded global partnering opportunities for domestic biotech companies.

Through business meetings with companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer, MSD, Takeda, Roche, Novo Nordisk, ST Pharm, and SK Bioscience, plans are in place to create opportunities for new partner discovery, technology cooperation, and joint research discussions.

As there had been criticism in the past that there were not enough partnership opportunities, this year's event has expanded the scale of partnering by about 21% compared to last year, focusing on broadening opportunities.


However, with many companies seeking partnering opportunities through overseas exhibitions, there have been suggestions that domestic exhibitions need to have more “substance” to ensure continuity.

A representative from a biotech company that set up a booth at BIO KOREA stated, “While it is a positive change in terms of increasing the scale and opportunities for partnerships, there are still areas that fall short when compared to overseas exhibitions. For companies in the Asia-Pacific (APEC) region, there may be good business development opportunities, but given that global companies' headquarters are unlikely to attend, there is a need to reconsider the direction.”