Gene therapies began as proof-of-concept treatments for a handful of rare genetic disorders and now, with emerging tools, may expand into broader territories with new targeted organs. This year, one gene therapy achieved what once seemed improbable: enabling children born profoundly deaf to hear. With the first therapy for genetic deafness now approved, the inner ear is emerging as a promising target for the next generation of genetic medicines.
Should a biotech hand its molecule to a single integrated partner, or build a network of specialists around it? Manufacturers and clinical providers are answering in both directions at once: some are adding capabilities and integrating more of the development chain, while others are narrowing their focus and relying on specialist partners. Whichever it picks, the biotech answers for what happens between its suppliers.
Inspired by technology and insights gleaned from cancer research, Europe is leading the quest for a new generation of therapies in immunology and inflammation. Immunotherapy has revolutionised cancer therapy and become standard of care in many areas of oncology but it has also begun to change outcomes in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Over the past few years, Belgium’s argenx has become a biotech force to be reckoned with, driven by the success of its autoimmune drug Vyvgart (efgartigimod alfa) in diseases such as generalised myasthenia gravis (gMG) and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). We caught up with CEO Karen Massey to discuss how she plans to build on this success after joining argenx in March 2023 and taking up the role of CEO at the start of this year.
AI has transformed drug discovery, but the “AI biotech” label has become increasingly misleading. Kurma Partners proposes an investment framework that distinguishes three fundamentally different models — each building a different asset, creating value in a different way and requiring a different investment lens.
Immunic is preparing to transition from a late-stage development biotechnology company into a fully integrated commercial organization focused on multiple sclerosis (MS). At the center of its strategy is vidofludimus calcium, an oral therapy being developed for relapsing and progressive MS. European Biotech spoke with Immunic’s CEO Erik Lundgren about the company’s clinical trials and commercial ambitions, the role of neuroprotection and why he believes the next major opportunity in MS may lie beyond relapse control.
The 2025 AseBio Report shows a Spanish biotech ecosystem that is not only expanding, but attracting capital at a new scale: Spain counted 1,119 dedicated biotech companies in 2025, up 10.4% year on year, while 39 new biotech firms were created in 2025.
It’s been nearly a decade since the first CAR-T cancer cell therapy was approved by the FDA, offering a powerful and durable therapy against tumours. But when it comes to fighting solid tumours, CAR-Ts rapidly show their limits. A new generation of cancer cell therapies could set new standards and change the way we think about drug delivery in solid tumours.
Thomas and Andreas Strüngmann have spent decades building pharmaceutical companies and backing biotech entrepreneurs, most famously BioNTech. Now, as a new generation takes a larger role in their family office, an award bearing their name is turning that investment philosophy into a search for Europe’s next biotech builders.
New data from the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Seoul are giving BioNTech’s oncology strategy more substance beyond its mRNA platform. Gotistobart has shown a marked survival benefit in previously treated squamous NSCLC, while the company’s leading bispecific antibody pumitamig continues to generate encouraging signals across tumor types and in combination with an antibody-drug conjugate. The key question now is whether these early signals can translate into registrational success.
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