New Clarivate Report Reveals Mainland China as Emerging Global Biopharma Innovation Leader
Out-Licensing Deals Reach $50 Billion as Chinese Biopharma Innovators Drive Breakthrough Science
LONDON, U.K. December 8, 2025 Clarivate Plc (NYSE: CLVT), a leading global provider of transformative intelligence, in partnership with Healthcare Executive (E 药经理人), one of the most influential information and resources platforms of the Chinese pharmaceutical industry, today released its latest report, Mainland China Biopharma Innovation 2.0: from rapid growth to quality driven development. The report reveals Mainland China has reached a historic milestone in global pharmaceutical innovation, emerging as the world’s second-largest market for first launches of new molecular entities (NMEs), capturing an 18% share in 2024. Now in its seventh year, the report highlights a fundamental transformation of Mainland China’s biopharmaceutical sector, from the Innovation 1.0 Great Leap Forward era of rapid expansion to an Innovation 2.0 phase defined by sustainable, quality-focused growth and global recognition.
Mainland China’s out-licensing activity has reached unprecedented levels in 2025, with aggregate deal values hitting $50 billion through August, already surpassing the total for all of 2024. The surge underscores increasing global confidence in Mainland China-generated clinical data, as Chinese companies secure more U.S. FDA breakthrough therapy designations and feature prominently at leading international medical conferences.
Alice Zeng, Senior Solution Consultant, Life Sciences & Healthcare, Clarivate, said: “Mainland China’s biopharmaceutical innovation landscape has evolved beyond rapid growth to achieve sustainable, quality-driven development. This transformation represents more than incremental progress, it is a fundamental shift in Mainland China’s approach to pharmaceutical innovation. Supportive government policies, sophisticated deal-making and breakthrough technologies such as targeted protein degradation have created a comprehensive ecosystem that delivers impact for patients worldwide. The sector is moving from chasing market trends to building lasting competitive advantages, and ‘Made in China’ pharmaceuticals are now synonymous with cutting-edge science and global influence.”
Policy Innovation has driven a world-class innovation ecosystem. Mainland China has implemented comprehensive policies that support innovation across the entire drug development lifecycle, from basic research to market access and reimbursement. Key initiatives include a 30-day fast-track approval channel for clinical trials and the July 2025 launch of the Commercial Health Insurance Formulary for Innovative Drugs, the first formal integration of commercial insurance into national pharmaceutical policy frameworks.
Clarivate’s proprietary analysis of the Top 100 Most Innovative Chinese Biopharmaceutical Companies 2025 highlights remarkable progress and exponential growth across all innovation metrics since 2020, including:
- Pipeline assets under development: 3,381 (up >100%)
- Granted patents: 15,882 (up >450%)
- Patent forward citations: 64,018 (up 1,300%)
- Ongoing clinical trials: 2,580 (up 110%)
Top-tier companies are approaching global pharmaceutical standards, with median R&D spend at 22% of revenue and several emerging biotechs investing over 40%.
Mainland China has become a global pioneer in targeted protein degradation (TPD), a transformative technology unlocking previously undruggable protein targets. The country now accounts for 38% of global TPD publications and 37% of TPD patents, with approximately 30% of the 484 TPD agents in global development originating from Chinese companies.
Mainland China’s integration with global pharmaceutical markets continues to grow. Between 2019 and 2023, 66% of new active substances approved by major global regulators were also approved in Mainland China, with another 18% under review. Leading Chinese biopharmaceutical companies are increasingly filing first in Mainland China or ahead of traditional markets such as Australia, Canada, Japan or Europe.
The Mainland China Biopharma Innovation 2.0 report underscores Clarivate’s commitment to delivering data-driven insights that illuminate global trends in science, innovation and healthcare. As Mainland China’s biopharmaceutical industry enters a new era of quality-driven growth, its integration into global innovation networks is reshaping the future of medicine.
To learn more about the Clarivate Mainland China Biopharma Innovation 2.0: from rapid growth to quality-driven development report, visit here.
Methodology and data sources
The report leverages Clarivate’s comprehensive suite of proprietary databases, including Cortellis Competitive Intelligence, Cortellis Clinical Trials Intelligence, Derwent Innovation, Web of Science, and insights from CMR International. The analysis employs a rigorous “three-dimensional, four-indicator” evaluation framework developed in partnership with Healthcare Executive since 2019.
About Healthcare Executive
With media as the outpost, conference as the platform, live video broadcasting as the tool, and expert pharmaceutical industry observers and recorders as the living force, Healthcare Executive (E药经理人) brings the top consensus of entrepreneurs, scientists, and investors in the pharmaceutical industry together on the one hand, and on the other hand gathers multi-dimensional and multi-level resources from the whole industry chain. We are dedicated to providing in-depth professional communication opportunities and influential solutions for the whole industry chain in their whole life cycle. In this regard, we make connections with client requirements upstream and downstream and make preparations for the overseas strategy in their international programs.
About Clarivate
Clarivate is a leading global provider of transformative intelligence. We offer enriched data, insights & analytics, workflow solutions and expert services in the areas of Academia & Government, Intellectual Property and Life Sciences & Healthcare. For more information, please visit clarivate.com.
Media contact:
Catherine Daniel
Director, External Communications, Life Sciences & Healthcare
