Oncology dealmaking and AI-driven antibody discovery headlined a busy week of partnership activity across the pharma and biotech sector.

AstraZeneca acquires global rights to Zegfrovy

AstraZeneca entered into an exclusive license agreement with Dizal Pharmaceutical to acquire worldwide rights to develop and commercialize Zegfrovy (sunvozertinib), an oral irreversible EGFR inhibitor approved in the U.S. and China for adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer harboring EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations whose disease has progressed on or after platinum-based chemotherapy.¹

Per the terms of the agreement, AstraZeneca will pay $600 million upfront and upwards of additional $900 million in development, regulatory and sales-related milestones, plus tiered royalties on global sales.¹ The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026.

Zegfrovy is the only oral targeted therapy approved in both the U.S. and China for EGFR exon 20 insertion NSCLC following prior systemic therapy. Roughly one in four patients with EGFR-mutated NSCLC carries a tumor with an exon 20 insertion or other atypical mutation, a population for which targeted treatment options remain limited.

The deal also comes with near-term regulatory momentum, as Dizal recently reported positive results from the global Wu-Kong28 Phase III trial of Zegfrovy as a first-line treatment in NSCLC with exon 20 insertion mutations.¹

"AstraZeneca is a leader in treating EGFR-mutated lung cancer, and we are eager to add Zegfrovy to our world-class portfolio of innovative medicines for patients whose tumours carry exon 20 insertion mutations," said Dave Fredrickson, executive vice president of the oncology haematology business unit at AstraZeneca. "With this agreement, we will bring a differentiated, oral targeted treatment to these patients with limited options across the globe."

Chai Discovery and Novartis strike AI antibody collaboration

Chai Discovery announced a collaboration with Novartis to advance the discovery of therapeutic antibodies using artificial intelligence. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Under terms of the agreement, Novartis is set to gain access to Chai's latest AI models, including the Chai-3 model, to support antibody discovery across multiple therapeutic programs.² The partnership builds on more than a year of technical engagement between the two companies, including Novartis' early access to Chai's next-generation folding model last spring.

"AI is already reshaping how we discover medicines," said Fiona Marshall, president of biomedical research at Novartis. "By applying advanced models to challenges like antibody design, we can explore a broader range of possibilities, make better decisions earlier, and focus our efforts on the most promising candidates. Our collaboration with Chai Discovery brings complementary expertise to tackle difficult targets and advance progress toward new options for patients."

Innovent Biologics and Spero Therapeutics license CD40L antibody IBI355

Innovent Biologics and Spero Therapeutics have entered into an exclusive license agreement for IBI355, a third-generation Fc-silent anti-CD40L antibody being advanced for immune-mediated diseases.

As part of the deal, Spero will receive exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize IBI355 worldwide, excluding Greater China, where Innovent retains rights, while Innovent is set to receive an upfront payment plus development, regulatory and commercial milestones, bringing the total deal value to approximately $1.1 billion, along with tiered royalties on net sales in Spero's licensed territories.³

Lei Qian, chief R&D officer of general biomedicine at Innovent Biologics, framed the deal as part of a broader push to expand access to CD40L-targeted therapy globally. "By combining Innovent and Spero's immunology expertise and development commitment, we aim to accelerate the delivery of differentiated therapies to patients living with these chronic conditions," Qian said.

Innovent has evaluated the antibody in two healthy volunteer Phase I trials and in a Phase Ib multiple ascending dose study in patients with Sjögren's disease.³ Data from the Phase Ib Sjögren's study were presented at the Eular 2026 Congress. Spero plans to advance IBI355 into a Phase II study in IgG4-related disease patients in Q2 2027, while Innovent expects to initiate a Phase II trial in China for Sjögren's disease by early 2027.³

"We view CD40L as a clinically validated pathway with broad applicability across several immune-mediated diseases," said Esther Rajavelu, president and chief executive officer of Spero Therapeutics. "In IgG4-RD, we believe this approach has the potential to meaningfully address the burden patients face from a chronic, relapsing condition with limited treatment options."

Sources

1. AstraZeneca enters exclusive global license agreement for novel oral EGFR inhibitor Zegfrovy for lung cancer with Dizal Pharmaceutical AstraZeneca July 14, 2026, https://www.astrazeneca.com/media-centre/press-releases/2026/astrazeneca-licenses-novel-egfr-inhibitor.html
2. Chai Discovery Announces Collaboration with Novartis to Advance AI-Driven Antibody Discovery Chai Discovery July 13, 2026, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260702507776/en/Chai-Discovery-Announces-Collaboration-with-Novartis-to-Advance-AI-Driven-Antibody-Discovery
3. Innovent Biologics and Spero Therapeutics Announce Exclusive License for IBI355 (SP001), a Phase 2-Ready Third-Generation Anti-CD40L Antibody Innovent Biologics July 14, 2026, https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/innovent-biologics-and-spero-therapeutics-announce-exclusive-license-for-ibi355-sp001-a-phase-2-ready-third-generation-anti-cd40l-antibody-302824889.html