Pharma majors Pfizer and Sanofi announced separate significant collaborations in the autoimmune disease sector on 15 December, with a combined potential transaction value exceeding USD 2.6 billion. Pfizer has entered into an agreement with Adaptive Biotechnologies, valued at up to USD 890 million, to leverage Adaptive's AI-driven immunomics platform and T-cell receptor (TCR) data for identifying pathogenic T-cell targets in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The deal includes an upfront payment, milestone payments and a separate TCR data licensing component for training Pfizer's internal AI models.

Sanofi, building on its earlier acquisition of Dren Bio's lymphoma candidate, has expanded its partnership with the biotech firm to develop next-generation B-cell-depleting therapies for autoimmune diseases. The new agreement provides Dren with a USD 100 million upfront payment and potential milestone payments of up to USD 1.7 billion. Notably, Dren holds an option to co-fund 40% of global development costs in exchange for co-promotion rights and a 50/50 profit share in the US market. 

According to PharmCube's NextBiopharm® database, Big Pharma has struck nearly 40 immunology deals this year, with Sanofi leading with 8 transactions. Click here to request a free trial for NextBiopharm®.