Eli Lilly has entered a strategic drug development collaboration with Beijing-based InnoCare Pharma, committing $100 million upfront and up to $3.25 billion in milestones to develop therapies for up to five targets. This marks Lilly's fourth China-focused alliance since 2025, fueled by strong metabolic drug sales. Meanwhile, Immunovant and Roivant faced setbacks as their lupus drug IMVT-1402 failed a Phase 2b trial, leading to the discontinuation of its development for cutaneous lupus.
Eli Lilly and InnoCare collaboration
- ▪InnoCare Pharma co-founder, chairwoman, and CEO Jasmine Cui stated that InnoCare Pharma is excited to leverage its research and development platform to collaborate with Eli Lilly.
- ▪Under the agreement announced on September 24, 2026, Eli Lilly could pay InnoCare Pharma up to $3.25 billion in development and commercial milestone payments, plus single-digit tiered royalties on annual net sales.
- ▪Eli Lilly and InnoCare Pharma will leverage InnoCare Pharma's drug discovery platform to develop drug candidates, though the specific diseases and drug targets have not been disclosed.
- ▪Eli Lilly agreed to pay Beijing-based InnoCare Pharma $100 million upfront to collaborate on developing novel therapies for up to five targets with critical unmet medical needs.
Eli Lilly's China-Focused alliances
- ▪Eli Lilly paid Hong Kong-based Insilico Medicine $115 million in early 2026 to begin a drug discovery collaboration spanning multiple therapeutic areas.
- ▪Eli Lilly expanded an existing relationship with Suzhou-based Innovent Biologics in early 2026, paying $350 million upfront to start a new collaboration in oncology and immunology.
- ▪The collaboration with InnoCare Pharma represents Eli Lilly's fourth China-focused alliance since January 2025, following agreements with Insilico Medicine, Innovent Biologics, and Haisco Pharmaceutical Group.
InnoCare's licensing of orelabrutinib
- ▪InnoCare Pharma previously licensed the oral BTK inhibitor orelabrutinib to Biogen in 2021 for $125 million upfront, but Biogen terminated the agreement and returned the asset to InnoCare Pharma in February 2023.
- ▪InnoCare Pharma licensed the rights to orelabrutinib to Zenas BioSciences in October 2025 in a deal that committed $100 million and could exceed $2 billion including milestones.
Eli Lilly's 2026 acquisitions
- ▪Eli Lilly has pursued an active dealmaking pace in 2026, announcing 13 acquisitions, including the late August 2026 buyout of Merida Biosciences for up to $2.875 billion.
- ▪Eli Lilly acquired AtaiBeckley in July 2026 for $2.8 billion upfront plus up to $1 billion in contingent value rights, marking Eli Lilly's entry into the psychedelics arena.
Immunovant's IMVT-1402 trial failure
- ▪Shares of Immunovant fell 6% on Monday, September 21, 2026, and shares of both Immunovant and its majority owner Roivant declined on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, following the announcement of the study setback.
- ▪Following the trial failure, Immunovant plans to stop development of IMVT-1402 for cutaneous lupus erythematosus, citing the competitive landscape and clinical results.
- ▪Immunovant announced that its proof-of-concept study of IMVT-1402 in cutaneous lupus erythematosus failed to meet its primary endpoint of percent change from baseline in the Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus Disease Area and Severity Index Activity score at Week 12.
- ▪Immunovant stated that all other clinical development timelines for IMVT-1402 remain on track, including trials for Graves' disease, rheumatoid arthritis, myasthenia gravis, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, and Sjogren's disease.
Debatable claims
- ▪Eli Lilly should limit its research collaborations with Chinese biotech developers
- ▪Western pharmaceutical companies are too quick to terminate licensing agreements with Chinese biotech partners
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