Partnership will boost adoption of new technologies, and unlock Japan’s R&D expertise on areas including targeted immunotherapy, the human microbiome, and neurology

The Pistoia Alliance, a global, not-for-profit alliance that advocates for greater collaboration in life sciences R&D, has announced a new partnership with Matador Japan KK, experts in the Japanese pharmaceutical sector, to enable pre-competitive collaboration in the Japanese market. The Alliance and Matador share the vision that bringing together experts from diverse backgrounds and experiences will enable companies to deploy new technologies and solve common R&D challenges faster and more effectively. By joining forces, the Alliance and Matador will help members accelerate research and grant them access to a truly global pharmaceutical ecosystem.

“This partnership marks an exciting stage in the Pistoia Alliance’s evolution. Japan is the second largest pharmaceutical market in the world, and we believe it can benefit from the pre-competitive collaboration the Alliance has long been offering members in regions including Europe and North America,” comments Dr Becky Upton, President of the Pistoia Alliance. “We’ve already had Japanese members including Takeda, QunaSys, Chugai, and National Cancer Hospital East benefit from being part of the Alliance and contribute to advances in exciting areas such as quantum computing. Our work alongside Matador will offer even more Japanese companies the same opportunities.”

The formal partnership builds on a series of Japan-based events held by the Pistoia Alliance last year, where Matador CEO John Bolger discussed specific examples of how the Alliance’s pre-competitive collaboration model of shared-risk and shared-reward delivers value. Together, the Alliance and Matador will create further networking and interest groups in the Japanese language and time-zone that directly benefit member organizations in the region. Japanese pharmaceutical companies have demonstrated R&D excellence in areas such as targeted immunotherapy, the human microbiome, and neurology, and partnering with the Pistoia Alliance will give members access to global expertise in these domains.

“The world-class pre-competitive collaboration happening within the Pistoia Alliance presents great opportunity for the vibrant Japanese life sciences sector,” comments John Bolger, CEO of Matador. “Matador was founded to build a bridge between overseas technology firms and Japanese pharmaceutical companies, and collaboration is critical to this aim. We work to accelerate the implementation of the latest technologies and innovations to support R&D in Japan, and bringing Matador under the Pistoia Alliance umbrella will help us further that mission.”

“Membership of the Pistoia Alliance enables us to collaborate on shared global healthcare challenges with life science organizations here in Japan and all over the world. The Alliance’s educational event program, pre-competitive legal framework, projects and expert communities are dedicated to advancing science and providing better outcomes for patients, both of which are fully aligned with our mission at the National Cancer Center,” commented Dr. Takayuki Yoshino, Deputy Director, National Cancer Center Hospital East.

The Pistoia Alliance invites life science companies and academics interested in pre-competitive collaboration and building their Japanese footprint to come forwards and enquire about upcoming events and interest groups with Matador.

About The Pistoia Alliance

The Pistoia Alliance is a global, not-for-profit members’ organization made up of life science companies, technology and service providers, publishers, and academic groups working to lower barriers to innovation in life science and healthcare R&D. It was conceived in 2007 and incorporated in 2009 by representatives of AstraZeneca, GSK, Novartis, and Pfizer who met at a conference in Pistoia, Italy. Its projects transform R&D through pre-competitive collaboration. It overcomes common R&D obstacles by identifying the root causes, developing standards and best practices, sharing pre-competitive data and knowledge, and implementing technology pilots. There are currently over 200 member companies; members collaborate on projects that generate significant value for the worldwide life sciences R&D community, using the Pistoia Alliance’s proven framework for open innovation.

About Matador Japan KK

Building upon long-established relationships, Matador Japan has an unmatched track record of partnering with overseas technology providers to bring transformative capabilities to market and successfully deliver value to clients, enabling them to stay at the forefront of advancements in research, optimize business processes, reduce clinical risk, enhance regulatory compliance and much more.