News
Company announcements, research milestones and media coverage. Pipeline and clinical progress, platforms and team, awards and partnerships, plus press coverage and interviews — archived by year.
English editions are translated by our editors; the original Chinese article is linked from each page.
Press coverageScience and Technology Daily | China’s first AI-assisted original drug reaches the market, offering a new option against COVID-19
Reprinted from Science and Technology Daily. The innovative drug iscartrelvir hydrochloride tablets (trade name Mprosevir®), jointly developed by Westlake University, Westlake Laboratory and Westlake Pharmaceuticals (Hangzhou) Co., Ltd., has received conditional approval from the NMPA.
Read more
NewsHow it was made — from 49,000,000,000 to 1: China’s first AI-assisted original drug reaches the market
Mprosevir®, an oral COVID-19 drug with an entirely new scaffold, went from first discovery to completed clinical trials in only three and a half years. This article traces how the team compressed a decade of work into that time. Reprinted from the Westlake University WeChat account.
NewsFrom 0 to 1 — Mprosevir®, a first-in-class oral COVID-19 drug with a novel scaffold, approved in China
On 29 July 2026 the Class 1 innovative drug iscartrelvir hydrochloride tablets (trade name Mprosevir®), jointly developed by Westlake University, Westlake Laboratory and Westlake Pharmaceuticals, was approved by the NMPA for adults with mild to moderate COVID-19.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals signs with two Nantong industry funds to scale up AI-driven drug discovery
On 16 July, Westlake Pharmaceuticals signed strategic cooperation agreements with the Nantong Industry Holding Siyuan AI Pioneer Fund and the Nantong Haorui Venture Investment Partnership at the Nantong biopharmaceutical matchmaking event in Shanghai.
NewsFour years running: Westlake Pharmaceuticals back on the Hangzhou quasi-unicorn list
On 23 April 2026 the tenth Everything Grows conference opened in Hangzhou, where the Hangzhou Venture Capital Association released the 2026 Hangzhou unicorn and quasi-unicorn list. Westlake Pharmaceuticals was named a quasi-unicorn for the fourth consecutive year.
NewsFounder team publishes in Nature Communications — why some protein pockets suit DEL screening
Westlake Pharmaceuticals co-founders Jing Huang and Hu Qi have published a study in Nature Communications asking, at the level of the binding pocket, which proteins suit DNA-encoded library screening — and introducing ErePOC, the first AI model built to identify DEL-compatible targets.
NewsTwo honours for Westlake Pharmaceuticals at the district’s first meeting of the year
On 4 January 2026 the Xihu District science and technology innovation conference was held in Hangzhou. Westlake Pharmaceuticals received two honours — Outstanding Innovation and Entrepreneurship Team, and Frontier Innovation Emerging Enterprise.
NewsHangzhou TV features Westlake Pharmaceuticals’ AI platform
Hangzhou TV has produced an in-depth report on Westlake Pharmaceuticals’ first investigational drug, Mprosevir®, and on the AI platform WAND, as part of a five-city series on China’s biomanufacturing innovation.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals approved to establish a provincial enterprise research institute
The Zhejiang Department of Economy and Information Technology has recognised Westlake Pharmaceuticals’ AI Drug Discovery Enterprise Research Institute as a provincial-level enterprise research institute.
NewsThird nationwide — Westlake Pharmaceuticals’ AI platform shines at the China Innovation Competition
The 14th China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition national finals for biopharmaceuticals took place in Haikou from 11 to 13 November, with 228 projects competing. Westlake Pharmaceuticals won its semi-final group and finished third nationwide, taking a second prize.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals among Hangzhou’s first cohort of “new falcon” companies
Hangzhou has announced its 2024 cohort of “new falcon” companies, a programme for early-stage deep-tech firms. Westlake Pharmaceuticals is among the 102 companies recognised for the first time.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals wins the Zhejiang final of the China Innovation Competition
On 30 July the biopharmaceutical final of the 14th China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition (Zhejiang region) was held in Hangzhou. Westlake Pharmaceuticals took the highest score of the day and won the growth category.
NewsProvincial research team visits Westlake Pharmaceuticals to look at AI drug discovery
On 1 July a research team led by Mingzhen Li, director of the rural and social development institute at the Zhejiang Science and Technology Information Research Institute, visited Westlake Pharmaceuticals to review progress in applying AI to drug discovery.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals joins the Zhejiang top 100 future unicorns
At the ninth Everything Grows conference in Hangzhou, Westlake Pharmaceuticals was named a Hangzhou quasi-unicorn for the third consecutive year and joined the Zhejiang Top 100 Future Unicorns; chairman Hongtao Yu was named a 2024 entrepreneur of the year.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals named an outstanding innovation and entrepreneurship team by Xihu District
On 3 January the Xihu District district science and technology innovation conference opened the year, the second year running the district has devoted its first meeting to innovation. Westlake Pharmaceuticals was named a 2024 outstanding innovation and entrepreneurship team.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals wins an innovation breakthrough award at the computing power applications competition
On 3 December the final of the Create@ computing power applications competition, jointly hosted by Linping New City and Alibaba Cloud, was held in Hangzhou. Westlake Pharmaceuticals reached the final and won an innovation breakthrough award.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals on Fortune China’s 2024 list of companies with the greatest social impact
On 11 September Fortune China published its 2024 list of entrepreneurial companies with the greatest social impact, and Westlake Pharmaceuticals was included — recognised for combining AI-assisted drug design with DEL screening across 11 programmes.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals hosts UCAS Hangzhou Institute students for a summer programme
Twelve graduate students from the Hangzhou Institute for Advanced Study, UCAS, spent a week at Westlake Pharmaceuticals — touring labs, joining chemistry, biology and AI drug design groups, and attending sessions on discovery, pharmacovigilance, clinical trials and IP.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals named a 2023 outstanding contributor to talent work
At the Yunqi Town meeting on building its three talent teams on 28 June, Westlake Pharmaceuticals was recognised as a 2023 outstanding contributor to talent work, in acknowledgement of its hiring and development of researchers.
NewsWestlake Pharmaceuticals named to the 2024 Future Healthcare 100
The 2024 Future Healthcare 100 results were published on 9 May, and Westlake Pharmaceuticals was named to the China Innovative Medicines and Biologics Top 100 — a ranking of unlisted companies that represent the future of healthcare in China.
Company updatesWestlake Pharmaceuticals returns to the Hangzhou quasi-unicorn list
On 24 April 2024 the eighth Everything Grows conference opened in Hangzhou, where the 2024 Hangzhou unicorn and quasi-unicorn lists were released. Westlake Pharmaceuticals appeared on the quasi-unicorn list for the second time.
NewsWestlake University / Westlake Laboratory technology transfer base opens, with Westlake Pharmaceuticals on board
On 18 April the Westlake University / Westlake Laboratory technology transfer base opened at the Zijin’gang Cloud Valley park, the first such base in the Hangzhou Chengxi Sci-Tech Innovation Corridor. Westlake Pharmaceuticals took part in the signing ceremony.
Company updatesWestlake Pharmaceuticals named a benchmark university-economy project by Xihu District
At the Xihu District science and technology innovation conference on 3 January 2024, Westlake Pharmaceuticals received the 2023 “university economy benchmark project” award, as its first drug approached marketing approval.
Company updatesWestlake Pharmaceuticals in the Zhejiang Top 50 most investable innovative companies of 2023
The 2023 Zhejiang Venture Capital Summit closed in Hangzhou on 5 December with the release of the annual list. Westlake Pharmaceuticals was named to the Zhejiang Top 50 most investable innovative companies of 2023.
Company updatesThird prize at the first China biomedical patent competition
Westlake Pharmaceuticals won third prize at the first China (Xiaoshan) high-value patent cultivation competition for the biopharmaceutical industry, with its original small-molecule drug Mprosevir® — the first national IP event focused on biopharmaceuticals.
Company updatesWestlake Pharmaceuticals wins an excellent enterprise award at the 12th China Innovation Competition
The national biopharmaceutical round of the 12th China Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition opened in Taizhou on 23 November. Westlake Pharmaceuticals won an excellent enterprise award, with judges praising its Mprosevir® programme.
Company updatesEconomist Yingyi Qian visits Westlake Pharmaceuticals
On 29 August Yingyi Qian, chairman of the Westlake University board and a renowned economist, visited Westlake Pharmaceuticals and met the R&D team, discussing how university research becomes industry.
Company updatesWestlake Pharmaceuticals joins the Hangzhou quasi-unicorn list
At the seventh Everything Grows conference in Hangzhou on 10 April 2023, the 2023 Hangzhou unicorn and quasi-unicorn lists were released. Westlake Pharmaceuticals joined the quasi-unicorn list for the first time.
No articles in this category.