The BioWorld Insider podcast is a monthly dive into the business and science of drug development. Conversations with CEOs and BioWorld analysts in the past 12 months have included a wide range of chats with experts who are shaping the future.

South Korea’s government continued to ramp up investment in its pharmaceutical and med-tech sector in 2025, including a 7.2% hike for the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s budget and a near 15% increase in funding to research and develop innovative biotechnologies.

Biopharma companies secured $102.15 billion in funding in 2024, a 44% increase from $70.97 billion in the full-year 2023 and significantly higher than the $60.81 billion raised in 2022. December financings reached $4.69 billion, marking an increase from $3.6 billion in November.

After raising AU$16.75 million (US$10.4 million) in a series A round, Celosia Therapeutics Pty Ltd. is heading toward the clinic with its novel gene therapy that targets TDP-43, a protein directly linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) pathology.

Despite a sometimes-turbulent stock market and over 18,000 job losses, 2024 closed with signs of recovery, marked by growth in both financings and deals, setting an optimistic tone for 2025.

Zhongzhi Pharmaceutical Holdings Ltd. made a $3 million investment in a series A financing round of stem cell therapy developer Gabaeron Inc. Dec. 21, expected to help propel Gabaeron’s preclinical Alzheimer’s disease (AD) candidate into phase I testing.