Can China innovate? I have no doubt; but that’s not a widely held view by many in the West.
Not a paper today but an interesting interview with Yiwu He, PhD, MBA, Senior Program Officer for Discovery and Translational Sciences at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where he oversees the Biomarker Program and manages some of the foundation’s R&D partnerships in China.
The interview focuses on China’s efforts in the field of life science research and here’s one of the better punch-lines:
“Thirty years ago, the European Union had the strongest pharmaceutical industry (shown by the European origins of most pharmaceutical companies, including MNC giants GSK, Novartis, and AstraZeneca), but reduced risk-taking and an increasing unwillingness to invest in truly new ideas stifled innovation, and allowed the United States to become the land of opportunity for pharmaceutical innovation. Today this role is shifting to China.”
Doubters, consider yourself warned.
Happy Sunday
[Read the interview here China Life Science Innovation and Leadership]