JW Pharmaceutical's AI-Based Innovative Drug Candidate Selected for National New Drug Development Project

Preclinical Entry Research to Be Accelerated Over 24 Months

JW Pharmaceutical announced on December 8 that its research into a metabolic disease therapeutic candidate, discovered using its artificial intelligence (AI)-based drug development platform 'J-Wave,' has been selected for the '2025 Second National New Drug Development Project - Research on Building a New Drug R&D Ecosystem,' led by the Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF).

Exterior view of JW Pharmaceutical headquarters in Gwacheon-si, Gyeonggi Province. JW Pharmaceutical

JW Pharmaceutical reportedly optimized active compounds and secured lead compounds with new mechanisms in a short period by advancing structure-based models and applying reinforcement learning algorithms through J-Wave. The compound is currently undergoing optimization at the candidate stage.

Through this project, the company plans to receive research funding for 24 months and sequentially carry out lead compound structure optimization for preclinical entry, mechanism of action studies, and preliminary toxicity tests.

A JW Pharmaceutical representative stated, "The lead compound we have secured this time is a first-in-class oral candidate with a completely new mechanism compared to existing metabolic disease treatments. We expect it will provide new therapeutic options for patients in the future," adding, "We will strengthen our AI-based drug development capabilities and focus on creating innovative drugs in areas with high unmet medical needs."

Meanwhile, JW Pharmaceutical is enhancing the efficiency of drug development through its AI-based integrated drug research platform, J-Wave. J-Wave is a platform built by integrating the existing big data-based drug discovery systems 'Jewelry' and 'Clover.' It is designed for use throughout the entire drug candidate discovery cycle, from drug screening to lead compound optimization. The platform applies over 20 AI models based on vast biological and chemical data, including genomic information from more than 500 cell lines, organoids, and disease animal models, as well as data on approximately 40,000 synthetic compounds. JW Pharmaceutical plans to expand J-Wave to a cloud environment to accelerate large-scale genomic analysis and AI learning, while also actively utilizing it for collaborative research with industry, academia, research institutes, and hospitals.