Chugai and Gero Partner to Develop Antibodies for Age-Related Diseases Using AI

Chugai Pharmaceutical has entered into a research collaboration with Singapore-based Gero to develop antibody-based therapies targeting age-related diseases. The agreement includes an upfront payment of an undisclosed size and development and sales milestones worth up to $250 million. If certain conditions are met, additional royalties could bring the total value of the collaboration to over $1 billion.
Gero utilizes human data, physical models, and machine learning to study aging. Its platform is designed to predict human health outcomes and explain its predictions. The company has published work on identifying biomarkers of aging and frailty and previously signed a deal with Pfizer to explore targets in fibrotic diseases.

Under the new agreement, Gero will use its AI-driven platform to identify targets for age-related diseases. Chugai will then apply its in-house antibody engineering capabilities to develop therapeutic candidates aimed at those targets. The Japanese pharmaceutical company, majority owned by Roche, will hold exclusive global rights to the resulting antibodies.
“Our AI platform is built to identify therapeutic targets that drive multiple age-related diseases and potentially aging itself,” said Gero CEO Peter Fedichev. “In this collaboration, we aim to translate those insights into therapeutics that can help restore the lost function.”
Fedichev further noted that the partnership represents a step toward Gero’s goal of addressing the biological processes underlying human aging.
Chugai described the collaboration as part of its plan to become “the world’s top innovator, not just in Japan” by 2030. The company has taken multiple steps in recent years to integrate AI into its drug development process. In January, Chugai partnered with Japanese investor SoftBank to create generative AI agents capable of autonomously performing clinical development tasks. The intent is to use these agents to support the company’s pipeline, which includes therapeutic programs in cancer, immunology, neurology, hematology, and ophthalmology, along with additional efforts in obesity.

The agreement with Gero provides Chugai access to a target discovery platform built on predictive models of human health, trained using longitudinal medical records. Chugai will use the information to generate antibody candidates against selected targets.
Although the companies have not disclosed specific disease indications, Gero’s stated objective is to address the “root causes of age-related diseases.” The collaboration aligns with Gero’s efforts to apply its AI technology toward therapeutic development.
Gero previously secured a $6 million Series A financing round in 2023 and does not currently list a drug pipeline on its website. The collaboration with Chugai marks its second publicly disclosed deal, following the earlier agreement with Pfizer.
Chugai has also previously worked with Preferred Networks, a deep learning firm, beginning in 2018. In that arrangement, Chugai paid approximately ¥700 million (about $5 million) to gain access to Preferred Networks’ technology.