Expedition Therapeutics

Expedition Therapeutics, Inc. is a US-based biotechnology company incorporated in Delaware in March 2024. The company's business model is centered on in-licensing promising therapeutic assets from China for development and commercialization in global markets. It specializes in identifying and acquiring innovative drug candidates, particularly for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, from China's expanding biotech sector to bring them to the US market and beyond.

The company is led by Chairman and CEO Yi Larson, who previously served as the Chief Financial Officer at LianBio and Turning Point Therapeutics and has a background at Goldman Sachs. Expedition Therapeutics launched with initial seed funding from investors including Venrock, BVF Partners, and Lake Bleu Capital. This model of cross-border collaboration allows the company to leverage China's research and development capabilities while navigating the regulatory and clinical development landscapes of both the U.S. and China.

In its first major deal, announced in August 2025, Expedition entered into a licensing agreement with Shanghai-based Fosun Pharma. The agreement grants Expedition the global rights (excluding mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau) to develop, manufacture, and commercialize XH-S004, an orally administered dipeptidyl peptidase 1 (DPP-1) inhibitor. This drug is being developed for respiratory conditions such as non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The deal involves an upfront payment of $17 million to Fosun, with potential for up to $103 million in development and regulatory milestones and up to $525 million in sales-based milestones, plus royalties, making the total potential value of the deal $645 million.

Keywords: in-licensing, cross-border biotech, global drug development, US-China biotech, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory diseases, respiratory therapies, DPP-1 inhibitor, XH-S004, Fosun Pharma, Venrock, BVF Partners, Lake Bleu Capital, Yi Larson, clinical development, biopharmaceutical assets, bronchiectasis, COPD, pharmaceutical licensing, venture capital