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Meeting highlights:
- Affordable Innovation: Following the mission to disrupt unaffordable biologics and expand access for patients globally—especially those left behind in developing nations—Biocon is committed to delivering high-quality biologics at affordable prices. The company pioneered the development of India’s first recombinant human insulin and brought the first FDA-approved biosimilar monoclonal antibodies like trastuzumab to market.
- Global South as a Biotech Hub: Innovation from India and Latin America is proving globally competitive, challenging biases and redefining where high-quality drug development can happen. Venture capital needs to take a fairer view of innovation in India and LatAm, recognizing these regions’ rising biotech capabilities.
- Local Partnerships for Global Impact: Strategic collaborations with regional players in Latin America are essential to navigating local markets and expanding access to life-saving therapies. Biocon’s partnership-first approach includes working with local players like Lapi, Pisa, and Stein Care to ensure market alignment and successful distribution.
- AI in Healthcare Innovation: While currently a tool for accelerating drug discovery and optimizing manufacturing, AI is rapidly evolving into a foundational force—poised to design molecules from scratch and become embedded across every stage of healthcare R&D and delivery.
- Biology as the Future: Technology is transforming biology from a siloed science into an interconnected, data-driven discipline—unlocking deeper understanding across systems like immunology, metabolism, and neuroscience, and positioning biology as the most exciting frontier in science today.
EF: What core values and key moments have shaped Biocon's evolution over the past four decades?
KS: When you live in a country like India, you quickly realize how vital affordable healthcare is. Access and affordability are essential for building a sustainable system, especially in the developing world. I initially started India’s first biotech company for making bioenzymes, but we eventually shifted our focus to healthcare when I saw how we could use our proprietary platform technology to make life-saving medicines much more affordable. At that time, India’s pharmaceutical industry had made major strides with low-cost generic drugs—but no one had yet addressed the challenge of affordable biologics. We spotted an opportunity: and committed ourselves to developing high-quality biologic medicines at a price people could afford—both in developing and developed markets.
In our pursuit to make life-saving medicines affordable and accessible to those who need them the most, we began with recombinant human insulin. When we started India had one of the world's highest diabetes rates, yet most of human insulin was imported—and 90% of the patients on insulins were using animal-based insulin because recombinant human insulin was too expensive. We believed we could change that. Using our unique yeast-based platform technology, we developed India's first recombinant human insulin and launched it in 2004. This move forced the market to adjust, reduce prices, and make modern insulin widely accessible. Within a year, the majority of patients had transitioned to the newer, safer option.
The need wasn’t limited to India. Across many emerging markets including Latin America—e.g. Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, and Chile—access to essential medicines was a major challenge. We expanded to supply insulin to these markets, and that’s when I truly understood the scale of the impact we could make. In many developing countries, patients often pay for healthcare out of pocket, as government support is limited. In such settings, affordability is not just important—it’s essential. That belief became the foundation of our work.
Later, a personal loss reinforced my mission. A close friend with breast cancer struggled to afford her treatment despite her financial stability. She had to sell her property —and still; she did not survive. In her memory, we set out to develop biosimilar versions of key cancer therapies like trastuzumab, bevacizumab, and pegfilgrastim to make them accessible to more patients. We held ourselves to the highest international standards to ensure that our products meet global benchmarks with no compromises. That dedication paid off—we became the world's first company to receive U.S. FDA approval for trastuzumab and pegfilgrastim biosimilars in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
That is how we got into biopharmaceuticals—not just to be different, but with a strong mission: to bring affordable, high-quality, life-saving treatments to people who need them most.
EF: How can India drive affordable, decentralized healthcare innovation from a Global South perspective?
KS: We have worked with Cuba for years, and they are quite advanced in biotech. We even developed two strong drug molecules together. However, the main issue for the Global South—including places like India and Latin America—is not innovation; it is credibility.
There is still a strong bias in the West against innovation from the Global South. When something new is developed here, the first reaction is doubt: "Is it credible?" Because of that, we have had to validate breakthroughs from places like Bangalore, and Boston before they are taken seriously. If you try to develop a drug entirely in India, people will say it is fine for the developing world but not good enough for Western countries. It is a very unfair mindset, but the Global South proves it can innovate at a high level. India has excellent talent, as does Latin America. What we lack is investment and support. Biotech development is expensive, and most developing countries do not invest heavily in innovation. Venture capitalists tend to favor U.S. startups over equally or even more promising ideas from India simply because of this mindset.
Recently, I read about I-Stem, an Indian company that spent 15 years developing a stem cell therapy to restore eyesight, which is now finally approved in the U.S. It is a major success story, and more are emerging. China has already crossed that level of credibility; their innovations are licensed to the U.S. India will get there, too. We have world-class talent—what we need is more venture funding, stronger clinical infrastructure, and better partnerships. If we build that, Indian innovation can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the best in the world. Even Europe struggles with this, so it is a global challenge we all need to tackle.
EF: What do you look for in partners, and how can Biocon strengthen access to its products in Latin America?
KS: When expanding into Latin America, finding the right local partner is absolutely crucial—someone who truly understands the market. While we have a direct presence in some countries, we usually prefer to team up with strong local companies, like Pisa, SteinCares, Raffo in Argentina, and Libbs and EMS in Brazil. We choose partners carefully, looking at their market knowledge, understanding of our products, and commitment to working closely with us in a meaningful way.
By "meaningful," I mean putting patients first—investing in education, advocacy, and engaging with doctors and healthcare professionals to demonstrate the value of our products. Each of our partners shares this philosophy, which is how we have built these relationships.
Our approach also adapts depending on the country. In some markets, if the partner is very strong, we work across a wide range of products. In others, we might handle part of the marketing ourselves. We stay flexible, always tailoring our model to the local market and the strengths of our partners.
EF: How is Biocon using AI to improve healthcare, biotech, and operations?
KS: AI is not new. For years, we have used early forms of it in manufacturing and R&D. We might not have called it "AI" at the time, but real-time analytics and systems improving efficiency were already doing similar work. Today, we are only scratching the surface of AI's potential. While it already accelerates drug discovery—cutting timelines from months to weeks—the future promises even bigger leaps. Soon, AI will design entirely new molecules built from scratch to meet specific needs.
The same shift is happening in antibody development. Right now, AI helps select the best option; in the future, it could create the exact antibody needed, eliminating much of today's trial and error.
A glimpse of this future can be seen in innovations like AlphaFold, which recently earned a Nobel Prize for predicting protein structures. Tomorrow, AI could go beyond prediction and design them from the ground up. That is the shift I am excited to see.
EF: As biology and technology increasingly converge, what skills will future scientists need to succeed?
KS: Science is incredibly exciting, and technology has completely changed the game. Biology, in particular, has become a new frontier. In the past, biology was fascinating but poorly understood because of its complexity and interconnectedness. Without the right tools, we could only study one piece at a time. Now, technology allows us to see how systems like the immune, metabolism, and nervous systems work together—making biology one of the most attractive fields today.
Biology is no longer just about health or medicine; it's influencing the entire technology landscape. For example, plants have already solved the problem of solar energy storage through photosynthesis, offering ideas for better energy systems. Even in computing, biology inspires: our brains, combining chemical, electrical, and protein signaling, outperform any supercomputer—and operate at room temperature without the extreme cooling quantum computers require.
Today, life sciences intersect with every major technology field: AI, quantum computing, chemistry, and physics. Thanks to new tools, we can finally explore biology's complexity—and uncover answers across industries. More young scientists and STEM students are drawn to life sciences, and anyone entering the field will increasingly need a deep understanding of technology to keep pushing the boundaries.
EF: How will Biocon be advancing personalized medicine? How can we bring emerging technologies like cell therapy to a larger scale using India's capabilities?
KS: I helped found a CAR-T company in India that successfully launched treatment for acute lymphoid leukemia, and we are now developing additional CAR-T therapies. This work has given me deep, hands-on experience in personalized cell therapy. Today, the focus is expanding beyond autologous cell therapy (using a patient's own cells) to allogeneic approaches (using donor cells). The scientific talent in India is incredible—the teams I work with are brilliant and highly skilled with cutting-edge technologies. We routinely use CRISPR for gene editing, whether developing biosimilars, biologics, or other novel therapies. AI and other new tools are essential to work faster and more precisely.
Looking ahead, biomarkers will be crucial for personalized medicine. We need theranostics—combining therapies with diagnostics—to ensure the right patients receive the right treatments. With biosimilars, we largely build on the original research, but real-world evidence can reveal new insights into improving outcomes. Tracking which patients respond best helps refine treatment approaches, making strong pharmacovigilance systems critical to continuous improvement.
EF: You have been well recognized globally with national honors from many countries including India. What legacy would you like to leave?
KS: I believe awards and honors are a tremendous recognition, but they also carry great responsibility. I've been fortunate to receive some of India's highest national awards, as well as the Order of Australia and the Légion d'honneur from France. These are major honors, but beyond feeling proud, they serve as reminders of the responsibility that comes with them. They recognize your work, but more importantly, they reinforce the commitment to continue making a difference. For me, these awards highlight my dedication to improving global healthcare. What truly matters is helping people everywhere gain access to essential, life-saving medicines—that is the legacy I want to leave behind.
EF: What final message would you like to share with Latin American readers and our market?
KS: Biotech is an incredibly exciting field that offers huge business opportunities for young scientists and women in STEM worldwide. But it is important to remember it is not just about starting a company. It's about having a real mission, staying committed, and acting with honesty and purpose. You likely won't go far if your only goal is to make money. But if you aim to use science to help people and make a real difference, you can achieve great things. Many young people today are in a hurry. I want to tell them you need patient capital. You need investors who are willing to wait, believe in your vision, and support long-term growth—because that's how real, lasting success is built.
