Overseas attendees hit record 55% of total at Korea Night; 17 institutions unite under 'Team Korea' banner for first time

More than 1,200 people pack the Korea Night reception in San Diego on Tuesday (local time). [Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association]
More than 1,200 people pack the Korea Night reception in San Diego on Tuesday (local time). [Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association]

SAN DIEGO — San Diego is buzzing with K-biotech energy as the world's largest biotech exhibition, the 2026 BIO International Convention (Bio USA), gets underway. The Korea Night reception, held amid strong interest from global partners in Korean companies, drew a record crowd.

The Korea Night reception on Tuesday (local time) stood out as the clearest marker of Korean biotech's rising stature during this year's convention.

Co-hosted by 17 institutions — including the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, the Korea Bio Association, KOTRA and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute — under a "Team Korea" framework, the event drew more than 1,200 domestic and international attendees. Overseas participants accounted for roughly 55 percent of the total, a record high, underscoring the growing interest of global big pharma companies and investors in South Korea's pharmaceutical and biotech sector.

The Korea Biohealth Hub, a promotional pavilion set up at the San Diego Convention Center, also drew strong interest. The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association ran investor relations sessions inside the pavilion — jointly operated with 10 domestic partner organizations, including the Korea Health Industry Development Institute — to showcase promising Korean companies. A total of 12 firms, including Huons Lab and Pharos iBio, presented their core technologies and pipelines to global pharmaceutical companies and investors, spurring active partnering discussions.

The association also held a series of meetings with Biocom California, a leading biotech cluster on the US West Coast, and BioCentury, an organizer of global investment conferences, to explore collaborative programs and other avenues of cooperation aimed at creating a more favorable overseas environment for Korean companies.

Efforts to convert existing Korean-American life sciences networks into concrete working partnerships also took shape. The association signed an MOU with the Korean-American Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences Association (KAPAL), which has more than 2,000 members, agreeing to regularize exchanges. It also met with the leadership of the Korean-American Society of Biopharmaceutical Professionals (KASBP) to lay the strategic groundwork for expanding into the US market.

Lee Jae-guk, executive vice president of the Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association, who attended the event with member companies, said global big pharma players showed keen interest not only in the scale of Korean participation — through the industry pavilion, individual booths and one-on-one partnering sessions — but also in the technological competitiveness of domestic firms, particularly in advanced modalities. "This confirmed the changed status and sales power of K-pharma and biotech," he said. "We will continue to support the industry in establishing itself as a core player in the global innovation ecosystem through deeper, higher-quality global cooperation."

The association used Bio USA to advance support for Korean pharmaceutical and biotech companies' global expansion and to broaden its international cooperation network. This year's convention drew more than 1,600 companies from over 70 countries. South Korea sent more than 350 companies to participate in booth exhibitions and partnering sessions — the second-largest national contingent after the United States and the largest among overseas participants.


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