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ShenzhenMay 4, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — XtalPi (2228.HK), a leading AI-driven pharmaceutical company, today announced significant dual progress in its strategic collaboration with PharmaEngine (4162.TWO). PEP08, a next-generation PRMT5 inhibitor discovered through XtalPi’s AI-enabled platform, has successfully initiated patient recruitment for solid tumors, marking a key milestone. Meanwhile, leveraging the exceptional efficiency and platform delivery quality of the PEP08 AI drug discovery project, both parties have also launched a second AI-driven drug discovery project targeting a novel “synthetic lethality” target.
The PEP08 project received clinical trial approval in June 2025 and is currently undergoing Phase I clinical trials for solid tumors in Australia and Taiwan, China. The orderly recruitment and dosing of clinical patients not only preliminarily confirms PEP08’s favorable safety and tolerability profile but also marks the high-value pipeline’s rapid and steady progression toward clinical translation.
This pipeline was precisely designed and screened by XtalPi from a library of millions of molecules using its underlying quantum physics models, AI algorithms, and robotic experimental platforms. Addressing the severe hematological toxicity challenges posed by traditional PRMT5 inhibitors due to poor selectivity, PEP08 innovatively employs an MTA-cooperative binding mode to specifically kill MTAP-deficient tumor cells, which account for 10-15% of human cancers, while maximally protecting normal cells. It holds significant potential in treating non-small cell lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, glioblastoma, and more. Preclinical results presented at the 2025 AACR show that PEP08 offers distinct advantages over first-generation PRMT5 inhibitors, demonstrating “Best-in-Class” potential.
Driven by the success of the PEP08 drug discovery, both parties have initiated research on a second synthetic lethality target project. The launch of this new project fully reflects the deep integration of PharmaEngine’s profound expertise in tumor biology with XtalPi’s AI molecular design advantages, helping PharmaEngine accelerate the construction of a uniquely competitive synthetic lethality drug pipeline targeting the high-growth global precision oncology market.
The continued progress of PEP08 and the simultaneous advancement of the second new drug discovery project mark the accelerated release of scale benefits from XtalPi’s “platform + pipeline” dual-drive model. In the high-value frontier track with active transactions, XtalPi frequently achieves milestone progress, not only strongly validating its deep technological barriers but also showcasing the commercial upside of generating substantial returns through technology sharing and equity participation. With high-frequency, high-quality R&D deliveries, the company is continuously building a resilient and highly certain long-term profit engine.
Dr. Wen Shuhao, Chairman of XtalPi, stated: “Congratulations on the breakthrough progress of PEP08 in clinical development. From the steady advancement of PEP08 to the smooth launch of the second project, this is not just the success of a single drug but the best endorsement of XtalPi’s underlying AI and robotic platform’s ‘replicable innovation capability.’ We transform highly challenging biological problems into high-certainty clinical assets. As the platform’s momentum continues to unfold, we are confident in continuously empowering global partners and, through a diversified pipeline portfolio, delivering long-term commercial value with compounding effects for shareholders.”
“PharmaEngine continues to strengthen its R&D capabilities, and our collaboration with XtalPi fully demonstrates the company’s ability to leverage cutting-edge technologies to drive next-generation breakthrough discoveries in precision oncology,” said Dr. Wang Hongren, General Manager of PharmaEngine. “XtalPi’s R&D platform played a key role in the early discovery phase of PEP08, laying a solid foundation for its smooth entry into clinical trials. The collaboration between both parties on PEP08 and the second project is a tangible reflection of our ongoing efforts to advance global cancer treatment.”
About PharmaEngine
PharmaEngine is headquartered in Taipei and began operations in May 2003. The company was founded on the concept of leveraging international strategic alliances and a “Virtual Pharmaceutical Company Business Model” to focus on new drug development, reducing the risks associated with drug R&D. PharmaEngine’s commercialized product, ONIVYDE®, is used to treat adult patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. Additionally, PharmaEngine is actively advancing Phase I human clinical trials for its pipeline candidates PEP07 (a CHK1 inhibitor) and PEP08 (an MTA-cooperative PRMT5 inhibitor). Going forward, leveraging its extensive experience in project management, PharmaEngine plans to continue expanding its pipeline and aims to accelerate the drug discovery, development, and commercialization of cancer drugs through international collaborations or licensing agreements.
About XtalPi
XtalPi (“XtalPi Holdings Limited”, stock abbreviation: XTALPI, stock code: 2228.HK) was founded in 2015 by three physicists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is an innovative R&D platform based on quantum physics, empowered by artificial intelligence, and driven by robotics. The company combines quantum physics-based first-principles calculations, artificial intelligence, high-performance cloud computing, and scalable, standardized robotic automation to provide drug and materials science R&D solutions and services to global and domestic companies in the pharmaceutical and materials science industries (including agricultural technology, energy and new chemicals, and cosmetics).