Peptide therapeutics: companies, startups and research

Eli Lilly and Company, Pfizer, Novo Nordisk A/S and Merck And Co. are among the active companies identified. Their work includes peptide conjugates, oral delivery and peptide-linker technologies. Novartis also appears among the organizations active in peptide conjugates. These examples span both therapeutic design and delivery, rather than representing a single shared product strategy.

HysensBio Co. is the clearest named startup candidate in the data, with CPNE7-derived peptides for oral-health applications such as periodontal disease and dental caries. Receptor.AI and Sethera Therapeutics also formed an AI-guided polymacrocyclic peptide discovery alliance in August 2026. The available information identifies activity, but does not provide comparable clinical results or evidence to rank these companies by promise.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harvard University and the University of California are among the leading research organizations by recent activity. Fudan University and Zhejiang University are also active, including in peptide conjugates and AI-guided design. Recent peptide–protein interaction research involving Zhejiang University, Tsinghua University, Westlake University and the University of Pennsylvania illustrates the breadth of current academic work.

Funding data records $538.2 million across 635 grants since 2020 and $114.2 billion across 38 funding rounds. The totals aggregate funding associated with the peptide-therapeutics landscape and should not be read as verified budgets exclusively for peptide programs. They indicate substantial capital activity, but the underlying records vary in type and relevance.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc leads the listed patent holders with 95 patents, followed by The Regents Of The University Of California with 55 and Sichuan Kelun Biotech Biopharmaceutical Co. with 45. Caregen Co. is also among the prominent holders. These counts identify organizations with patent activity in the topic; they do not establish the commercial value or clinical status of their inventions.

Patent activity fell 46.9% in the latest year-over-year comparison, although 8,424 patents are recorded in the 24-month window. Publication activity moved in the opposite direction, growing 17.3% over the latest year. The difference suggests that rising scientific attention is not currently matched by patent growth in the same dataset.

Recent developments include an AI-guided polymacrocyclic discovery alliance between Receptor.AI and Sethera Therapeutics in August 2026, and Imperial College London research on ligase enzymes for peptide synthesis in September 2026. In October 2026, work on peptide–protein interactions highlighted their potential to modulate difficult protein–protein targets. Together, these efforts address discovery, target engagement and manufacturing.

The main approaches are linear peptide analogs, cyclic and constrained peptides, peptide conjugates, oral delivery and AI-guided discovery. Linear analogs modify peptide sequences; cyclization can constrain shape; conjugates add targeting or payload functions. Oral delivery focuses on administration, while AI methods help prioritize candidates. Each addresses different development needs, with trade-offs in stability, absorption, synthesis or validation.

The United States leads with 139,422 documents, followed by China with 89,690 and the United Kingdom with 38,582. These counts reflect documents associated with each country in the dataset, not a direct measure of market share or clinical success. Germany, India and Japan are also among the countries with substantial activity.

Metabolic and endocrine disorders are the largest listed application, with 16,179 documents, followed by neurological disorders with 12,615 and cardiovascular disease with 8,986. Oncology and infectious disease and immunology are also prominent areas. Recent activity increased in metabolic and endocrine disorders and infectious disease and immunology, while several other application areas recorded declines.