The partnership will build on a decade of impactful collaboration between the University and AstraZeneca and on AstraZeneca’s 30-year heritage in China.
New avenues for exchange and collaboration
The partners will share their expertise and best practice in building successful ecosystems through education and training, bilateral delegations and forums and talent exchanges, engaging a range of institutions across both ecosystems including hospitals, universities, research institutes, start-ups and scale-ups.
The University’s innovation arm, Cambridge Enterprise, will deliver training programmes on research commercialisation and spinout creation and will lead on organising reciprocal study visits. Clinicians from the hospitals and medical schools around Beijing’s BioPark will be trained in medical leadership through the Cambridge University Medical Education Group (CUMEG), part of the School of Clinical Medicine.
Patrick Maxwell, Regius Professor of Physic and Head of the School of Clinical Medicine at the University of Cambridge said: “We recognise that China – and Beijing in particular – is an emerging centre of innovation in the life sciences. This new partnership creates exciting opportunities for the University and the wider Cambridge Cluster to further develop their capabilities by connecting with Beijing’s rapidly growing pharma and medtech sector.
Connecting leading innovation hubs
Cambridge’s life sciences ecosystem is the largest in Europe, anchored by two universities, pioneering research institutes, hospitals, and biotech companies. Its interconnected sectors facilitate rapid collaboration, transform scientific advances into healthcare innovation, and deliver significant economic and societal impact.
Beijing stands at the forefront of China’s expanding biopharma and medtech sector, supported by significant government investment, modern infrastructure, and a growing pool of clinical, scientific, and entrepreneurial talent.
AstraZeneca’s new R D centre is located in the Beijing International Pharmaceutical Innovation Park (BioPark), which follows a similar model of co-location and collaboration as the Cambridge Biomedical Campus – home to AstraZeneca’s strategic R D facility, The Discovery Centre.
Shaun Grady, Chair of AstraZeneca UK, said: “Collaboration sits at the heart of AstraZeneca’s mission to help transform healthcare and deliver potentially life-changing medicines. With the opening of our new R D centre in Beijing and The Discovery Centre established in Cambridge, we are proud to help deepen connections between these two leading innovation hubs. This partnership is a fantastic opportunity to share expertise, advance innovation in both regions, and amplify our collective impact – accelerating scientific progress and advancing global public health.”
Dr Jim Glasheen, Chief Executive of Cambridge Enterprise, said: “This partnership with AstraZeneca exemplifies our commitment to building bridges between academia and industry, empowering innovators, and driving global progress in healthcare. By connecting Cambridge’s unique ecosystem with leading partners in Beijing, we are strengthening pathways from lab to clinic, championing improved connectivity and innovation opportunities for the benefit of all.”
A shared commitment to progress for patients and society
Fostering deeper connection between the University, AstraZeneca and the two innovation ecosystems will empower both regions to learn from and build on each other’s expertise. United by a shared vision, the partnership will accelerate access to innovation best practices and global networks – with the aim of advancing life sciences in both regions to support a healthier future for people, planet and society globally.
The British Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, Peter Wilson, said: “This is an excellent example of a leading UK university working in partnership with a leading biopharma company to engage with Beijing’s dynamic innovation ecosystem. This kind of collaboration with China is an important way to accelerate innovation, bolster the UK’s leading life sciences cluster, support growth and help develop new treatments for patients globally.”
Earlier this year, the University of Cambridge and AstraZeneca marked a decade of collaboration and impact, highlighting achievements in breakthrough science, talent development, and innovation in Cambridge, the UK and beyond.
.
The University of Cambridge, AstraZeneca and Beijing municipal parties (the Beijing Science and Technology Commission and the Beijing Economic and Technological Development Area), have signed an agreement that will enhance collaboration between the University, AstraZeneca and Cambridge and Beijing’s life sciences ecosystems.
This kind of collaboration with China is an important way to accelerate innovation, bolster the UK’s leading life sciences cluster, support growth and help develop new treatments for patients globally.Peter Wilson, British Ambassador to the People’s Republic of ChinaCredit: AstraZenecaSigning ceremony in Beijing
The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright ©University of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.
YesLicence type: Attribution
Monday 16 February 2026
Cambridge - 2 month ago
University announces new partnership with AstraZeneca and Beijing municipal parties to accelerate innovations in healthcare
Pool balls and wishing stars: Two University of Northampton graduates shortlisted for local film festival
- NorthamptonNew Visiting Professor for Central European Studies Saskia Jaszoltowski delivers talk about her work
- LeidenTre progetti della Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna finanziati con una borsa di studio Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, il programma di finanziamento europeo per sostenere la carriera di ricercatrici e ricercatori in possesso di un dottorato di ricerca
- Sant’AnnaUniversity of Aberdeen leads world-first brain health study with MRI-pioneer among first volunteers
- AberdeenHMEI Faculty Seminar Where the Wild Things Are: Mammalian Immune Responses Under Environmental Variation by Andrea Graham
- PrincetonHighland, Lowland: Chlorite Landscapes of the Iranian Plateau in the Third Millennium BCE | Robert J. Braidwood Lecture
- PrincetonHighland, Lowland: Chlorite Landscapes of the Iranian Plateau in the Third Millennium BCE | Robert J. Braidwood Lecture
- PrincetonScuola Superiore Sant’Anna, consegnati i Diplomi a 209 Allieve e Allievi che hanno concluso il proprio percorso formativo. Due ex Allieve tornano per condividere la loro esperienza
- Sant’AnnaUConn Research Informs Policy Debate on Expanding Juvenile Parole Eligibility in Connecticut
- ConnecticutNew Jersey community college faculty and staff convene at Princeton for inaugural Transfer Pathways Institute
- PrincetonUN approves 40-member scientific panel on the impact of artificial intelligence over US objections
- MMUTrump promised RFK Jr. would ‘restore faith in American health care.’ A year in, trust has plummeted
- MMUNorthampton students conjure joyful atmosphere for first-ever Business Improvement District Awards
- NorthamptonReady player two…University of Northampton Esports students return to raise £2,000 for charity
- NorthamptonQuantum research in two ways: from proving someone s location to simulating financial markets
- LeidenHashtags:
University
|announces
|partnership
|AstraZeneca
|Beijing
|municipal
|parties
|accelerate
|innovations
|healthcare
|
New Line of Bovine Embryonic Stem Cells Shows Promise for Lab-Grown Meat, Biomedical Applications
- Connecticut
Olympic officiating: Western staff member leads women’s hockey refs at 2026 Winter Games
- Western Ontario
University of Ouagadougou - QS World University Rankings - Sub-Saharan Africa 2026
- topuniversities
Universite Marien Ngouabi - QS World University Rankings - Sub-Saharan Africa 2026
- topuniversities
Macroeconomic Implications of Climate-Related Risks: Challenges and Opportunities for the Low-Carbon Transition
- Sant’Anna
Governance d’impresa e gestione dei rischi: a Roma un convegno sugli adeguati assetti organizzativi per le piccole e medie imprese
- Sant’AnnaForeign Interference in Canada’s Democracy: What are we doing about it? with Dr. Lori Turnbull
- Queen’sDegree apprentice Evie has her eyes on moving up the marketing ladder thanks to new University of Northampton course
- NorthamptonTwo professors receive grants from Schmidt Sciences to use AI to accelerate humanities research
- PrincetonSpreading her professional wings: Laura ‘counts’ the benefits of an apprenticeship in Accounting and Finance with University of Northampton
- NorthamptonRiconoscimenti internazionali: Flavia Manzo Margiotta, dottoranda in Medicina Traslazionale, ha ricevuto il Young Investigator Award all’European Hidradenitis Suppurativa Foundation (EHSF) Congress
- Sant’AnnaStudent Friends of the Princeton University Library: Visit to Friends Private Collections in New York City
- PrincetonSeven-day injectable, daily tablet buprenorphine equally effective for ED patients with opioid use disorder
- YaleUConn Professor Sir Cato T. Laurencin Attends The World Academy of Sciences Conference
- Connecticut Barcelona
Copenhagen
Gordon
Aberdeen
acenet
Agricultural Sciences
Alabama
Arizona
Autonomous
Bath
Bergen
Bern
Bloomington
Boston
Bozen-Bolzano
Brandeis
Buffalo
Calgary
Cambridge
Central European
Charité
Chester
Colorado Boulder
Connecticut
Copenhagen
Duisburg-Essen
Duke
Dundee
École
Eindhoven
Emory
Estadual de Campinas
Federal do Rio de Janeiro
Florida
Frankfurt am Main
Galway
Geneva
Goethe
Groningen
Harvard
Hawai’i at Mānoa
Hong Kong
Hongkong
Imperial
James Cook
Keele
Kingston
KTH
Laval
Leiden
Liège
Liverpool
Lomonosov Moscow
Luxembourg
Macquarie
Mancunion
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
MMU
Montreal
Nacional de Colombia
Newcastle
Northampton
Nuremberg
Ohio
Ottawa
Oxford
Paris-Sud
Princeton
Purdue
qswownews
Quaid-i-Azam
Queensland
Queen’s
Radboud
Riverside
Ruhr
Rush
Rutgers
RWTH Aachen
Santa Barbara
Santa Cruz
Sant’Anna
São Paulo
Sciences Po
Scuola
SOAS
South Australia
South Florida
Southampton
St-andrews
St. Louis
Stanford
Stirling
Stockholm
Stony Brook
Stuttgart
Surrey
Sussex
SUU
Swansea
Sydney
Syracuse
Texas
Texas A&M
Texas at Dallas
Tokyo
topuniversities
Trento
Tufts
Ulm
USnews/Education
Utah
Utrecht
Wageningen
Waikato
Warwick
Waseda
Washington
Western Australia
Western Ontario
Wilhelms-University Munster
William & Mary
Wollongong
Würzburg
Yale
Yeshiva
⁞
Copenhagen
Gordon
Aberdeen
acenet
Agricultural Sciences
Alabama
Arizona
Autonomous
Bath
Bergen
Bern
Bloomington
Boston
Bozen-Bolzano
Brandeis
Buffalo
Calgary
Cambridge
Central European
Charité
Chester
Colorado Boulder
Connecticut
Copenhagen
Duisburg-Essen
Duke
Dundee
École
Eindhoven
Emory
Estadual de Campinas
Federal do Rio de Janeiro
Florida
Frankfurt am Main
Galway
Geneva
Goethe
Groningen
Harvard
Hawai’i at Mānoa
Hong Kong
Hongkong
Imperial
James Cook
Keele
Kingston
KTH
Laval
Leiden
Liège
Liverpool
Lomonosov Moscow
Luxembourg
Macquarie
Mancunion
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
MMU
Montreal
Nacional de Colombia
Newcastle
Northampton
Nuremberg
Ohio
Ottawa
Oxford
Paris-Sud
Princeton
Purdue
qswownews
Quaid-i-Azam
Queensland
Queen’s
Radboud
Riverside
Ruhr
Rush
Rutgers
RWTH Aachen
Santa Barbara
Santa Cruz
Sant’Anna
São Paulo
Sciences Po
Scuola
SOAS
South Australia
South Florida
Southampton
St-andrews
St. Louis
Stanford
Stirling
Stockholm
Stony Brook
Stuttgart
Surrey
Sussex
SUU
Swansea
Sydney
Syracuse
Texas
Texas A&M
Texas at Dallas
Tokyo
topuniversities
Trento
Tufts
Ulm
USnews/Education
Utah
Utrecht
Wageningen
Waikato
Warwick
Waseda
Washington
Western Australia
Western Ontario
Wilhelms-University Munster
William & Mary
Wollongong
Würzburg
Yale
Yeshiva