Protium Science
Protium Science is a South Korean CDAMO (contract development, analysis, and manufacturing organization) founded in 2021 that provides end-to-end biosimilar services — cell line development, process development, GMP manufacturing, and analytical qualification — to Korean biopharma sponsors, with 130+ customers and 630+ projects completed.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersSeongnam, South Korea
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Protium Science does
Protium Science is a Seongnam, South Korea-based contract development, analysis, and manufacturing organization (CDAMO) founded in 2021 that provides end-to-end biopharmaceutical services spanning cell line development, upstream and downstream process development, GMP manufacturing, and analytical method qualification. The company positions itself as a one-stop biosimilar-focused service provider, having completed more than 630 projects for over 130 domestic bio companies, with a workforce of 51–100 employees carrying global biosimilar experience.
Revenue is generated through multi-year fee-for-service contracts and turnkey CDO agreements, with disclosed annual revenue scaling from approximately 1.6 billion KRW in 2022 to 6.7 billion KRW in 2024, and annual order intake of approximately 21.6 billion KRW recorded in 2025 against a cumulative order book of roughly 40 billion KRW as of October 2025. The customer base is concentrated in Korean biosimilar developers, with Kyongdong Pharmaceutical disclosed as a named strategic counterparty under a recent biosimilar contract, and seven customers having signed turnkey CDO contracts totaling 20 billion KRW.
The business model combines capital-efficient fee-for-service work with longer-duration turnkey programs, supplemented by a strategic AI partnership with Cellkey AI (June 2025) to embed predictive analytics into process development. Backed by approximately $15.9M in equity from investors including TiumBio and HK inno.N, the company announced plans for a general stock (KOSDAQ) listing in October 2025 alongside its first overseas business development activity at BPI2025 in Boston.
Protium Science firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Protium Science
- Legal name
- Protium Science
- Website
- https://protiumscience.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Protium Science is a South Korean CDAMO (contract development, analysis, and manufacturing organization) founded in 2021 that provides end-to-end biosimilar services — cell line development, process development, GMP manufacturing, and analytical qualification — to Korean biopharma sponsors, with 130+ customers and 630+ projects completed.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Protium Science industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Biopharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing (CDMO/CDAMO)
- NAICS
- Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)
- SIC
- Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Biologics (mAbs/Recombinant Proteins) CDMO (HLAGABAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Analytical Development & QC Testing (Release/Stability/Potency) (HLAGAGAF), GMP Scale-Up, Tech Transfer & Process Validation (PPQ) (HLAGAHAL), Clinical Trial Material (CTM) Manufacturing & Supply CDMO (HLAGABAK)
Keywords
Where Protium Science is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Seongnam
- HQ country
- South Korea
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
Protium Science business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- CDAMO Services (CDO, CAO, CMO): Revenue generated from contracted development (CDO), contracted analysis (CAO), and contracted manufacturing (CMO) services. The company provides comprehensive bio-pharmaceutical development services from early-stage research through commercial production, with recent growth driven by CDO turnkey contracts. Services are priced on a project basis with revenue recognized as services are delivered.
- ADC Development Services: Specialized antibody-drug conjugate development services including conjugation, purification, and analysis.
- Investment-Linked Program: Investment-linked program combining CDMO synergies to support customer growth and successful subsequent development.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Protium Science product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Protium Science is a CDAMO (Contract Development, Analysis, Manufacturing Organization) providing integrated biopharmaceutical development services from cell line development through GMP production. The company offers three core service pillars—CDO (contract development), CAO (contract analysis), and CMO (contract manufacturing)—with specialized capabilities in advanced modalities including monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), peptides, and viral vectors. Services are delivered on a project-contract basis to pharmaceutical and biotech customers primarily in South Korea.
Product overview
Protium Science operates as a CDAMO (Contract Development, Analysis, Manufacturing Organization) — a one-stop provider of biopharmaceutical contract services. Its core portfolio spans three integrated service pillars: CDO (contract development), CAO (contract analysis), and CMO (contract manufacturing), with specialized offerings in ADC (antibody-drug conjugate) development and lyophilization formulation services. The company additionally offers AI-integrated process optimization through a partnership with Cellkey AI, and collaborative GMP manufacturing via a partnership with STgen Bio. The CDAMO model provides clients with end-to-end support from cell line and process development through clinical and commercial production, linked to investment-linked program support to accelerate client growth.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- CDO (Contract Development Organization / 위탁개발)
Quantifiable outcome
- 630+ cumulative projects completed over 3 years
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Protium Science
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Protium Science technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability3 records
Feature6 records
Protium Science partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Kyongdong Pharmaceutical (경동제약)flagshipBiosimilar contracted development agreement signed on September 30, 2025, supporting Kyongdong Pharmaceutical's expansion from synthetic drugs into bio-pharmaceuticals. The partnership leverages Protium Science's CDAMO expertise to advance Kyongdong's core biosimilar projects. This contract builds on a 2024 MOU for antibody drug development and demonstrates validated technical capabilities through successful project execution.
- Cellkey AI (셀키에이아이)coreStrategic MOU signed on June 11, 2025 combining Protium Science's advanced CDAMO capabilities with Cellkey AI's data-driven AI analysis and prediction technology. The partnership aims to integrate AI across the entire bio-pharmaceutical development and production process for maximized efficiency. Specific collaboration areas include AI-based cell line development optimization, real-time culture and purification process data analysis, production yield prediction and anomaly detection, and AI-based quality control automation system development.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Protium Science competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Lonza Group: One of the world's largest CDMOs with full-spectrum biologics and cell/gene therapy services. Comparable to Protium as a benchmark competitor for CDAMO-type engagements in biologics, ADC, and cell/gene therapy, though Lonza operates at global scale.
Direct peers
- ABL Bio: Korean biotech developing bispecific antibodies and ADCs with process development capabilities. Comparable to Protium because it works across overlapping modalities (Bsp-Ab, ADC) and represents both a potential CDAMO customer and a specialist competitor for advanced-modality work.
- Celltrion: Korean biosimilar and biologics developer with substantial in-house manufacturing capacity. Comparable to Protium because it sits at the intersection of biosimilar development and CDMO-style capacity and is a potential competitor or partner for Korean biosimilar CDO work.
- STgen Bio: Korean biopharma CDMO used by Protium as its third-party GMP manufacturing partner. Directly comparable because it offers GMP biologics manufacturing to Korean clients and is referenced in Protium's own service offering as the bridge to commercial-scale GMP supply.
- Binex: Mid-sized Korean biopharmaceutical CDMO with development and manufacturing services across vaccines and biologics. Comparable to Protium as a Korean-headquartered, sub-scale biologics CDMO serving domestic pharma and biotech clients.
Broad incumbents
- Samsung Biologics: Korea's largest biologics CDMO offering end-to-end development, manufacturing, and analytical services. Comparable because it competes for the same Korean biopharma clients across mAb, ADC, and biosimilar modalities, but at vastly greater scale and capacity.
- Lotte Biologics: Korean CDMO with biologics manufacturing facilities and development services. Comparable to Protium because it serves Korean pharma/biotech with biologics CDMO capabilities, including biosimilars, but is significantly larger and more established.
- SK Bioscience: Korean biopharmaceutical company with vaccine and bio CDMO capabilities. Comparable to Protium as a Korean-headquartered life-sciences services platform with development and manufacturing operations, though SK Bioscience is far larger and more diversified.
- WuXi Biologics: Global biologics CDMO offering end-to-end development and manufacturing services for mAb, ADC, and recombinant proteins. Comparable to Protium because it competes for the same biologics outsourcing budgets across modalities, including in the Korean biosimilar market.
- GC Biopharma (Green Cross): Korean biopharmaceutical company with plasma-derived products, vaccines, and CDMO activities. Comparable because it both produces biologics and offers CDMO-related services to Korean partners, making it a potential competitor and customer.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses1 record
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Protium Science social profiles
Digital presenceProtium Science financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Protium Science leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Protium Science funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors8 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Protium Science M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Protium Science
What does Protium Science do?
Protium Science is a CDAMO (Contract Development, Analysis, Manufacturing Organization) providing integrated biopharmaceutical development services from cell line development through GMP production. The company offers three core service pillars—CDO (contract development), CAO (contract analysis), and CMO (contract manufacturing)—with specialized capabilities in advanced modalities including monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADC), peptides, and viral vectors. Services are delivered on a project-contract basis to pharmaceutical and biotech customers primarily in South Korea.
Is Protium Science a public or private company?
Protium Science is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Protium Science founded?
Protium Science was founded in 2021. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Protium Science based?
Protium Science is headquartered in Seongnam, South Korea, in the Asia region.
How does Protium Science make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. CDAMO Services (CDO, CAO, CMO) is the primary driver. The others are ADC Development Services and investment-Linked Program.
Who are Protium Science's main competitors?
Lonza Group is listed as an others. Direct peers are ABL Bio, Celltrion, STgen Bio and Binex. Broad incumbents are Samsung Biologics, Lotte Biologics, SK Bioscience, WuXi Biologics and GC Biopharma (Green Cross).
Does Protium Science have an API?
No public API is recorded for Protium Science.
What industry is Protium Science in?
Protium Science's product category is Biopharmaceutical Contract Development and Manufacturing (CDMO/CDAMO). Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGABAC, Biologics (mAbs/Recombinant Proteins) CDMO, with a secondary code of HLAGAGAF, Analytical Development & QC Testing (Release/Stability/Potency). Its NAICS code is 541714 and its SIC code is 8731.