Eli Lilly Korea (Chairman: Paul Henry Huibers) said Friday it has partnered with local research institute, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), to develop new drugs through the company’s Open Innovation Drug Discovery (OIDD) program.

“We are delighted to work with the excellent researchers at KRICT and hope the OIDD program will lower the barriers faced by many universities and research institutes in the early stages of new drug research, becoming a bridge for further advancement,” said Lilly Korea official Choi Hyun-ah.

Lilly’s OIDD program engages external investigators around the world to discover new drugs, providing researchers access to the company’s tools and expertise used to design, test and make new molecules, the company said. Participating organizations may retain intellectual property rights while benefitting from Eli Lilly’s drug development platform, it added. The company has engaged 831 researchers from 435 institutions in 32 countries in the program as of July, according to the company.

Through the partnership, Eli Lilly will provide the Korean research institution various platforms needed to develop new drugs, it said. KRICT researchers will, in turn, lend their expertise and capabilities in discovering and developing new drugs.

“We believe building a platform with global pharmaceutical companies will garner recognition for Korean chemical technology and research while contributing to the development of the country’s pharmaceutical industry,” KRICT Director Jung Soon-young said.