Biontech wants to save the world by developing drugs without clear commercial potential

According to Biontech founders Ugur Sahin and Özlem Türeci, the value of a company will soon be measured by how they benefit society and the planet rather than revenue and bottom-line results. The two billionaires are now therefore setting their sights on malaria, tuberculosis and a number of other indications which are not obvious moneymakers.

Chief Medical Officer at Biontech, Özlem Türeci, believes that companies will soon be measured on how useful they are to society, not how profitable they are. | Photo: Biontech/PR
by ulrich quistgaard, translated by catherine brett

The two founders and directors of Biontech, Ugur Sahin and Özlem Türeci, were heralded as saving the world when they were the first to get a Covid-19 vaccine developed and approved.

As well as a wealth of acknowledgements and prizes for their vaccine, Comirnaty, the pair have also become rich from their success, and the German biotech firm is sitting on a pool of billions of euros, which will be used to explore new disease areas.

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