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00:00So Albert thank you so much for joining us on this very special day for you at Pfizer. You had
00:04your first quarter results out which were strong and beat estimates. As you look at those results. Why do you
00:09think you beat the estimates and what does it tell you about the rest of the year.
00:13It's about execution. We were very focused and our commercial machine which is basically the refraction of these commercial results
00:21is one of a kind. They are very very good. They understand the customer. They understand the patients. They understand
00:28the physicians and they were able to detail the benefits of our product. So we really did very well particularly
00:35with new and acquired products that grew 22 percent in a quarter 22 percent.
00:42Let's talk about those new and acquired because a lot of people who are investors at Pfizer say that it
00:47really is about the pipeline. What's coming down the pipeline because of some things coming off a patent. What can
00:52you tell us about that pipeline where you are right now and what should we be focused on particularly in
00:56that pipeline.
00:58Look let me start with the pipeline that we acquire or the businesses that we acquire. We invested almost 80
01:04billion dollars in the last few years in acquiring molecules pipelines businesses that will help us overcome the loss of
01:14patent period that starts this year.
01:16Three account for 80 percent of these 80 billion dollars. One is Sizen. Sizen did extremely well commercially 20 percent
01:25growth this quarter and also even more importantly significant redoubts in bladder cancer.
01:33And we are now expecting significant redoubts in lung cancer. So it's transformative for us.
01:40The second one is the bioheaven. That was the migraine acquisition. That is growing 41 percent this quarter and is
01:50having more claims that are coming into the next couple of years.
01:57And the third was Metsera, which is our anti-obesity platform of peptides that we announced a record 10 phase
02:08three studies program starting this year.
02:12So that's what drives performance.
02:14As you look at your pipeline, either as it is now or how you might like it to be, there's
02:19a lot of cancer emphasis and also obesity, as you just said.
02:23Would you like to enhance the pipeline in either of those areas or would you be interested in other areas?
02:30Constantly are looking to enhance the pipeline in the areas that we are strong because we can select rightly and
02:37we can combine.
02:38So we are looking things in oncology, although we have probably one of the largest pipelines of oncology drugs right
02:45now in Pfizer.
02:46We are looking clearly to comprehend it in obesity.
02:50Also, we have acquired from Metsera a very big gam of molecules, weekly, monthly combinations with amylines, that they are
03:02progressing very, very nicely.
03:03But we are looking also for the next generation of obesity medicines that we are trying internally and through acquisitions.
03:11And we are interested to build up also our immunology franchise.
03:17We had a very good readout of a tri-specific for atopic dermatitis that now we are trying in asthma
03:24and COPD.
03:26Very, very impressive, strong results.
03:28And that could be the core on which we will build to enhance the inflammation and immunology portfolio.
03:37For those of us on the outside watching these developments, all the readouts you're getting, the testing you're getting, the
03:42results, give us a scorecard.
03:45How do you keep score on whether you are where you need to be on developing the new drugs?
03:51We are keeping score every quarter and every six months and every year and over the years.
03:59Already this year, we announced in the beginning of the year, we need to have four regulatory approvals.
04:04And half of them has been already achieved almost in one quarter.
04:08We announced that we want to have eight significant readouts.
04:12And so far, we had three or four of them already occurring.
04:17And we announced that we are going to start 20 clinical trials.
04:21And we are monitoring when each one of them starts.
04:24The same is with our commercial operations.
04:26We are monitoring how we are doing in terms of market share, how we are doing in terms of revenues.
04:32And the same is on our margins.
04:33We are deploying AI in ways that allows us to improve our productivity, dramatically, actually.
04:41And that allows us to increase margins.
04:43Tell us about AI, because we hear about that a fair amount in pharmaceuticals and specifically at Pfizer.
04:48Can you give us any specific examples where it really moved you forward faster?
04:54Absolutely.
04:55We were reviewing with our board the first molecule that we were able to completely design through AI just two
05:04weeks ago.
05:05And three months ago, we wouldn't be able to do it.
05:08And three months later, we have already a molecule already designed, right, in the face.
05:13But also, I want to say that when it speaks about AI, there are two different areas.
05:20One, it is what technology can do now and cannot do everything, but clearly can do much more than we
05:27are using it to.
05:29And the bottleneck for something like that is not technological limitations.
05:33It is organization and ability to transform itself into an AI native organization.
05:40It is inertia.
05:42It is fear of people.
05:44It is people that don't understand the language of AI.
05:47These are the things that we are trying to correct.
05:49AI will change the way that we do things.
05:52And as a result, because of this big disruption, we'll create a new list of winners and losers.
05:58And those that they will be able to transform themselves by using AI will be on the top of the
06:04list.
06:04And those that they will not will go in the bottom.
06:07Pfizer wants to be on the very, very top of this list.
06:11One of the challenges for the CEO of such a big and complex company as Pfizer is you have to
06:16do more than one thing at a time.
06:18I don't mean just develop more than one pharmaceutical at a time.
06:21You have to really manage the costs at the same time you're investing in the R&D and the development.
06:27How are you coming on that front?
06:31You're right that you need to multitask if you are a CEO.
06:33And you mentioned some of the things that R&D, which is my passion, and I want to work with
06:39my scientists to understand what we can do.
06:42Of course, to control the cost, but we have to do also politics, if you are asking me.
06:48So I was spending more time in Washington than with my R&D people the whole last year and this
06:55year in the beginning.
06:56So you need to be able to multitask.
06:59And as long as you have a good compass, a North Star, you know where the organization should go.
07:05And you select the right people that they can take you there.
07:08You are OK.
07:09You do spend some time in Washington, as I understand it.
07:12And part of that, I suspect, is with the FDA, Mr. McCary.
07:16And there are a lot of reporting about Mr. McCary.
07:18I'm not going to ask about that specifically.
07:19But how has the FDA been for you?
07:21They were going to revolutionize the way they approved new medicines.
07:24Are you seeing that in practical effect?
07:28I don't see it yet, but I wouldn't expect to see it also in such a short period of time.
07:35I'm very encouraged with the comments that they made.
07:40Martin McCary made some comments recently about how he plans to modernize the FDA
07:45so that we can accelerate drug development because China has already eaten our lands.
07:52I have seen Dr. Oz speaking about how we can make HHS much more productive.
08:00So I'm encouraged by that.
08:01We haven't seen it yet, but I'm encouraged that they are thinking in the right direction.
08:07There's been some back and forth, at least for those of us on the outside of the FDA,
08:12about the schedule for vaccinations for COVID.
08:15Has that affected your sales?
08:17Yeah, it was mostly on the CDC, the schedule.
08:21There was some variation that FDA asked us to do on COVID, which we did,
08:28although we disagree scientifically.
08:29There was any merit to do it, but we did it because they are FDA.
08:34CDC was a very painful story, I think.
08:38And they did things that hurt the credibility of this renowned institution.
08:45Things that forced, for example, the American Academy of Pediatricians
08:51to start issuing their own guidelines because they wouldn't trust anymore the guidelines of the CDC.
08:57Again, I think we have now a turnaround there.
09:01The new director that was appointed is a very credible scientist, has a lot of credentials,
09:10and I'm optimistic that all these bad things that we saw in the vaccines are in the past.
09:16You also have been developing a vaccine for Lyme disease, as I understand it.
09:21Where does that stand?
09:22You need more data.
09:25I think we are going to, with the data that we have right now, that was more than three years'
09:29study,
09:29so we have a lot of data.
09:31And we are going to submit, and we will see how regulators will respond.
09:37But probably, I am encouraged that we will get it approved.
09:41This is a disease that is devastating.
09:43There is no vaccines right now.
09:46And the incidence is growing.
09:48There are 600,000 cases of Lyme disease every year.
09:52And the long-term consequences in the health of the people that are getting the disease are really enormous.
10:01So I'm optimistic that we have something good for the patients here.
10:05Let's go international for a moment.
10:07I know that you've entered into agreements with some Chinese firms, both this year and, I believe, last year as
10:12well.
10:13Describe those agreements and what they do for Pfizer.
10:17We have done several agreements.
10:19Most of them are in licensing, which means that technology and innovation that they have developed,
10:25that's very early stage, that we found promising.
10:29We license these technologies, and we are developing it ourselves, not in China, but in the U.S.
10:34That affects GLP-1, that affects oncology, a very big program that we started.
10:43And that's the first part.
10:46There was also another one that was quoted heavily.
10:48We launched 10 days ago in China a GLP-1.
10:53It is pretty much a weekly GLP-1 with very good performance.
11:00And we do that from one hand because China is a big market, and that will allow us to generate
11:06significant revenues there with that.
11:08But even more importantly, we will learn how to market obesity products.
11:13So when we launched in the U.S. and internationally in year 2028, we will be already skilled and skillful
11:22and experienced.
11:25Do you see further opportunity down the road for Pfizer in China?
11:29Yes.
11:30I think Chinese are having very strong science right now.
11:33And when science is taking you, you should follow.
11:38And I don't think that anyone will say, don't get Chinese medicine that will help my kid fight.
11:46It's cancer, right?
11:47So it's, God forbid.
11:48So it is extremely important when it comes to science to be universal.
11:54What I am concerned, and I'm talking to the administration and the previous administration,
11:59it is that right now China is having a meteoric rise in their scientific capabilities,
12:04and they will be the main competitors of ours.
12:07So the new COVID vaccines or the new cancer treatments will not be any more developed in the U.S.
12:13actually could be developed in China.
12:15And to prevent that, or we should not try to slow down China, which is where 80% of the
12:23effort is going right now.
12:2480% of the effort should be how to become better than them.
12:27That's why I commend it positively on the comments of Martin Macari,
12:32that China is moving and we need to become better than them.
12:37We need to make sure that we streamline regulations so more medicines will come through the Finnish line.
12:43I understand the situation in Europe may be a bit more complicated.
12:46There's been some back and forth about how much Pfizer can charge for its pharmaceuticals in Europe.
12:51Where does that stand?
12:53Look, David, we made an agreement with the HHS, which clearly we plan to honor.
13:02However, this agreement says that there is a basket of several countries,
13:06that we need to have similar prices with the U.S. when we launch new products.
13:12That will happen.
13:13So I see two ways.
13:17The countries that we are talking about, rich European countries,
13:22either they should pay the fair share of innovation,
13:25or they have to live without this innovation.
13:29You have made some major acquisitions.
13:31You mentioned Metzera, for example, a moment or two ago.
13:34Do you anticipate further major acquisitions for Pfizer?
13:38We will do both on this type of acquisitions.
13:41At that magnitude, yes, we will continue doing it.
13:44Probably are focusing right now on earlier stage science.
13:48And we are very, very active in that field.
13:52And finally, you're entering into a new era, I think it's fair to say, at Pfizer.
13:57Take us out a few years.
13:58How do you envision Pfizer three, five years down the road?
14:03Look, many things will be pretty much very different.
14:07But many things will remain the same.
14:10Let me start with what I see remaining the same.
14:13Pfizer in five years will be a patient-centric organization.
14:18The patient will be in the center of everything we do.
14:21It will be the same passion.
14:23We will have the same passion for science as we have today.
14:26That will not change.
14:27And our people will have the same pride that they have today,
14:31that they are working in a company that saves lives.
14:34Now, everything else will change in five years.
14:37The way that we do things from drug discovery to drug development
14:42to drug manufacturing to drug marketing will be very different.
14:46And AI, it is what will make all these changes radical and effective.
14:52As a result, as I said, we will be an AI-native company at that time.
14:58And we should be able to be a leading industry growth company
15:03in terms of revenues.
15:05Thank you so much.
15:07Okay, Albert Bourla, thank you so very much.
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