China conditionally approved Aipusiwei (艾普司韦), its first AI-assisted original drug, after three-and-a-half years of development and trials.

China’s National Medical Products Administration conditionally approved Yisitewei hydrochloride tablets (盐酸伊司特韦片), sold under the brand Aipusiwei (艾普司韦). The drug was jointly developed by Westlake University, Westlake Laboratory and Westlake Pharmaceutical (Hangzhou).

The approved indication is treatment of mild and moderate COVID-19 infections in adults. The source identifies Aipusiwei as China’s first domestically originated innovative drug approved with assistance from artificial intelligence in its research and development.

The development process took three and a half years from initial discovery through completion of clinical trials. The source does not provide the trial population, study phases, efficacy endpoints, safety results or details of the AI methods used.

The approval is conditional rather than an unrestricted approval. No post-approval study requirements, pricing, production capacity or commercialization timetable were included in the supplied source.