A sharp reduction in biopharma layoffs continued in the second quarter of 2026, extending a trend that started last fall.
2026 年第二季度，生物制药行业裁员规模持续大幅收窄，延续自去年秋季开启的裁员放缓态势。
According to an analysis of Fierce Biotech’s layoff data, a total of 17 biopharma companies were reported to be laying off employees from April through June—barely half of the 33 companies reported across the first three months of this year.
行业媒体《Fierce Biotech》裁员数据分析显示，4 至 6 月共有 17 家生物制药企业传出裁员消息，仅为今年一季度 33 家裁员企业数量的一半。
The latest figures are a far cry from early in 2025, when 64 and 62 layoff announcements were reported by Fierce in the second and third quarters, respectively. A separate Fierce analysis recently found that over the course of 2025, the 17 pharma companies with at least $20 billion in annual revenue collectively cut more than 22,000 positions.
最新数据与 2025 年行业裁员高峰相去甚远，当年二、三季度《Fierce Biotech》分别统计到 64 起、62 起裁员公告。该媒体另一项近期分析显示，2025 全年，17 家年营收超 200 亿美元的大型制药企业累计裁员超 2.2 万人。
So far, 2026 has offered some respite for biopharma employees. Oren Livne, a partner in global life sciences transactions at law firm Baker McKenzie, speculated that the worst may be over as long as the overall economy remains steady.
2026 年至今，生物制药从业者的就业压力有所缓解。贝克・麦坚时律所全球生命科学交易合伙人奥伦・利夫内认为，只要宏观经济保持稳定，行业最艰难的裁员周期或将落幕。
“With M&A activity increasing and the IPO window starting to open, financing conditions should continue to improve, putting biotechs in a better position to avoid workforce reductions,” Livne told Fierce. “That said, as always in this industry, companies whose assets are not meeting key milestones will continue to face pressure.”
利夫内向《Fierce Biotech》表示：“并购交易增多、IPO 融资通道逐步放开，行业融资环境将持续改善，生物科技企业更有能力避免裁员。但行业规律不变，管线资产未能达成关键临床节点的企业仍将承压。”
When compared to the 64 layoff rounds in the second quarter of last year, the turnaround for the latest quarter is even more stark. The year-ago quarter included May 2025, when layoffs hit a monthly high of 29 announcements. That was more than any other month over the four years that Fierce has been tracking this measure.
对比去年二季度 64 轮裁员，今年二季度行业形势反转尤为明显。去年二季度包含 2025 年 5 月，当月行业裁员公告达 29 起，创下《Fierce Biotech》四年追踪统计以来单月最高纪录。
The second quarter of this year saw genomic medicine biotech Sangamo Therapeutics sell off assets to Eli Lilly and Astellas Pharma while also cutting around 51 roles as part of a bankruptcy process. Acquisitions were more directly implicated in two of the quarter’s layoff rounds courtesy of Gilead’s buyout of Arcellx and Biogen’s purchase of Appellis.
今年二季度，基因组药物企业桑格莫治疗公司向礼来、安斯泰来剥离资产，同时伴随破产流程裁员约 51 人。本季度另有两起裁员直接源于企业并购：吉利德收购 Arcellx、渤健收购 Appellis。
Biopharma Q2 layoffs over the years
历年生物制药行业第二季度裁员企业数量
Regulatory difficulties explained two other layoff rounds. Replimune revealed across two announcements in April that a total of 124 roles would be scrapped after the FDA rejected its melanoma candidate. Meanwhile, Passage Bio shrank its headcount by 75% after tough feedback for its lead gene therapy, before ultimately opting for a reverse merger with RNA specialist Remix Therapeutics.
另有两起裁员由监管审批受挫导致。4 月，瑞普明公司连发两份公告，因 FDA 驳回其黑色素瘤候选药，合计裁员 124 人；帕萨奇生物核心基因疗法收到监管负面评价后裁掉 75% 员工，最终选择与 RNA 企业 Remix Therapeutics 反向合并。
While the looming threat of AI is putting many industries on edge, we have yet to see these changes cited as a major reason to reduce headcount in biotech. For example, longevity company Insilico has leaned into AI in its drug discovery process, but CEO Alex Zhavoronkov, Ph.D., told Fierce he has been working to make sure this tech doesn’t disrupt too many positions.
人工智能浪潮令诸多行业倍感就业压力，但目前生物科技行业裁员公告中，尚未将 AI 列为主要裁员原因。长寿药企业英矽智能深度将 AI 应用于药物研发，但其首席科学家亚历克斯・扎沃龙科夫博士向《Fierce Biotech》表示，企业正尽力避免该技术造成大规模岗位流失。
“We would only adjust the headcount if people do not learn to be significantly more productive with AI,” he said. “If the function becomes redundant—like the front-end developers, for example—I ask the team to repurpose them and improve their productivity.”
他称：“只有员工无法借助 AI 大幅提升工作效率时，我们才会调整人员。若某类岗位工作被 AI 替代，比如前端开发人员，我们会安排团队内部转岗，挖掘人力价值、提升产出。”
“If they cannot learn and improve productivity within a certain period, we definitely need to adjust,” Zhavoronkov added.
扎沃龙科夫补充：“如果员工在规定周期内无法掌握工具、提升效率，企业一定会进行人员优化。”
Brad Stewart, national life sciences leader at business advisory firm BDO, told Fierce that AI may still drive layoffs at large publicly traded companies, but the impact will likely be limited. “As the industry becomes increasingly aware that AI-driven efficiencies do not cause substantial short-term improvements in life sciences, I believe AI-related layoffs will slow in Q4,” he said.
咨询机构博德会计师事务所全国生命科学业务负责人布拉德・斯图尔特向《Fierce Biotech》表示，大型上市药企仍可能因 AI 增效裁员，但整体影响有限。“行业逐渐意识到，AI 带来的效率提升无法在短期内显著改变生命科学研发节奏，我预计四季度由 AI 引发的裁员将会减少。”
While the trendline for layoffs this year looks positive, Ron Cohen, M.D., former chair of BIO and current CEO of Oryon Cell Therapies, pointed to a couple of high-profile layoff rounds, namely BioNTech and Takeda, as reasons not to get carried away. In May, Takeda announced plans to cut 4,500 positions as part of an ongoing restructuring drive first set out in March, while BioNTech is planning to lay off 1,860 employees in its manufacturing operations.
尽管今年裁员曲线整体向好，美国生物技术创新组织前主席、奥里昂细胞疗法首席执行官罗恩・科恩博士提醒，拜恩泰科、武田制药两起大规模裁员事件警示行业不可盲目乐观。5 月，武田公布裁员 4500 人，该调整源自 3 月启动的长期重组计划；拜恩泰科则计划在生产板块裁员 1860 人。
“M&A activity has picked up substantially since last year, which actually may tend to increase layoffs, as some or most of the associates in the acquired company may be considered redundant by the acquirer,” Cohen told Fierce.
科恩向《Fierce Biotech》表示：“自去年起行业并购大幅升温，但并购反而会催生更多裁员，收购方通常会认定被并购企业部分甚至大部分员工岗位冗余。”
Biopharma quarterly layoffs 2025-6
2025—2026 年生物制药行业各季度裁员企业数量
And while last quarter saw record-breaking IPOs from the likes of Parabilis Medicines and the resilience of megarounds like NewLimit's $435 million series C, Cohen suggested that this flood of cash could have unintended consequences downstream.
二季度虽诞生帕拉比利斯医药等多家创纪录 IPO 企业，NewLimit 也完成 4.35 亿美元大额 C 轮融资，但科恩认为大量资金涌入行业，可能给下游初创企业带来负面连锁反应。
“While there have been more ‘mega’ VC rounds, it doesn’t seem that early-stage company VC rounds have increased substantially yet, which means that early-stage companies remain under pressure to cut costs, and therefore employees,” he said.
他解释：“当下大额风投融资案例增多，但早期初创企业的融资总额并未显著上涨，早期公司仍面临降本压力，裁员需求持续存在。”
This sentiment was echoed by BDO's Stewart who suggested that while companies nearing product launch should see hiring increases, preclinical and early-stage companies continue to struggle to find funding and maintain their headcounts.
博德的布拉德・斯图尔特认同这一观点，他表示：临近产品商业化的企业会扩大招聘，但临床前、早期初创企业依旧融资困难，难以维持现有人员规模。
