Novartis starts construction on major San Diego biomedical research center planned to open in 2029
A new West Coast research hub aims to consolidate discovery work and expand AI-enabled laboratories
Novartis has begun construction on a new global Biomedical Research center in San Diego designed to expand the company’s early-stage drug discovery capabilities and deepen its footprint in the region’s life-sciences ecosystem. The facility is planned to open in 2029 and is expected to become one of the company’s key research sites alongside existing global hubs in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Basel, Switzerland.
The project is planned as an approximately 466,000-square-foot campus and is expected to house about 1,000 employees once operational. Company statements indicate the center is being designed to support end-to-end discovery work, integrating laboratory science with advanced data, computational and artificial-intelligence capabilities embedded across research functions.
What the facility is expected to do
The San Diego site is intended to bring together Novartis Biomedical Research teams based on the U.S. West Coast into a single center. The planned scope includes discovery across multiple disease areas and technology platforms, with a stated emphasis on genetics and human biology as drivers of target identification and drug design.
Core disease areas cited for discovery work include neuroscience, oncology, global health, and age-related diseases, as well as regenerative medicine.
Technology platforms referenced for expansion include gene and cell therapies, RNA-based approaches, biologics, targeted protein degradation, and novel delivery systems.
The facility is planned to connect operationally with Novartis’ broader research network to share insights and scale projects across regions.
Local context: San Diego’s long-running Novartis presence
Novartis has maintained a research presence in San Diego since 1999, when it opened a genomics-focused research facility that helped establish a long-term base for discovery work in the area. The new build is framed by the company as an evolution of that footprint—expanding laboratory and office space and modernizing infrastructure to support contemporary discovery approaches, including automation and AI-enabled workflows.
How the project fits into a broader U.S. investment plan
The San Diego groundbreaking is part of a larger, previously announced Novartis plan to invest USD 23 billion in U.S. research and manufacturing infrastructure over five years. In addition to the new biomedical research hub, the investment plan includes expansions and new construction tied to advanced manufacturing, including radioligand therapy (RLT) production capacity.
Recent company announcements related to that manufacturing network have included a radioligand therapy manufacturing site in Carlsbad, California, and plans for an additional RLT manufacturing facility in Winter Park, Florida, with operations targeted for 2029.
At the groundbreaking, local and company leaders described the project as both a scientific infrastructure expansion and a regional employment investment, with the facility’s planned staffing level cited at roughly 1,000 roles once opened.
What to watch next
The project timeline centers on a 2029 opening. Key milestones ahead will include construction progress, hiring plans tied to the future headcount, and how quickly the new campus is integrated into Novartis’ cross-site discovery operations once laboratories come online.