Johnson & Johnson opened a call on June 8, 2026 for external innovators to submit novel, differentiated technologies for the treatment of solid tumors, seeking approaches that can improve both safety and efficacy.
The company framed the call around an unmet need. It cited roughly 20 million cancer diagnoses worldwide each year, with solid tumors representing more than 90% of new cases. These tumors remain difficult to treat because of therapy resistance, heterogeneity within the tumor itself, and the complexity of the tumor microenvironment. The call names lung, head and neck, bladder, gastrointestinal, and colorectal cancers as priority areas where new mechanisms could target tumors more precisely and slow their progression.
Selected finalists will present their science to J&J Innovative Medicine Oncology leaders in a closed-door session during the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Seoul, scheduled for the week of September 12 to 15, 2026. Finalists unable to travel may present virtually in early September. Applications close on July 1, 2026 through the in-part campaign portal.
The call sits within J&J’s open innovation model, which sources early-stage science from academic groups, startups, and emerging companies, then supports selected projects through customized deal structures, incubation, and capital investment.
The timing coincides with broader oncology activity. On the same day, J&J agreed to acquire Firefly Bio for $1 billion, adding a degrader antibody conjugate platform aimed at KRAS-driven solid tumors. That followed the December 2025 acquisition of Halda Therapeutics and its targeted oral therapy platform. For smaller developers working on solid tumor delivery, antibody engineering, or conditionally activatable formats, the call marks a defined route into evaluation by one of the sector’s largest oncology players.