Haute 100 Update: Eric Schmidt Invests $3.9M in PharmaSecure to Combat Counterfeit Drugs

Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors investment group has recently endowed $3.9 million to PharmaSecure, a mobile application that is used to verify the authenticity of prescription drugs.

Along with substantial growth in the pharmaceutical drug industry, the counterfeit drug industry has likewise grown to secure roughly $75 billion of the global drug market. These counterfeit drugs pose dire health threats that can result in death, illness, and drug resistance among users.

PharmaSecure guards against the use of counterfeit drugs by allowing users to easily verify a drug’s authenticity with an SMS text message using a unique code and phone number printed on each pack of pills.

“We’ve invested in PharmaSecure because they are executing a game-changing approach to combating counterfeit drugs that holds huge potential for improving the safety and security of pharmaceutical products throughout the world,” said Dror Berman of Innovation Endeavors.

The investment rounds will go towards creating new applications in response to a mandate from India’s government requiring that all exported drugs bear unique barcodes and serial numbers by July 2012.

“India is leading the way in the global fight against counterfeit drugs. We are proud to have had a hand in creating applications like SMS authentication that put the power of protection against dangerous medicine literally in people’s hands,” stated PharmaSecure co-founder and CEO Nathan Sigworth.

He added, “We are investing in more applications that can ride on the mandated serialization to increase the reach and distribution of our clients’ products and better health for their consumers. With the tradition of innovation that comes with this investment we expect the regulatory requirements to provide a creative opportunity for us and our clients.”

Our Haute 100 list details the happenings and accomplishments of the most influential people in each of our markets. To see the entire Haute 100 San Francisco list, click here.