Drug repurposing market seen reaching $43.21 billion by 2031

Mordor Intelligence says the global drug repurposing market will rise from $37.46 billion in 2026 to $43.21 billion by 2031 as AI tools, regulatory pathways and rare-disease research expand the use of existing medicines. North America leads the market now, while Asia-Pacific is expected to grow fastest through 2031.

Why it matters: - Drug repurposing can cut development costs and shorten timelines by finding new uses for existing medicines. - The market is also being shaped by AI-driven screening, real-world evidence analysis and growing demand for treatments in rare and orphan diseases. - The market opportunity extends across pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology firms, academic institutions and contract research organizations.

What happened: - Mordor Intelligence estimated the global drug repurposing market at $37.46 billion in 2026. - The firm projected the market will reach $43.21 billion by 2031. - The forecast implies a 2.90% CAGR for 2026–2031. - Mordor Intelligence said North America held 45.3% of global revenue in 2025. - The company said Asia-Pacific will be the fastest-growing region through 2031, with an expected 11.6% CAGR.

The details: - Artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning and biomedical knowledge graphs are helping researchers identify new uses for existing drug compounds. - Computational screening can analyze relationships among drugs, molecular targets, disease pathways and patient data to prioritize candidates. - Established or previously studied compounds can bring pharmacokinetic, safety and manufacturing data into new development efforts. - The FDA's 505(b)(2) pathway can allow developers to rely partly on existing findings for certain new drug uses or formulations. - Drug repurposing is drawing more attention in rare and orphan diseases because approved treatment options remain limited. - Mordor Intelligence said rare and orphan diseases are the fastest-growing therapeutic area in the market, with a projected 14.8% CAGR through 2031. - Recent research cited by Mordor Intelligence included a May 2026 review in Briefings in Bioinformatics on AI in pharmaceutical research and drug repurposing. - Another June 2026 study in the Journal of Computational Science introduced a diffusion model-based approach for AI-driven drug repositioning. - The report segments the market by therapeutic area, molecule type, development stage, route of administration, end user and geography. - Therapeutic areas listed include oncology, CNS disorders, cardiovascular diseases, infectious diseases and metabolic disorders. - Drug molecule types include small-molecule drugs and biologics and peptides. - Development stages include pre-clinical, Phase I, Phase II, Phase III and approved or marketed. - Routes of administration include oral, injectable and topical or others. - End users include pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic and research institutes, and CROs.

Between the lines: - The market is moderately fragmented, with competition spanning established drugmakers, biotechnology firms and AI-focused drug discovery companies. - Computational screening capability and proprietary compound libraries are becoming more important competitive advantages. - Collaboration among drugmakers, technology providers, academic institutions and CROs is shaping how candidates move from discovery into development. - Europe remains an established market, supported by research capabilities, academic collaboration and regulatory coordination. - North America keeps its lead because of strong pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, research infrastructure and supportive regulatory pathways.

What's next: - Drug repurposing research is likely to stay tied to AI platforms, clinical data and real-world evidence tools. - Asia-Pacific's growth may accelerate as clinical trial infrastructure and pharmaceutical research investment expand in China, India, Japan and South Korea. - Rare-disease development is likely to remain a key area of interest as orphan-drug incentives and patient registries support more repositioning efforts. - Mordor Intelligence made the report available in Japanese, French, German, Spanish and Portuguese.

The bottom line: - Drug repurposing is becoming a steadier, data-driven segment of drug development, with AI and regulatory reuse of existing evidence doing much of the heavy lifting.