Antivirulence therapeutics market set for 16% growth by 2030

The Business Research Company projects the antivirulence therapeutics market will nearly double by 2030 as hospitals, drugmakers and researchers look for alternatives to antibiotics amid rising resistance and infections. North America led in 2025, while Asia-Pacific is expected to grow fastest.

Why it matters: - Antivirulence therapeutics are gaining attention as a non-antibiotic way to fight infections without increasing pressure for drug resistance. - The market is being pulled by antimicrobial resistance, hospital-acquired infections and limits on conventional antibiotics. - The category could become a bigger part of infectious disease treatment as precision medicine and pathogen-specific tools advance.

What happened: - The Business Research Company said the antivirulence therapeutics market will grow from $1.45 billion in 2025 to $1.68 billion in 2026. - The report projects the market will reach $3.04 billion by 2030, implying a 16.0% CAGR from 2026 to 2030. - The report was released July 16, 2026, from London. - The company published a free sample of the report and the full market report.

The details: - Antivirulence therapeutics target a pathogen’s virulence factors instead of directly killing the organism or stopping growth. - The approach is designed to reduce disease severity and help the immune system clear infections. - By avoiding direct bacterial killing, the therapies are intended to lower the selection pressure that drives antimicrobial resistance. - Growth drivers in the report include the spread of antimicrobial resistance, more infections in hospitals and communities, limits of antibiotics, higher funding for infectious disease research and advances in microbiology and pathogen genomics. - The report also points to rising use of antimicrobial stewardship programs. - It highlights bacteriophage therapies and biologics-based treatments as expanding options. - Artificial intelligence is being used for pathogen and virulence modeling, which the report says can improve drug discovery and personalized treatment. - Emerging trends include precision medicine for targeted antivirulence drugs, cloud-based genomic and pathogen data integration, and IoT-enabled infection tracking and outbreak monitoring. - The report says North America held the largest market share in 2025. - The report says Asia-Pacific is expected to grow fastest during the forecast period. - The report covers Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, the Middle East and Africa.

Between the lines: - The market forecast reflects a broader shift toward treatments that manage pathogenic behavior rather than simply eliminating microbes. - That shift matters because resistance has made many standard antibiotics less effective and more expensive to rely on. - Hospital-acquired infections give antivirulence drugs a clear early use case because they can target toxin production, adhesion and quorum sensing. - The report’s regional split suggests mature markets will fund adoption, while faster growth may come from regions expanding healthcare access and infection-control capabilities.

What's next: - The market is expected to keep expanding through 2030 as non-antibiotic infectious disease therapies move closer to practical use. - Adoption will likely track progress in precision medicine, genomics and AI-assisted drug discovery. - Hospitals and health systems facing rising resistant infections may become early buyers if antivirulence products reach the market at scale.

The bottom line: - Antivirulence therapeutics are moving from niche research toward a high-growth market built on the need for alternatives to antibiotics.