A group of large drug companies launched a $1 billion AMR Action Fund Thursday in collaboration with policymakers, philanthropists and development banks to push the development of two to four new antibiotics by 2030.

Why it matters: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing problem — possibly killing up to 20 million people annually by 2050 — but a severe lack of R&D market incentives has hampered efforts to develop a robust antibiotic pipeline to address the issue.

“Antimicrobial resistance, I do believe, is the existential threat of this century.”

— Admiral Brett P. Giroir, assistant secretary for health, said at a Thursday press conference

Read the entire piece on Axios here.