The Race to Commercialize the World’s Most Powerful Psychedelic | WSJ

Jul 14, 2026

An obscure and extremely powerful psychedelic drug called 5-MeO-DMT, or BUFO, is drawing intense interest from the pharmaceutical industry, where biotech companies like AtaiBeckley and GH Research are racing to turn it into a commercially available treatment for severe mental health disorders, like depression, anxiety and PTSD. WSJ took an inside look at how the psychedelic is being used at unregulated clinics in Mexico, and why companies are betting that it could soon turn into a billion dollar blockbuster drug.