At the beginning of 2008, the Swiss company Addex Pharmaceuticals signed a major schizophrenia deal with Merck & Co., the second neurological alliance that the companies have entered into in as many months. Both deals involved products developed using Addex#8217;s novel allosteric modulator technology and targeting metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). Both agreements were also for early-stage products, a feature that is becoming all too common in deals involving big pharma, and is touched upon here. The allosteric modulator approach to CNS drug therapy is described and contrasted with earlier approaches, and its prospects of becoming a first-in-class technique assessed, along with discussion of the strategic fit between the companies.