Milestones
- FDA approves Wegovy for weight loss4 Jun 2021Complete.
- Heart trial: 20% fewer major heart eventsNov 2023Complete.
- FDA adds heart-risk reductionMar 2024Complete.
- FDA fast-track approval for fatty liver diseaseAug 2025Complete.
- FDA approves Wegovy pill22 Dec 2025Complete.
- US launch of Wegovy pill5 Jan 2026Complete.
Most important updates
- 20 Mar 2026
- 22 Dec 2025
- Nov 2023
- 4 Jun 2021
- 10 Feb 2021
Current obstacles
- Less weight loss than rivalsIt gives less weight loss than tirzepatide head-to-head, which hurts sales and price.
Physics limits
- The body defends its weightAs weight falls, hunger hormones rise and energy use drops, so loss plateaus after about a year. When treatment stops, most people regain much of it: in one trial, about two-thirds within a year.
- Stomach side effects cap the doseThe same gut and brain signals that curb appetite cause nausea and vomiting. Doses must be raised slowly over months, and some people can't tolerate the highest, most effective ones.
- Peptides are mostly destroyed in the gutStomach acid and enzymes break down peptide drugs. Even with an absorption helper, only about 1% of an oral semaglutide dose reaches the blood, so pills need far more drug than shots.
How it works
Molecule
A long-lasting GLP-1 copy
Semaglutide is GLP-1 with a fatty side chain that sticks to albumin in blood, stretching its life from minutes to about a week.
Brain
Fullness and fewer cravings
It acts on appetite centres in the brain and slows stomach emptying, so people eat less; weekly shots give about 15% average weight loss.
Pill
Help through the stomach
The pill adds SNAC, which briefly shields the drug and helps it cross the stomach wall; only a small share is absorbed, so the dose is higher.
Update log
Fri 20 Mar
- Major: PressCommercial
Mon 22 Dec 2025
- Major: PressRegulatory
Nov 2023
- Major: PaperResearch
Thu 6 Jan 2022
- Minor: RegulatorRegulatory
Fri 4 Jun 2021
- Major: PressRegulatory
Wed 10 Feb 2021
- Major: PaperResearch
About Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk
Ozempic, Wegovy, CagriSema
Danish maker of diabetes and obesity drugs. Its semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) started the GLP-1 boom and was shown to cut heart risk; a Wegovy pill launched in the US in Jan 2026. It faces tough competition from Lilly.
- A big 2023 trial showed semaglutide cut heart attacks, strokes and heart deaths by 20% in people with obesity and heart disease.
- FDA approved the Wegovy pill in Dec 2025; US launch on 5 Jan 2026.
- CagriSema gave 22.7% weight loss in Phase 3, below the 25% Novo hoped for; now under FDA review.
- Founded
- 1923103 yrs
- Headquarters
- Denmark
- Status
- Public
- Listed
- NVO (opens google.com)NYSE
- Valuation
- public
- Works in
- BiotechObesity & metabolism
- Coverage
- 2 programs · 9 updateslatest 20 Mar 2026checked 25 Sep