Wegovy Maker Novo Nordisk Strikes AI Deal with OpenAI to Supercharge Drug Discovery

Novo Nordisk on Tuesday announced a partnership with OpenAI to deploy artificial intelligence across its business, spanning drug discovery, manufacturing, and commercial operations, as the Danish drugmaker looks to sharpen its competitive edge in the fast-growing obesity drug market. The financial terms were not disclosed. The partnership will enable Novo to better use AI to analyze complex datasets, identify promising new drugs, and reduce the time it takes for a medicine to move from the research stage to patient use. Pilot programmes will launch across research & development, manufacturing, and commercial operations, with full integration by the end of 2026. Novo Nordisk is seeking new ways to regain ground in the intensifying obesity-drug battle with Eli Lilly, which recently won U.S. approval for its weight-loss pill Foundayo. Shortly after taking over as CEO last year, Doustdar announced a restructuring that cut 9,000 jobs. Now, CEO Mike Doustdar emphasized that the initiative is aimed at augmenting human capabilities rather than reducing jobs. "The aim here is not to replace our scientists. It's about supercharging them," he said. The announcement pushed NVO shares up 2.8% shortly after the opening bell.