Today, a brief rundown of news from Eli Lilly and OpenAI, as well as updates from Janux Therapeutics and Gilead Sciences that you may have missed.
In the first week of its launch, 1,390 prescriptions were written for Eli Lilly’s new obesity pill Foundayo, according to data that analytics firm IQVIA shared with Wall Street analysts. In a Friday note to clients, RBC Capital Markets’ Trung Hunyh speculated that the figure was based on two days of prescriptions, assuming an initial shipping date of April 9. By comparison, 3,071 prescriptions were issued for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy pill over a full-week launch that began on Jan. 5. Following discussions with investors, Hyunh said that Foundayo’s early launch would be viewed “favorably” if it achieves about half of oral Wegovy’s trajectory in its first month on the market. The first couple days of prescriptions, then, imply a “more robust launch” coming for Foundayo, with the numbers “likely building momentum” over the rest of its first week, he wrote. Lilly shares climbed about 2% in early trading Friday.
OpenAI on Thursday unveiled a new artificial intelligence model for life sciences research that’s part of the company’s broader push into the field. Called “GPT-Rosalind,” the new model has been built to support research across biology, drug discovery and translational medicine. It’s designed to “help researchers accelerate the early stages of discovery,” the company said in a statement. The model is currently available as a research preview in ChatGPT and elsewhere. Moderna, Amgen and Thermo Fisher Scientific, among others, are applying GPT-Rosalind into their work. — Ben Fidler
Janux Therapeutics disclosed a new “double-masked” T cell engager that it’s brought into human testing. The prospect, JANX014, is being developed for prostate cancer and has been administered to the first volunteer in a Phase 1 trial. The program’s unveiling “comes as a surprise,” giving management had never discussed development and could result in investor questions about management’s confidence in its lead drug, JANX007, wrote William Blair analyst Matt Phipps. Yet Janux referred to JANX014 as an “exploratory extension” of its plan to develop T cell engagers that remain shielded, or “masked,” until they get to tumors. The next clinical update for JANX007 is likely coming in 2027, Phipps wrote.
Gilead Sciences on Friday said it has received all the regulatory approvals required to close an acquisition of Arcellx that currently stands as the year's largest biopharmaceutical deal. Gilead announced a $7.8 billion buyout of the cell therapy maker on Feb. 23 and, on April 13, received its last regulatory clearance from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. It has extended the expiration date for stockholders to tender their shares from April 24 to April 27. The pending deal is one of three Gilead has recently struck across oncology and autoimmune diseases.
