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When Weight-Loss Drugs are Fed by AI
Structure Therapeutics (GPCR) stock soared over 100% on December 8 after the release of promising data from phase 2 of its clinical trial on an oral weight loss drug to rival the leading GLP-1 drugs of Novo Nordisk (NVO) — maker of Ozempic and Wegovy — and Eli Lilly (LLY) — maker of Mounjaro and Zepbound.1
Structure Therapeutics is one of a handful of biotech holdings in the TrueShares Technology, AI, and Deep Learning ETF (LRNZ) that leverages AI in the life sciences.
Structure Therapeutics, which IPO’d in February 2023, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging AI models, data science, and computational chemistry to develop oral drugs that address metabolic diseases. The company models the broad family of GPCR protein receptors, to which GLP-1 protein receptors belong, in 3D. It then applies advanced AI/ML models to test how thousands of different molecules bind to the structures. These advanced AI prediction models assess molecular behavior, strength, toxicity, and other drug-like properties, making drug discovery faster, more targeted, less risky, and less costly.
The December 8 announcement that saw the company’s stock price more than double revealed that the highest dose (240mg) achieved a weight reduction of 15.3% after 36 weeks, which exceeds current drugs on the market that have as much as an 11.2% weight reduction.1 The drug showed continued weight loss through 44 weeks with no weight loss plateau,1 proving itself to be a potentially viable new competitor to the two companies dominating the weight loss drug market right now (NVO and LLY). Structure Therapeutics’ plans to move the drug into phase 3 of clinical trials in 2026.1
GPCR, NVO, and LLY are by no means the only companies attempting to capture the weight-loss drug market. Various other biopharmaceutical companies are developing drugs with different targeting and delivery mechanisms that aim to address shortcomings in existing drugs, including convenience, side effects, and the magnitude of weight loss. While stocks of LLY slid in response to Structure Therapeutics’ announcement, a gain for one doesn’t necessarily mean a loss for another long-term. Different drug therapies work differently for different patients and demand currently far exceeds supply.
From 2018 to 2024, 1.8 million people took some form of a GLP-1 drug.2 In 2024, U.S. spending on prescription medications grew by $50 billion, with GLP-1 drugs accounting for almost a third of the growth.2 By 2030, the global weight loss drug market is expected to exceed $100 billion.1 This growth trajectory is unequivocally propelled by advances in AI. Top tech companies like Nvidia, Amazon, Apple, and Google are taking note by specifically investing in AI systems for the life sciences.3
Advanced AI models are well-suited to drug discovery to address metabolic disorders like obesity and diabetes because these diseases, and the data used to find treatments, are vast and complex. Yet we’re still in the very early stages of using AI for drug discovery because this sector has a unique requirement many other AI applications don’t: long clinical trial periods designed for scientific rigor and patient safety.4 AI has already accelerated the process, but the appetite for new weight-loss drugs is only getting stronger. Patients (and investors) are hungry.
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Sources:
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/gpcr-stock-soars-102-strong-142700362.html
- https://veradigm.com/veradigm-news/ai-pharma-marketing-glp1-patient-journeys/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359644625000467
- https://www.fastcompany.com/91136909/ai-glp-1-precision-medicine
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