Novo to Invest Up to 1.8 Trillion Won in Oral Peptide Drugs

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk plans to invest up to 1.8 trillion won in developing oral peptide drugs.

According to BiopharmaDive on the 17th (local time), Novo Nordisk signed an agreement with fellow Danish company Orbis Medicines to jointly discover “macrocycles.” Orbis said the partnership could provide it with up to $1.4 billion (approximately 1.876 trillion won) in upfront and milestone payments, as well as sales royalties.

Macrocycles are large, ring-shaped molecules and a technology attracting attention as the basis for oral therapies that could replace injections. The companies did not disclose specific diseases or the number of drug candidates, but plan to research targets in cardiometabolic diseases.

Oral peptide drugs have limited absorption in the digestive tract. The highest dose of Novo Nordisk’s oral obesity drug Wegovy is 20 times the highest dose of its injectable formulation. This is because most of the active ingredient is broken down before reaching the bloodstream.

Biologics are primarily administered by injection or intravenous infusion. The pharmaceutical industry has long pursued the development of biologics in pill form to improve convenience and medication adherence.

Macrocyclic peptides are considered a way to overcome these limitations. Merck (MSD) commercialized the technology earlier this year with the launch of the cholesterol-lowering drug Lipendra. Startups including Orbis, Unnatural Products and Daira Therapeutics are also developing related technologies, and all have partnered with major pharmaceutical companies.

Using artificial intelligence (AI) on its proprietary Encycle platform, Orbis designs molecules that can be absorbed orally while modulating targets inside and outside cells. The company launched in January 2025 with $93 million (approximately 124.6 billion won) in funding.

After losing its lead in the obesity and diabetes treatment market to Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk began restructuring, including replacing executives, reducing its workforce and reorganizing its board. This week, it also announced a company name change that removes “Nordisk” from its name in everyday use, and has expanded its AI investment through a recent partnership with AI company Anthropic.