Roche's Acquisition of Carmot Signals Entry into Obesity Market, but Drugs Face Delay until 2030

Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche is set to acquire anti-obesity drug developer Carmot Therapeutics for $2.7 billion in cash, with the potential for an additional $400 million based on milestones. Roche aims to challenge the dominance of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly in the global weight loss drugs market. However, the drugs developed by Carmot are still in the early stages, and Roche's CEO expects they may not be available until 2030 or later. The acquisition will provide Roche access to Carmot's research and development portfolio, including promising drug candidates such as CT-388, a once-weekly injection, and CT-996, a once-daily oral candidate. The obesity drugs market is estimated to be worth $200 billion in the next decade, attracting new entrants while established players struggle to meet demand.