While it’s been easy to grow a bit desensitized to the seemingly unstoppable sales growth of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly’s GLP-1s quarter after quarter, this most recent earnings season delivered a few surprises. It’s a good moment to jump back in and assess where the two rivals stand in the market and where their pipelines are headed in the near term.
In this week’s episode of "The Top Line," we break down the recent commercial performances of Novo’s and Lilly’s drugs for diabetes and obesity, plus the status of their oral obesity med prospects. Fierce Biotech’s James Waldron sits down with Fierce Pharma’s Fraiser Kansteiner to discuss the latest in the companies’ ongoing obesity duel, as well as some recent pitfalls that seem common to GLP-1 development and commercialization more broadly.
To learn more about the topics in this episode:

Ipsen R&D chief on pipeline discipline, partnerships and 2026 milestones
15:08

Why MRD is becoming central to oncology drug development (Sponsored)
18:38

Behind the headlines of ASCO 2026
29:06