Eli Lilly kicked off a pivotal 2026 campaign with a multi-year collaboration with current partner Nimbus Therapeutics worth a potential $1.3 billion for a preclinical obesity therapeutic. The deal follows a 2022 partnership struck by the companies to target the AMPK protein in cardiometabolic diseases.
After securing a widely perceived advantage over chief weight loss rival Novo Nordisk in 2025, Eli Lilly is wasting no time doubling down in the space. On Tuesday, the company revealed a second collaboration with partner Nimbus Therapeutics for a preclinical oral obesity drug that could be worth up to $1.3 billion.
The multi-year deal will see Nimbus eligible for upfront payments equaling $55 million plus up to around $1.3 billion in potential development, commercial, and sales milestones. The transaction follows a previous collab struck by the two companies in October 2022 involving small molecule activators of the AMPK protein complex in cardiometabolic diseases. Tuesday’s agreement will also include research toward other metabolic diseases, according to Nimbus’ press release.
Lilly and Boston-based Nimbus will apply the latter’s computational chemistry and structure-based drug design approach to “an early-stage, small molecule discovery program addressing a significant unmet need in obesity,” the release noted.
Nimbus’ team, made up of computational scientists, medicinal chemists, pharmacologists and translational biologists, “integrate[s] AI-driven predictive models with structure-based design to develop novel small molecules with best-in-class potential,” Peter Tummino, president of Research and Development, said in a statement. “We are excited to collaborate with Lilly on another program, combining our discovery capabilities with their metabolic disease expertise to bring a much-needed new treatment to people with obesity and make a meaningful difference in their lives.”
Ruth Gimeno, group vice president for Diabetes and Metabolic Research and Development at Lilly, in the same press release, noted Nimbus’ “exceptional ability to tackle complex drug discovery challenges.”
“Working together to develop this novel obesity therapy represents an important addition to Lilly’s efforts to advance innovative treatment options for patients with metabolic disorders,” Gimeno added.
2026 is expected to be a pivotal year for Eli Lilly. On Sunday, Leerink Partners predicted the weight loss juggernaut would achieve $94.3 billion in annual revenue by 2027—a 109% revenue jump from the $45 billion Lilly brought in in 2024. Lilly’s top oral obesity play— orforglipron—is expected to be a big contributor, with an approval expected as early as March. Lilly, always cognizant of its pipeline, is clearly looking to the future with the Nimbus deal.
Last year saw Lilly jump out ahead of Novo in many respects, with orforglipron besting Novo’s oral semaglutide in a Phase III trial in October. Meanwhile, Zepbound took the top spot over Wegovy for prescriptions for the first time. Lilly is also expected to have the edge in the oral weight loss space—despite Novo’s first-mover advantage with the first approval in the space—as orforglipron, a small molecule, is easier to manufacture than Novo’s peptide offering.
Orforglipron is currently under review at the FDA and holds a Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher that could accelerate this process. Lilly is expecting to launch the pill in the second quarter, Ilya Yuffa, president of Lilly USA, said at a Citi conference last month.
