The first half of 2025 has confirmed a seismic shift in the pharmaceutical landscape: GLP-1 receptor agonists — a class of new drug therapies for diabetes and obesity — now dominate global sales charts. Among all medicines worldwide, treatments for obesity and diabetes featuring GLP-1 agonists have surged to the top of the best-seller lists in the first half of 2025. Traditional blockbusters (biologics for oncology or immunology) still lead in aggregate revenue. Still, it is clear that GLP-1 “new drug” treatments like tirzepatide (sold as Mounjaro for diabetes and ZepBound for obesity by Eli Lilly, and as Mounjaro/ZepBound for weight management) and semaglutide (Wegovy/Ozempic by Novo Nordisk) are among the fastest-growing and highest-earning drugs on the planet. These weight-loss and metabolic disease therapies now rank in the top 5 global pharmaceuticals by revenue, underscoring how the GLP-1 “new drug” wave is reshaping Big Pharma’s rankings.
In this blog post we examine the overall market context – from the top-selling drugs of 2025 H1 to the surge of dealmaking in obesity therapeutics – and then drill into why Eli Lilly, with its GLP-1 pipeline and commercialization strategy, has emerged as the biggest beneficiary of this trend. We review market size and projections for the GLP-1 sector (powered by the obesity/metabolic disease epidemic), and we highlight Lilly’s blockbuster sales, R&D moves, partnerships, and how it stacks up against competitors like Novo Nordisk. The analysis combines recent data, examples, and regulatory updates to give pharma professionals a clear, data-driven view of Lilly’s strategic lead in the new drug era of GLP-1.
Top-Selling Medicines in 2025 H1: GLP-1 in the “New Drug” Vanguard
The first half of 2025 saw GLP-1-based therapies cement their status among the world’s highest-grossing drugs. Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide franchises (Ozempic for diabetes; Wegovy for obesity) continued to post blockbuster sales. At the same time, Lilly’s tirzepatide products (Mounjaro for type 2 diabetes and ZepBound for obesity) have surged. Industry reports and press releases indicate that semaglutide and tirzepatide together contribute billions in quarterly revenue, placing them in the top tier of global pharmaceutical sales. For perspective, prior to 2023, the top-selling drugs were largely immunology or oncology biologics (like Humira, Keytruda, Eliquis), but by mid-2024, the list transformed – GLP-1 agonists entered the top ranks. In other words, one of the highest-selling new drugs has become a GLP-1 therapy.
Key examples of top sellers in 2025 H1 include Novo’s Ozempic/Wegovy and Lilly’s Mounjaro/ZepBound. These drugs’ global combined revenue is reported to have exceeded $5–6 billion over the period (for context, to be sure exact figures, readers should see company filings). Other GLP-1 agents like AstraZeneca’s BohLAC (a GLP-1 agonist in development) or Sanofi’s pipeline peptides have not yet impacted revenue as much. Thus, GLP-1’s presence among the top 2025 selling products marks a dramatic shift. This reordering underscores how quickly the newest weight-loss/diabetes drugs – hailed as a new class of blockbusters – have risen to dominance in the pharma market.
In short, GLP-1 receptor agonists now occupy a leading position among the world’s best-selling medicines, reflecting unprecedented demand for these new diabetes and obesity treatments. The rise of these new drugs is a defining feature of the 2025 pharmaceutical landscape.
Global Weight-Loss Deal Activity in 2025 H1: Partnerships and New Drug Investments
In H1 2025, the weight-loss sector and metabolic diseases saw a flurry of dealmaking. Biotech and pharmaceutical companies are rushing to form partnerships, secure licensing rights and fund the development of new drugs that target obesity, diabetes and metabolic disorders. The following are the key themes of H1 2025 deals:
- Licensing Deals and Co-development: Major Pharma firms are licensing early stage obesity therapeutics. In early 2025, a large U.S. pharmaceutical company signed a license agreement with a biotech for the co-development of a novel GLP-1/glucagon dual-agonist (to complement its existing portfolio). A European company partnered with a start-up working on GLP-1 analogues for oral use. The licensing agreements often include milestones and royalties as well as upfront payments. This reflects the fierce competition for promising new drugs.
- Partnerships involving AI and Tech: Due to the complexity of metabolic disease, some collaborations include artificial intelligence and data platform. In H1 2025, a weight loss app developer announced that they had partnered with a pharmaceutical company to personalize GLP-1 treatment using health data. A second tie-up involved a precision medicine venture and a major GLP-1 manufacturer to study biomarkers in new indications. These cross-industry partnerships are part of a broader trend in the obesity area to innovate.
- Funding rounds and Biotech IPOs: Venture capital and the public markets have invested capital in weight-loss Biotech. In 2025 H1, several mid-stage biotech firms focusing on novel incretin treatments raised tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars through Series B rounds. Investors are clearly excited about a NASDAQ IPO by a biotech company developing a dual GLP-1/GIP agonist to treat obesity, which is scheduled for June 2025. The valuation was north of $500,000,000, indicating investor interest.
- Acquisitions: Pharma giants have targeted their acquisitions in order to expand the obesity pipeline. Eli Lilly acquired Protomer Technologies in late 2024, a biotech that was working on advanced glucagon like peptide treatments. A Japanese pharma also acquired a California-based biotech that had a promising GLP-1 delivery system in the form of a mini-pump. These buyouts show the scramble to own innovative new drug technologies in weight management.
Overall, the weight-loss field’s deal volume in 2025 H1 has been record-high, driven by the blockbuster success of current GLP-1 drugs. Companies are pouring resources into anything that might become the “next semaglutide.” The combination of licensing deals, strategic partnerships, and IPOs underscores that investment in new obesity drugs is red-hot across the industry.
The GLP-1 Market: Key Players, Size, Pipeline and Projected Growth
The GLP-1 agonist market is now a headline global market within pharmaceuticals. Key players include:
- Novo Nordisk: The market leader with semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy) and liraglutide (Saxenda/Victoza). Novo’s GLP-1 franchise has dominated to date, being first to market with a weight-loss GLP-1.
- Eli Lilly: Rapidly rising with tirzepatide (Mounjaro/ZepBound) and next-gen candidates. Lilly’s share is growing strongly as Mounjaro hits its stride and pipeline compounds advance.
- Smaller Biotechs and Collaborators: Companies like Zealand Pharma, Glycadia, and others have GLP-1 analogs or co-agonists in early trials, often in partnership with larger pharma (e.g., Novo Nordisk collaboration with Zealand).
- Others: Roche, J&J, Sanofi, and AZ have had GLP-1 efforts (some deprioritized) or new dual/triple agonists in development (e.g., Roche’s pipeline includes a dual agonist announced in 2024).
Market Size and Growth
The market size for GLP-1 drugs (including diabetes and obesity indications) is already in the tens of billions of dollars annually. Analysts project high double-digit compound annual growth rates. For example, a recent market report forecasts that the global obesity drug market (fueled by GLP-1s and similar incretin therapies) could exceed $50 billion by 2030. The diabetes GLP-1 market (for type 2 diabetes treatment) similarly shows continued expansion, partly due to new patients being prescribed these powerful agents. In total, the combined GLP-1 market is estimated to be one of the fastest-growing segments in pharma.
Pipeline Activity
The pipeline for GLP-1 and related metabolic disease treatments is extremely active. There are dozens of ongoing clinical trials exploring:
- New molecules: Next-generation GLP-1 agonists with longer duration, better safety, or oral administration (several oral semaglutide competitors are in trials).
- Poly-agonists: Drugs combining GLP-1 with other hormones (GIP, glucagon, amylin) to potentially increase weight loss. Lilly’s tirzepatide is a GLP-1/GIP dual agonist; others (like a tri-agonist by Pfizer) are in mid-stage trials.
- New Indications: GLP-1 drugs are being tested for obesity-related conditions (NASH/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, cardiovascular risk reduction, etc.). Positive outcomes could expand their use.
- Personalized approaches: Trials on using genetic or metabolic markers to tailor GLP-1 therapy.
Overall pipeline momentum is unprecedented for metabolic disease. Regulatory agencies are fast-tracking reviews: in 2024, the FDA and EMA accelerated reviews of new obesity drugs, recognizing the public health crisis of obesity. For example, the FDA’s approval of Lilly’s ZepBound (tirzepatide for chronic weight management) in late 2023 was based on phase III data showing superior weight loss compared to placebo. Other new drug applications for advanced GLP-1 combos are under review at the FDA and EMA in 2025.
In summary, GLP-1 agonists now underpin a multibillion-dollar market that is still expanding. The obesity and metabolic disease burden (with over a billion overweight or obese individuals worldwide) ensures continued demand. Pharmaceutical analysts agree this market will keep growing rapidly for at least the next decade.
Why Eli Lilly Emerged as the GLP-1 Market Leader
Eli Lilly’s rise to the top of the GLP-1 field is due to a combination of blockbuster sales, smart R&D strategy, and aggressive expansion – all timed with the soaring demand for new weight-loss therapies. Several factors explain why Lilly has become the biggest winner:
Record GLP-1 Sales: Mounjaro and ZepBound
Source： EvaluatePharma®
Lilly’s GLP-1 portfolio is led by Mounjaro (tirzepatide) and ZepBound (tirzepatide), both based on the dual GLP-1/GIP agonist tirzepatide but marketed separately for diabetes and obesity. Since Mounjaro’s launch in 2022, sales have exploded. In 2024, Mounjaro generated over $6 billion in global sales, making it one of Lilly’s top-selling products. In the first half of 2025, Mounjaro sales alone approached several billion dollars, putting it on track to challenge Novo’s Wegovy/Ozempic for the highest sales in the weight loss/diabetes class. ZepBound, launched for obesity in late 2023, quickly added hundreds of millions in sales – by mid-2025, its global sales were already in the hundreds of millions as clinics rolled out the new weight-loss injection. Combined, Lilly’s tirzepatide franchise is on pace to exceed $8–10 billion annualized.
This sales data dwarfs older products: for context, Lilly’s Humalog insulin now brings only a few hundred million per quarter. The shift in revenue sources is dramatic – GLP-1 drugs now constitute a majority of Lilly’s growth. In public comments, Lilly executives have highlighted that tirzepatide is exceeding growth expectations and driving record revenue. (By comparison, Novo Nordisk’s best-seller Wegovy/Ozempic brings in similar multi-billion revenues, but Lilly’s CAGR in recent quarters has been higher.) Analysts attribute Lilly’s success to tirzepatide’s superior weight loss in trials and aggressive marketing. In short, Lilly’s GLP-1 drugs are among the fastest-growing new drugs ever – a big reason the company is seen as the leading beneficiary of the GLP-1 trend.
R&D Strategy and Pipeline Investments
Source： EvaluatePharma®
Behind the commercial success is Lilly’s focused R&D on metabolic disease. Lilly has invested early and heavily in GLP-1 science. Before tirzepatide, Lilly was developing its own GLP-1-only agonists (e.g., dulaglutide) and amylin analogs, and it launched baricitinib/therapies in inflammation. But the game-changer was pivoting resources to tirzepatide and next-gen incretin therapies. Lilly’s R&D pipeline now includes:
- Next-gen tirzepatide analogs: Lilly has analogues of tirzepatide (to extend patent life) and related peptides in clinical trials.
- NN9535: a novel long-acting GLP-1 analog recently disclosed, expected to enter phase III (potentially offering daily dosing for weight loss).
- Other incretin projects: Lilly acquired Protomer Technologies in late 2024 specifically to get access to novel glucagon/GLP-1 peptides and oral incretins. Its collaboration with biotech company Neumora (for neurometabolic diseases) may yield new metabolic treatments.
Lilly’s research pipeline thus goes beyond tirzepatide. For example, the company is working on an oral GLP-1/GIP candidate (a “new drug” that could rival Oral Semaglutide). This diversified pipeline means Lilly isn’t reliant on just one molecule – it is seeding the future of the GLP-1 field.
Partnerships, Expansions and Clinical Milestones
Lilly has also aggressively expanded its global reach and partnerships. Key moves include:
- Geographic expansion: Lilly has out-licensed tirzepatide to partners in Asia (e.g., in China and India) to accelerate uptake outside the U.S./EU. Deals with local companies have broadened distribution faster than Novo’s rollout of Wegovy in some markets.
- Obesity infrastructure: Lilly invested in clinical programs and manufacturing capacity specifically for obesity indications, ensuring supply meets demand.
- Key clinical wins: In 2024, Lilly announced new clinical trial results (e.g., further cardiovascular outcome benefits with tirzepatide), which have bolstered prescriber confidence. The FDA and EMA approvals of ZepBound in late 2023 and early 2024 (for weight management) were major regulatory milestones achieved by Lilly ahead of many competitors.
- Collaborations: Lilly struck partnerships with tech firms for patient support programs. For instance, it partnered with a health app to help patients manage lifestyle changes alongside drug therapy – a move to augment the effectiveness of its new drug treatments.
These strategic actions ensure that Lilly’s GLP-1 products not only sell well, but also have a robust supporting ecosystem. By contrast, some rivals have struggled with supply or slower clinical rollout. Lilly’s well-oiled machine for promoting and delivering its new GLP-1 therapies is a competitive advantage.
Competing with Novo Nordisk and Others
Novo Nordisk remains a formidable competitor, having pioneered the GLP-1 weight-loss market. However, Lilly’s tirzepatide has some edges (e.g., trial efficacy and investor perception of pipeline strength) that have allowed Lilly to close the gap. For example, in head-to-head discussions, analysts have noted that Mounjaro’s weight-loss results slightly outperformed Wegovy’s in comparable trials. Moreover, Lilly has often offered cost-competitive pricing or better rebate deals to U.S. payers for its weight-loss drug, which has spurred faster patient access in the U.S. market. Internationally, Lilly has been more aggressive than some peers in signing distribution and co-promotion deals.
Importantly, Lilly’s overall portfolio is balanced (including diabetes, oncology, and immunology drugs), which gives it financial muscle to support aggressive marketing of its new obesity drugs. Novo Nordisk, while also strong, was until recently more focused on diabetes; Lilly’s multi-franchise strength may have aided its ability to “win” the GLP-1 race from a corporate leadership perspective.
Other companies (e.g., Pfizer, Roche, AZ) have their own GLP-1-related programs, but none have launched major products yet. Lilly’s first-mover advantage with tirzepatide in the dual-agonist space has so far put them ahead of these entrants. That said, competition is coming: Pfizer’s cotadutide (dual agonist) is in late-stage trials, and if approved, could eat into Lilly’s share. But for 2025H1, Lilly stands as the frontrunner.
In sum, Eli Lilly’s strategic positioning — combining explosive new drug sales with savvy R&D and deals — has made it the biggest winner in the GLP-1 market. The company transformed a novel diabetes treatment into a weight-loss powerhouse, outperforming many rivals. As one industry analyst put it, Lilly’s tirzepatide franchise “knocks out the competition” in this era of metabolic medicines.
Conclusion
The GLP-1 wave is reshaping the pharmaceutical industry, and Eli Lilly is riding it higher than anyone. Top-selling drug charts in 2025H1 show GLP-1 agonists displacing traditional blockbusters, reflecting how obesity and diabetes treatments have become huge revenue drivers. Deal activity in H1 2025 has been frenetic in the weight-loss arena, with many companies scrambling for a stake in the new drug era. Analysts predict continued double-digit growth for the GLP-1/metabolic disease market, driven by global obesity trends and more indications. Within this context, Lilly’s meticulous R&D strategy and market execution have paid off: Mounjaro and ZepBound are generating record sales, and Lilly’s pipeline is deep with next-generation incretin candidates.
For pharmaceutical professionals, the lesson is clear: The GLP-1 segment is no longer a niche – it’s the hottest market in the industry. Eli Lilly’s performance illustrates how capturing a lead in a breakthrough therapy area can redefine a company’s fortunes. As the obesity epidemic fuels demand for these new drugs, Lilly looks set to retain its lead, unless a competitor can outpace its innovation and commercialization in the GLP-1 field. For now, Lilly has emerged as the unrivaled champion of GLP-1.
