00:00There is a lot of focus on your pipeline right now because you look at the rest of 2026, you
00:05have multiple phase three studies that we're expecting here.
00:09So when you take a look at your current estimates that you presented, where do you see the most potential
00:14upside here?
00:18So we're very excited about this year.
00:21Last year was one of our most catalyst rich year.
00:24We had 13 positive phase three studies out of 20 studies that ran out.
00:28This is another big catalyst rich year.
00:32We have, again, 20 phase three, major phase three studies reading out, and we already had four positive phase threes
00:39in the first quarter.
00:41So while execution for first quarter as well as for 2026 is a priority and meeting our guidance, it's really
00:51about the future and how we get to our $80 billion ambition by 2030.
00:57And that's why the pipeline is so important.
00:59And some of the new products that we expect to launch this year and next year is going to be
01:04critical for that.
01:05Well, that $80 billion target by 2030, it seems like the market is more buying into the idea that that
01:12looks possible.
01:13I want to talk about where potentially weight loss medicines fit into that because that is a crowded space.
01:19We know who the first wave players are.
01:21I know that AstraZeneca would like to be part of the second wave.
01:24And to that point, I mean, where do you think that you can break in?
01:29What would set apart your GLP-1 initiative here from some of the other existing players already in the market?
01:37Yes, there are two different elements there.
01:40The first is what does it take for us to get to our $80 billion ambition?
01:45When we had set that $80 billion ambition, it was May of 2024.
01:50And consensus estimates at that time were around $67 billion for 2030.
01:56Consensus estimates today are actually north of $80 billion.
01:58So I think there's greater and greater confidence in achieving that $80 billion ambition.
02:04I think the second question which you asked is, how do we play in the weight management and obesity market?
02:12So a few sort of soundbites there.
02:16First of all, the total addressable market as it relates to weight loss and obesity is much larger than we
02:23had imagined a few years ago.
02:25The total addressable market at one point was assumed to be $50 billion, $60 billion.
02:29Today, the estimates are $100 billion, $150 billion, et cetera.
02:35Secondly, we are definitely not in the first wave of GLP-1 products, which were all injectables.
02:42Only in the last couple of months have the oral small molecules really launched.
02:47And we're sort of in that second wave because we believe that oral small molecules will transform and further expand
02:55the market for weight loss and weight management medicines.
03:01Thirdly, our strategy is actually...
03:02If I can just jump in because I want to ask about that specifically.
03:05And given we are on Bloomberg deals, how much of this are you going to have to do inorganically?
03:09And are you worried about some of the very high valuations and the hot bidding wars that have taken place
03:16over some of these assets, Metzera being among them?
03:19Yeah, so right now we actually have the portfolio that we need.
03:23We have Ilocogripron, which is our oral GLP-1.
03:27We're starting three phase three studies in that one.
03:31We also have 9550, which is our dual acting GLP-1 glucagon, which also, again, we have in-house.
03:39And then thirdly, we have a long-acting Amelon.
03:42Plus, we did a partnership in the first quarter with CSPC, which is a Chinese company for long-acting technology,
03:49which compares to what Metzera was about, which was sort of these monthly and longer-acting injectables.
03:56So I believe today we have the portfolio.
03:58In addition, I think we are very uniquely positioned because of our ability to do combination products.
04:04So 60%, 70% of patients that have weight challenges, whether they're obese or moderately overweight, actually have a whole
04:16bunch of comorbidities.
04:17So they may have hypertension.
04:18They may have high triglycerides, high cholesterol, a whole bunch of other comorbidities.
04:26And we are uniquely positioned because we have the other products that we can combine with these molecules to have
04:34fixed dose combinations so that a patient can take one medicine to both address their medical need as well as
04:42lose some weight.
04:44So I think we're very uniquely positioned with these combination products.
04:48Where else in the pipeline might you want to boost through M&A?
04:51What therapeutic areas are most interesting to you, and how much would you actually be looking to deploy in those
04:56acquisitions?
04:58So we have defined four key areas, which are our key therapy areas.
05:05Those include oncology, cardiovascular, renal, metabolic medicines, respiratory and immunology, and rare diseases.
05:13And we have a pretty wide portfolio in-house already.
05:17We have 100-plus phase three trials ongoing right now, probably one of the largest and deepest portfolio in the
05:25pharma industry.
05:26That being said, we're constantly looking for external innovation and doing a lot of licensing deals.
05:33Our leverage ratio right now is less than one and a half times.
05:37So we have a lot of financial capacity if we wanted to.
05:40But at the same time, we also have a broad portfolio ourselves.
05:44So things really need to be incremental or add broadly to our portfolio for us to do large-scale M
05:53&A.
05:54And before we let you go, I am interested about some investment news that we got from AstraZeneca this morning,
05:59that the company plans to invest 300 million pounds in the U.K.
06:03This was interesting to see since you had paused development of an earlier project now coming in with this investment.
06:10And I wonder, you know, what changed for AstraZeneca when it comes to how you're approaching your dealings with the
06:16U.K.?
06:18Yeah, so I think what the decision we made to unpause some of that investment was driven by the, you
06:28know,
06:28the direction of travel that we saw and how the U.K. is starting to approach the reimbursement and paying
06:37for innovative medicines.
06:38One of the key challenges has been how the U.K. and NICE assesses the quality of life measure,
06:46which then determines what they pay for innovative medicines.
06:49And I think we've seen some of that improve over time.
06:53I also want to put the 300-pound investment that you said in context of the investment that we are
07:00making in the U.S.
07:01We announced last year that we'd be making a $50 billion investment,
07:05which is a combination of R&D as well as capital investment in the U.S.
07:10The U.S. remains our largest market.
07:12And our expectation is that the U.S. market will continue to grow and be 50 percent of that $80
07:18billion ambition by 2030.
07:20and NICE review of the U.S. market will continue to become Properties.
07:20There is no Alto U.S. market Unfُowitzось that has begun to grow.
07:21And the U.S. market back the U.S. marketplace is a difference example of how
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