The deal with U.S. biotech Septerna will see the companies develop pills to treat obesity, type 2 diabetes and other cardiometabolic diseases.

Novo Nordisk is making yet another bet on obesity, offering Septerna more than $200 million in upfront and near-term payments for rights to preclinical oral small molecules that hit targets including GLP-1.

Currently trailing Eli Lilly and Structure Therapeutics in the oral weight loss space, Novo Nordisk strikes a deal with Septerna to put new discovery-stage programs into play.