Viking pushes oral VK2735 into late-2026 Phase 3 as injectable trials stay on track
An experimental dual GLP-1/GIP obesity drug is moving toward late-stage testing in a pill form, which would add a second oral option in a field now dominated by injections.
Viking Therapeutics said July 29 that it expects to begin Phase 3 trials of an oral tablet form of its obesity drug candidate VK2735 in the fourth quarter of 2026 [1]. The company also said results from a maintenance-dosing study are expected later this quarter [1].
VK2735 is not approved by the FDA for any use. It is an investigational long-acting dual agonist of the GLP-1 and GIP receptors — the same two hormone receptors targeted by tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) — and Viking is developing it in both a once-weekly injection and a once-daily tablet [1]. Viking said the tablet could become the first oral dual GLP-1/GIP agonist to reach the market if it succeeds, a claim about a product that has not been reviewed or cleared by regulators [1].
The timing for the oral program was disclosed in Viking's second-quarter 2026 financial update, which reported $502 million in cash as of June 30 [1]. A Phase 3 registry record for VK2735 in weight management is posted on ClinicalTrials.gov under the identifier NCT07104500 [2].
The injection program
Viking said its two Phase 3 injection trials are fully enrolled and proceeding as planned [1]. The VANQUISH program, which began in June 2025, includes one trial in adults with obesity and one in adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes [1].
VANQUISH-1 enrolled approximately 4,500 patients by November 2025, about five months after the study started. VANQUISH-2 finished enrolling in the first quarter of 2026 with approximately 1,000 patients [1]. Participants in each trial were randomly assigned to weekly doses of 7.5 mg, 12.5 mg, 17.5 mg or placebo for 78 weeks [1]. The main goal is percent change in body weight from baseline compared with placebo after 78 weeks, with additional measures including how many patients lose at least 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% of their body weight [1].
Viking pointed to earlier results for the injection. In the Phase 2 VENTURE study, average body weight fell by up to 14.7% after 13 weekly doses, with no sign of a plateau, and the drug was described as safe and well tolerated over that period [1].
For the oral form, Viking reported an average weight reduction of up to 8.2% after 28 daily doses in a Phase 1 study, and up to 12.2% after 13 weeks in the Phase 2 VENTURE-oral study. In that Phase 2 trial, up to 80% of participants taking VK2735 lost at least 10% of their body weight after 13 weeks, compared with 5% of those taking placebo [1]. Viking said most drug-related side effects were mild or moderate, and that in the dose range planned for future studies it believes there was no meaningful difference in gastrointestinal side effects between VK2735 and placebo [1].
Why it matters for patients
The practical difference here is the pill. Every GLP-1 medication currently approved in the US for weight management is given as an injection; Rybelsus, the oral semaglutide tablet, is approved for type 2 diabetes rather than for weight loss. An oral dual GLP-1/GIP option would matter most to people who want to avoid injections, or who want to stay on the same active drug while changing how it is taken [1].
The maintenance study is aimed at a different question: whether the drug can be given less often — including every other week or monthly — after a patient has reached a target weight. Viking says flexible long-term dosing may help people stay on treatment, though the company has not reported how well that worked; those results are expected later this quarter [1].
None of this changes what is available now. VK2735 remains experimental, and Phase 3 results for the injection are not expected until the 78-week treatment period ends. Whether the drug will be approved, at what doses, and at what price has not been disclosed.
What happens next
Viking said maintenance and reduced-frequency dosing results are expected in the third quarter of 2026, currently under way [1]. Oral VK2735 Phase 3 trials are expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2026 [1]. The VANQUISH-1 and VANQUISH-2 injection trials are fully enrolled and continuing toward their 78-week primary endpoint [1]. Viking also said a Phase 1 study of VK3019, an investigational amylin receptor agonist, is underway, and that it appointed Hubert Chen, M.D., as chief medical officer during the quarter [1].
Sources
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