Novo's chief executive claims about 90 percent of the US oral GLP-1 market

Novo Nordisk chief executive Mike Doustdar told Reuters in an interview published August 13 that the Wegovy pill holds roughly 90 percent of the U.S. oral GLP-1 market ^[1]. He said the number reflects, in part, stronger weight-loss data than Eli Lilly's competing pill, Foundayo (orforglipron), and argued that obesity treatment will not become a winner-take-all business because patients want a choice of formats ^[1].

That claim needs some context. It is a figure Novo itself provided, with no independent breakdown published alongside it, and it describes a market that Lilly's Foundayo had only just entered ^[1]. Foundayo won FDA approval in April 2026, meaning the 90 percent figure captures an early snapshot of the U.S. oral market rather than a settled outcome ^[2].

The sales numbers so far do favor Novo. In the second quarter of 2026, oral Wegovy brought in DKK 3.22 billion, or about $496 million, while Foundayo generated $98 million in its first full quarter on the market ^[2]. Analysts who track the sector called the gap "striking," noting that Novo could lean on the established Wegovy brand name and existing familiarity among doctors and patients, while Lilly has had to build a new obesity brand from scratch ^[2].

Efficacy data also currently favors Novo's pill. Oral Wegovy produced about 16.6 percent average weight loss at 72 weeks, compared with about 11.2 percent for Foundayo at the same time point, though no head-to-head trial comparing the two drugs directly has been done ^[2]. One pharma analyst told BioSpace that this reverses the pattern seen in injectable GLP-1s, where Lilly's tirzepatide (Mounjaro/Zepbound) had the efficacy edge over Novo's semaglutide ^[2].

Lilly has other advantages it can use going forward. Foundayo has no food-or-water restrictions around dosing, unlike oral Wegovy, which must be taken with water and followed by at least 30 minutes without food or drink ^[2]. Analysts see this convenience gap, plus Lilly's established Zepbound/Mounjaro sales and marketing network, as a route for Foundayo to gain ground over time ^[2].

Why it matters for patients

For patients weighing a pill versus a weekly injection, the current numbers suggest oral Wegovy has more real-world usage and, based on trial data so far, produces more weight loss on average than Foundayo, though the two drugs have not been tested against each other directly ^[2]. That gap could narrow or widen depending on how insurers cover each drug, how supply holds up, and whether patients value Foundayo's simpler dosing rules over oral Wegovy's food-and-water restrictions ^[2]. Patients should also treat Novo's 90 percent market-share claim as a company-provided figure describing an early and fast-moving market, not an independently audited statistic ^[1].

What happens next

Novo Nordisk's amylin-combination drug CagriSema, which produced about 22.7 percent average weight loss in earlier trials, is expected to reach an FDA decision in the second half of 2026, according to sector trackers, though it fell short of the roughly 25 percent weight loss Novo had once hoped for ^[1]. How that decision lands, along with how Foundayo's U.S. sales trend over the next few quarters, will shape whether Novo's early oral lead holds or narrows.