Larry Summers, President Emeritus and Professor at Harvard University, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, in Davos, Switzerland.
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Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers predicted on Tuesday that miraculous drug innovations — like those that sparked the meteoric rise of Wegovy and Zepbound — could happen every few years thanks to new technologies .
Speaking on a World Economic Forum panel moderated by CNBC's Steve Sedgwick, Summers said the world is currently in an "amazing moment of technological possibility" that is driving unprecedented Innovation.
"The world has never been as bright with technological possibilities as it is today," he said while touting developments in green energy, computing and life sciences in Davos, Switzerland.
"We're going to be in a world where every few years we're going to see something like Wegovy and semaglutide — a miracle drug, a new drug," he said. “I believe artificial intelligence is to the Internet what computers are to calculators.”
Semaglutide—a class of drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity—has become a weight-loss phenomenon in recent years. Demand for the drug has propelled pharmaceutical giants to huge commercial success, including Novo Nordisk, which makes semaglutide under the brands Wegovy and Ozempic, Eli Lilly and Companywhich produces competitor Zepbound.
These drugs may also further improve health outcomes, with trial data suggesting a reduction in the risk of major cardiovascular events and substance abuse.
OZEMPIC, WEGOVY and other weight-loss drugs were seized at an international mail facility at JFK Airport.
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Summers said these broad-reaching applications could be replicated in other drug groups and medical conditions in the future.
Vas Narasimhan, chief executive of Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis, is more cautious about the prospects of such miracle drug groups.
Referring specifically to the obesity drug group, Narasimhan said Tuesday that while such innovations are "important," they are unlikely to fully address the underlying health problem.
"They will definitely help a small group of patients significantly," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe."
"But the fact is, taking these drugs for a lifetime is a pretty onerous task, especially when you're outside of an advanced health care system," he said, noting that a complete "rethink" of the food system is needed to combat the Obesity and obesity. related health problems.
Novartis has so far stayed out of the increasingly competitive weight-loss drug market, telling CNBC in September that it had no plans to join the "mania."
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Correction: This article has been updated to reflect the correct spelling of Larry Summers' name in the title.