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☆ Exclusive: A16z-backed Knownwell is buying AI-powered Alfie Health to supercharge its obesity care
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-20 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

With that market shaking out this year, one obesity care startup just scooped up another. Knownwell, which provides obesity-centered primary care and weight management, has acquired Y Combinator startup Alfie Health, Business Insider has learned exclusively. But many investors leaned away from backing obesity care startups as the virtual prescription-focused model clashed with medication shortages. AdvertisementKnownwell has taken a different approach to weight management, with in-person providers alongside its virtual care services, and primary care in addition to obesity care. Alfie HealthGetting obesity care rightBoyarsky Pratt founded Knownwell alongside Dr. Angela Fitch, the president of the Obesity Medicine Association and the former associate director of Massachusetts General Hospital's weight care center.

Persons: —, Alfie, Alexander Singh, Ozempic, Knownwell, It's, Andreessen Horowitz, Alfie Health, Y Combinator, Nina Capital, Brooke Boyarsky Pratt, Boyarsky Pratt, it's, Angela Fitch, Vineeta, Kindbody, Agarwala Organizations: Service, Health, Business, Alfie Health, Knownwell, Flare Capital Partners, Nina, Obesity Medicine Association, Massachusetts, Oak, Carbon Health Locations: WeightWatchers, Plenty, Needham , Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Dallas, Minneapolis

In addition to Wegovy and Ozempic, the GLP-1 class includes Eli Lilly's highly popular weight loss drug Zepbound and diabetes treatment Mounjaro. VanGilder signed up nearly four years ago and started taking the weekly diabetes injection Ozempic specifically for weight loss. The big difference between Calibrate and prior weight loss efforts, VanGilder said, is that she doesn't feel like she's dieting. Calibrate is one of the only companies to regularly release reports detailing the results of its weight loss program. The federal Medicare program by law can't cover weight loss drugs unless the prescription is for another approved health benefit, such as diabetes or cardiovascular health.

Persons: Michael Siluk, Gray Beard, She'd, that's, Beard, wouldn't, She's, Ro, Goldman Sachs, Eli Lilly's, it's, Andrew Dudum, There's, Zachariah Reitano, Reitano, Wegovy, WeightWatchers, Gary Foster, Foster, Oprah Winfrey's, Kim Gradwell, Lee Smith, Jennifer VanGilder, she'd, Jenny Craig, VanGilder, I've, Kristin Baier, Rob MacNaughton, Ro's Reitano, we'd, Eli Lilly, Craig Primack, Primack, Hims, Dudum, We're Organizations: — Novo, UCG, Novo Nordisk, CNBC, Teladoc Health, World Health Organization, Food, WeightWatchers Clinic, Ursinus College, Asset Management Locations: Charlotte , North Carolina, U.S, Dudley , North Tyneside, Britain, Collegeville , Pennsylvania, Hims

☆ Oprah has left WeightWatchers, sending stocks spiraling and spelling doom for the diet of our foremothers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Mia De Graaf | Rachel Hosie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Oprah Winfrey will not seek reelection to the board of WW International, known as WeightWatchers. It was a surprising time to jump on board — WeightWatchers had been shedding users, and its stock price was dwindling. AdvertisementDespite not naming the brand, there was an immediate spike in demand for GLP-1 medications — the popular new class of weight-loss drugs. That same day, WW added a weight-loss drug arm to its business, acquiring Sequence, a service that provides weight-loss drugs. AdvertisementLong-term, WW needs to find a new identityOver time, WW will benefit from being a purveyor of hard-to-access weight-loss drugs.

Persons: Oprah Winfrey, —, Oprah giveth, Oprah taketh, maven, Winfrey, — WeightWatchers, Axios, Oprah, Forbes, Craig, Alex Fuhrman, Winfrey's, We're, Atkins Organizations: WW International, Service, SEC, Guardian, People Magazine, MarketWatch, Mayo Clinic, Business, Smithsonian's National Museum of, CNBC, Slate Locations: GLP, WeightWatchers

☆ Thinking about taking new weight loss drugs? These are the big health risk decisions that will follow
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

In this article NOVO.B-DKLLYWWGWW Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTAn injection pen of Zepbound, Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug, is displayed in New York City, U.S., December 11, 2023. But will Americans trust the most iconic brand in the legacy weight-loss business to guide them into its future? "Big pharma was coming for weight loss, and if they didn't have a clinical angle, they would have run the risk of becoming an irrelevant company." "This is a new, incredibly powerful and effective class of pharmaceuticals that a lot of people will find help improve their health." watch nowRisks of overreliance on obesity drugs The risk is real that providers may use the medications and "forget about lifestyle," said John Batsis, an associate professor and nutrition expert at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill's school of public health.

Persons: Eli Lilly’s, Brendan Mcdermid, Eli Lilly, —, Sima Sistani —, Sistani, Alex Fuhrman, Hallum, Fuhrman, Davidson, Linda Bolton Weiser, I've, Geoff Cook, Cook, John Batsis, Batsis Organizations: Reuters, Novo Nordisk, CNBC, Craig, pharma, University of North, University of North Carolina Chapel Locations: New York City, U.S, Herbalife, University of North Carolina

☆ Ro, the $7 billion healthcare startup, has a high-stakes strategy to take off-brand Ozempic mainstream
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-07 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The $7 billion healthcare startup Ro, which has been prescribing brand-name weight-loss shots since January 2023, now offers compounded semaglutide to patients enrolled in its weight-management program. Nonetheless, Ro is the first prominent healthcare company to effectively endorse compounded semaglutide by prescribing it. A poor-quality compounded drug might simply be a dud and a waste of money. But while compounding pharmacies are subject to FDA and state regulations, states are the main regulators, and their oversight is patchy. Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty ImagesIt's hard to know if any given vial of compounded semaglutide is safe.

Persons: Wegovy's, Ro, drugmakers, Eli Lilly's, Eli Lilly's Mounjaro, Scott Gottlieb, Michael Siluk, That's, they've, Ozempic, Eli Lilly, Eric Kastango, they're, Kastango, aren't, Al Carter, Sarah Jones Simmer, Spencer Nadolsky, WeightWatchers, Tim Church, Wondr, it's, hasn't Organizations: Business, Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, US Food and Drug Administration, FDA, Novo Nordisk's Ozempic, Getty, Novo Nordisk, USP, National Association of, Pharmacy, Health Locations: Novo, Massachusetts, Austria, New York City

☆ 3 titans will fight to dominate the market for Wegovy in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-27 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Dozens of startups have jumped into the weight-loss market this year as weight-loss drugs, including Wegovy and Ozempic, have exploded in popularity. The few companies with enough money and brand recognition to stand up to Ozempic's distribution challenges — WeightWatchers, Noom, and Ro — can expect to compete for market dominance next year. But WeightWatchers signaled it's going all in on weight-loss drugs by launching its own behavioral program for patients on Ozempic in December. WeightWatchersLike WeightWatchers, Noom has remained staunchly in the weight-loss market since its 2008 launch. Ro launched its own program prescribing weight-loss drugs in January.

Persons: VCs, — WeightWatchers, Sari Kaganoff, WeightWatchers, it's, Sima Sistani, Noom, Ro, Zach Reitano, Kaganoff, Saeju Jeong, Sam Barnes, Aaron DeGagne Organizations: Business, Rock Health, Web, Getty, PitchBook Locations: Ozempic

☆ Healthcare companies are promising to help patients quit Wegovy. There's just one problem with that.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-19 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Inkinen said Virta can help patients quit GLP-1 drugs and keep weight off by adjusting the foods they eat to help them feel full, similar to how the drugs reduce feelings of hunger. About 82% of patients taking Wegovy experience gastrointestinal issues like nausea and diarrhea. WeightWatchers didn't provide Business Insider with published data to support its claims that it can help people keep weight off after quitting weight-loss drugs. AdvertisementHe also advises the weight-loss startup Calibrate, which tapers some patients off GLP-1 drugs after they reach a certain body-mass index. GLP-1 drugs also slash the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and cardiac-related death.

Persons: —, Michael Albert, aren't, Sami Inkinen, Inkinen, Virta, Michael Siluk, Noom's, Linda Anegawa, Carolina Rudah, tirzepatide, Mounjaro, Zepbound —, Eli Lilly, Ozempic, Wegovy, Randy Seeley, Seeley, Robyn Phelps, it's, Robert Kushner, Kushner, Florian Gaertner, It's, Albert, Lisa, she's, I'm Organizations: Service, Business, FDA, Virta, Getty, Nordisk, Michigan Nutrition Obesity Research, University of Michigan, Novo Nordisk, Northwestern University Locations: Denver, Michigan

Aug 25 (Reuters) - Barclays Plc (BARC.L) has hired Emma Taylor, a Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) technology banker, as global head of internet investment banking, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters. Taylor, a 20-year investment banking veteran, will be based in New York and report to Barclays global head of technology investment banking Kristin Roth DeClark, according to the memo, which was confirmed by a Barclays spokesperson. Taylor and Chan will join three other managing directors at Barclays who cover internet investment banking out of the United States and two managing directors who focus on the internet out of Europe. Last week, Barclays announced it had hired Lee Counselman from Moelis & Co (MC.N) as a managing director in its technology investment banking group focused on software transactions. She previously spent five years at Goldman Sachs, where she worked alongside Taylor on the internet team as head of global e-commerce coverage.

Persons: Emma Taylor, Taylor, Kristin Roth DeClark, Carmen Chan, Chan, Lee Counselman, Goldman Sachs, Milana Vinn, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Barclays Plc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Reuters, Barclays, Thomson Locations: New York, United States, Europe, Moelis

☆ Noom Picks New CEO as It Moves Into Market for Ozempic
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Chip Cutter | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. https://www.wsj.com/articles/noom-picks-new-ceo-as-it-moves-into-market-for-ozempic-578e235d

Persons: Dow Jones

☆ The 3 main ways digital-health startups are competing for a slice of the $13 billion market for obesity care
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Yeji Jesse Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have surged in popularity. A Rock Health report lays out three main ways startups are competing for a slice of the market. As weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy surge in popularity, digital-health startups are jumping in — offering everything from prescriptions to weight-management tools to compete for a slice of the $13 billion market. That's according to a new report by Rock Health, which lays out three main ways digital-health companies are vying to get in on obesity care. Rock Health said these platforms could be used in conjunction with weight-loss drugs to help track progress.

Annick Lenoir-Peek, a lawyer from Durham, N.C., has struggled with her weight since adolescence. She has tried Atkins and keto and spent thousands of dollars over decades on weight-loss efforts and programs such as Noom, Nutrisystem and WeightWatchers. Since starting Ozempic in late November, she’s lost around 30 pounds. Her cholesterol and glucose levels have improved, and she can eat far fewer calories without feeling hungry, she said. Currently on a trip through Eastern Europe, she said she is doing more tours than she would have at a higher weight.

☆ How buzzy weight-loss drugs like Ozempic became the next craze in the hottest part of healthcare
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Healthcare companies are launching programs left and right to prescribe trendy weight-loss drugs. And Ro, a startup that prescribes and sells products like Viagra and hair-loss pills to consumers, is going all in with a program it launched in January to prescribe the weight-loss drugs to patients online. CalibrateFirst developed to manage type 2 diabetes, GLP-1 medications regulate blood-sugar levels, which can help people curb cravings and feel fuller after eating. The weight-loss market for GLP-1 drugs is relatively new, and not everyone is on board. But for some companies, stepping into prescribing these new weight-loss medications seems to simply be the natural next step for growth.

☆ Why buzzy weight-loss drugs are the next craze for healthcare startups
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Healthcare companies are launching programs left and right to prescribe trendy weight-loss drugs. And Ro, a startup that prescribes and sells products like Viagra and hair-loss pills to consumers, is going all in with a program it launched in January to prescribe the weight-loss drugs to patients online. Even startups like Noom, which quietly started a program prescribing GLP-1 medications, could stand to benefit from the drugs' popularity after a tumultuous year for the startup. The weight-loss market for GLP-1 drugs is relatively new, and not everyone is on board. But for some companies, stepping into prescribing these new weight-loss medications seems to simply be the natural next step for growth.

☆ Noom quietly started writing prescriptions for trendy new weight-loss drugs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The popular weight-loss app Noom quietly launched a new program that offers some users access to prescription anti-obesity medications. Called Noom Clinical, the program is meant to "build additional support" for app users, a company spokesperson said in a statement to Insider. Startups like Noom want to capitalize on a surge in demand for new weight-loss drugsSaeju Jeong, Co-founder & CEO, Noom Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile for Web Summit via Getty Images)Noom's foray into prescribing medication comes as demand for weight-loss drugs surges. NoomNoom, which introduced its weight loss app in 2017, is backed by venture firm Oak HC/FT and private-equity giant Silver Lake. According to the spokesperson, Noom began rolling out the new prescription-drug program to a small number of users in the fall.

On the agenda today:But first: Jordan Parker Erb, the author of Insider's 10 Things in Tech newsletter, is taking us behind the scenes of Elon Musk's feud with Apple. Tim Cook and Elon Musk Justin Sullivan/Getty Images and Philip Pacheco/AFP via Getty ImagesThis week, Elon Musk, the world's richest man and new Twitter owner, declared "war" with the world's biggest tech company: Apple. At the heart of the issue was Apple's 30% App Store fee, our associate editor Jordan Parker Erb writes. Here's what went down:Sign up for 10 Things in Tech to get stories like these right in your inbox. Edited by Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, and Lisa Ryan.

☆ Big Tech workers who've been laid off finally get a vacation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

For some laid-off tech workers, that thought isn't confined to just daydreams — some employees told us that since they've been laid off, they've taken the opportunity to finally go on vacation. In Big Tech, getting laid off can mean taking a fancy vacation. While the typical US worker receives little to no severance pay when they get laid off, firms like Facebook, Snap, and Twitter have been relatively generous. Some laid-off tech workers have racked up few years of sky-high pay, frequent bonuses, generous stock awards, and now, decent severance — so some are thinking, "why not travel?" See where other "freed" tech workers are headed.

☆ Noom sells psychology-driven weight loss — but former employees say they were unprepared for and overwhelmed by users' eating disorders, depression, and trauma
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +31 min

Before joining Noom, users fill out a questionnaire asking about what diet programs or mental health apps they've used in the past. Very overly optimistic and happy, doesn't acknowledge what I'm really saying," one Noom user wrote on Reddit. Some of the coaches Insider interviewed said they were interacting with Noom users within two weeks of starting. Emotional bandwidthRachel Clair was hired as a Noom coach in 2018, at a time when the coaching staff grew from 60 to about 200. Annette Riedl/picture alliance via Getty ImagesIn October, 500 more Noom coaches were abruptly called into a virtual meeting and laid off.

☆ Another tech bubble bursts: 2022 has been brutal for Silicon Valley workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( David Ingram | David Ingram Covers Tech For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +28 min

Gem: 100A maker of recruiting software, the startup cut a third of its workforce Nov. 1, The Information reported. HealthCare.com: 149The health insurance marketplace announced the job cuts Aug. 3, Miami Inno reported, citing state regulatory filings. Fabric: 120The robotics startup said July 13 that it was layoffing off 40% of them, TechCrunch reported, citing company confirmation. It affected about 300 people, the Silicon Valley Business Journal reported, citing company confirmation. Policygenius: 170The online insurance company cut about 25% of its staff, Axios reported June 6, citing company confirmation.

☆ Tripadvisor Names Its First CMO Since 2018
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Patrick Coffee | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Tripadvisor Inc. has hired John Boris as its first chief marketing officer in more than four years as the online travel company hopes to serve consumers who are willing to pay more to book flights and hotels. Mr. Boris had been chief growth officer at Australian blockchain gaming startup Immutable Pty. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | CMO Today CMO Today delivers the most important news of the day for media and marketing professionals. Its marketing expenses rose 58% to $234 million during the same period thanks, in part, to an increase in search-engine marketing, according to the company’s earnings report. Tripadvisor also recently replaced its retiring chief financial officer with Mike Noonan, formerly of dieting app Noom.

☆ NYC's cutthroat rental market — Noom users dish — TikTok stars' fav gym
▼ + stars: | 2021-09-24 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

This week, we're giving you a look inside NYC's booming rental market, taking you along for a workout at a celebrity gym, and showing you what users really think of the anti-diet app Noom. In a conversation with Insider, Aubrey told us stylists are being silenced, isolated, and manipulated by the company — and shared why she's happy she quit. Here's what Aubrey told us about Stitch Fix. Crystal Cox/Business InsiderNoom markets itself as an anti-diet lifestyle app — but this writer found it's a diet just like any other. DogpoundDogpound, the hot LA gym where Justin Bieber and TikTok stars like Addison Rae go to sweat it out, is notorious for its grueling personal-training sessions.

☆ I tried the popular weight-loss app backed by Tony Xu and Scooter Braun. Keeping the weight off was harder than expected.
▼ + stars: | 2021-05-25 | by ( Lisa Rabasca Roepe | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Noom is a weight-loss app that uses a psychology-based approach to change your eating habits. One writer tried Noom for eight months to shed some pounds and prevent pandemic weight gain. In my latest attempt to lose weight, I turned to the Noom app. Lisa Rabasca RoepeI imagine that this is a powerful exercise for someone who has more than 10 pounds to lose. In fact, I've noticed that the people who have the most weight to lose have the most success with Noom.

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