Novo Nordisk is repositioning its India operations as a strategic engine for global pharmaceutical launches, embedding artificial intelligence across its Bengaluru Global Capability Centre to compress drug development timelines that once spanned years into a matter of months. The move comes as the Danish drugmaker faces intensifying competition in the obesity and diabetes market while preparing to roll out its oral Wegovy pill across international markets in the second half of 2026.

How AI Is Reshaping Drug Launch Timelines at Novo Nordisk

Novo Nordisk is aiming to slash the time it takes to bring new drugs to market by up to two-thirds using AI. John Dawber, managing director for global business services, told a Reuters summit that historically, from last patient, last visit to first filing might have been a year and a half, and what the company is now able to do by implementing AI is bring that time down by months.

The company is deploying AI across regulatory document drafting, safety data analysis, and commercial analytics for both marketed drugs and those in clinical trials, with AI tools now embedded widely across its India operations.

Novo Nordisk is partnering with OpenAI to use artificial intelligence across its business, from drug discovery to manufacturing and commercial operations. The partnership will use OpenAI's technology to analyze complex datasets, identify promising drug candidates, and improve efficiency in manufacturing, supply chains, distribution, and corporate operations.

Key facts about Novo Nordisk's AI-driven drug development strategy:

• The company has already cut the typical 18-month gap between a study's conclusion and regulatory submission to just a few months, using AI systems that automate the drafting of dossiers and analyze safety data.
• The Bengaluru Global Capability Centre handles critical activities in global launches including pharmacovigilance, regulatory submissions, medical writing, and biostatistics, for products such as the oral Wegovy obesity pill.
• Dawber confirmed there is no medicine that goes into market without having Bengaluru's thumbprint, underlining the center's indispensable role in the company's global launch infrastructure.
• Novo CEO Mike Doustdar said integrating AI in everyday work gives the company the ability to analyze datasets at a scale that was previously impossible, identify patterns that could not previously be seen, and test hypotheses faster than ever before.

The India Hub and Bengaluru's Growing Strategic Role

Activities including clinical data analysis, regulatory submissions, and commercial planning are increasingly executed out of India, with AI tools now embedded widely across its India operations. Despite the growing footprint, Novo Nordisk is taking a disciplined approach to staffing.

Dawber expects the global business services unit to end the year with about 4,000 employees, acknowledging that an earlier target of 5,000 employees by 2025 was too ambitious even looking out to 2027, and adding that the company is instead focused on hiring the right people for the right roles as it scales AI-led operations rather than rapidly expanding headcount.

The Oral Wegovy Launch and India's Competitive Landscape

Novo Nordisk plans to launch the Wegovy pill in select markets outside the United States in the second half of 2026, following a positive recommendation from the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use for once-daily oral semaglutide 25 mg to reduce excess body weight. The oral Wegovy pill reached roughly 1.3 million prescriptions in its first three months in the United States.

The AI push comes as Novo Nordisk faces intensifying competition in India following the expiry of its semaglutide patent on March 20, 2026. The company subsequently announced price cuts of up to 48 percent on Ozempic and 36 percent on starting doses of its diabetes formulation, weeks after dozens of Indian pharmaceutical companies entered the market.

With the second-highest number of people with type 2 diabetes and rising obesity rates, India is a fast-growing weight-loss solution space anticipated to hit nearly $150 billion per year by the end of the decade.