As a faculty member at the University of Texas, I often watch our football team play on fall Saturdays. During last weeks game, there was a penalty on the Longhorns’ defense. The referee called the penalty and mentioned the player who committed the infraction. Watching the replay, it was clear that the penalty was actually on a different player. No big deal, of course, because there was clearly a penalty. But, one player got called out on national television for the mistake of another.
And that got me thinking about the times when someone makes a mistake at work, and then you get blamed for it. Not only can that be frustrating, but it may have implications for your annual evaluation or your job. So what should you do?
The ideal way to react depends on a few factors. One is why people above you in the org chart think youre to blame. Another is your overall seniority in the organization.
Why do they think it is you?
It is easy to understand how a referee could call out the wrong player for a penalty in the chaos of a football game happening in real time. It is less clear why you would get blamed for a problem at work that you did not cause or contribute to. It can be helpful to get some insight into how you came to take the blame for the problem.
One possibility is that nobody is sure how the problem came to be, and management has speculated that you were the source of the problem. In that case, it is important to sit down with your supervisor and discuss any involvement you may have had in the situation. If you were involved, but not the source of the error, then engage in the discussion in a spirit of understanding how you can do things differently in the future to support a better outcome or perhaps to catch an error. If you were not actually involved in the situation at all, then just clarifying your lack of participation should be enough. You should offer to help identify the source of the problem as part of this conversation.
A second possibility is that you have been mistakenly identified as the individual who made a mistake, but the person responsible for it is known. In that case, it is also worth engaging with the person who made the mistake to encourage that person to come forward and accept responsibility. Most organizations would prefer that people who make mistakes own those errors so that it can become a learning opportunity. It is best for everyone involved if the person responsible for the problem steps forward.
The third possibility is the most difficult one. It is possible that someone else made the mistake and has pinned the blame on you. That is unfortunate and poor collegiality. In this case, you need your receipts. Any information you have to demonstrate that you were not involved will be important. Find an ally in leadership to help you address the mistake. Focus primarily on yourself. There is a temptation to want to ensure the person who lied about you gets punished. Dont spend too much time trying to get justice. Talk to your ally about why you think you got blamed and then get back to work. Dont spend additional valuable time and effort on someone elses bad behavior.
How senior are you?
If youre low in the food chain of your organization, then engage in all of the steps in the previous section. You want to ensure that you dont suffer significant consequences for something you did not do.
As you get more senior, the calculus changes. Certainly, you want to ensure that high-level leadership knows what is and is not your responsibility so that you dont get evaluated for the poor performance of people who dont work with you or for you.
However, as you rise in the organization, your responsibility gets larger. You do bear some responsibility for the mistakes of the people who work for you. Just as you will get more credit than you deserve for the successes of your team, you will also get more blame than you deserve for the failures. If the mistake was made by one of your supervisees, dont try to evade responsibility by pinning the blame on them. Shoulder the responsibility for the error and then work with your team members to ensure that nothing like that happens again.
Even when the failure lies with another adjacent team, you may still want to think about whether there are things you could do differently to decrease the chances of future errors or to minimize the damage caused by those errors. As you rise in the organization, your responsibilities influence more of what happens in the organization, and so you may benefit from taking some heat for actions that may not have been directly in your control. In those situations, have a frank conversation with leaders above you about what you think happened and what you believe can be done differently to avoid problems like that in the future. When you focus constructively on what comes next, you can develop a reputation for being a problem-solver rather than an excuse-maker.
Some innovative products are designed to solve a specific pain point for consumers, while others will address a problem they dont even realize they have.
Take soggy sandwiches, for example. A focus group wouldnt necessarily highlight the need for a cooler that keeps sandwiches from getting soggybut once the problem was identified, it helped inform the design of Ninjas line of FrostVault coolers, according to Michelle Crossan-Matos, the chief growth officer of SharkNinja.
Engineers and inventors are steeped in data that they can then leverage along with insight and empathy, in order to create the wide range of innovative products SharkNinja has become known for, Crossan-Matos said during a panel discussion this week at the Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York.
It’s the marriage of intuition and data that makes all the difference, she said.
Data insights
Sometimes, customer insight causes a company to shift its focus, as was the case for Sunday.
When the company was founded in 2018, the initial goal was to create a non-toxic, natural line of lawn care products, to serve as an alternative to the conventional legacy products. That was before realizing that homeowners didnt know how to care for their yards, said Brad Smith, the companys president.
We learned pretty quickly that it wasn’t just enough to develop a good, solid non-toxic product, Smith told the audience at the panel. We also had to invest in relationships with these customers and provide content and personalized guidance to make them successful using our product in their yards.
Sunday has since expanded how it collects information that will inform its product strategy, including gathering soil samples from customers to be added to its worlds largest soil database. That wealth of data also informs an AI tool called Sunny, Smith said: Its us engaging and getting very close with the customer and trying to solve their unique problems in their yard.
For Pinterest, user data also informs the companys annual Pinterest Predicts report, which has an accuracy rate of about 85% for what trends will be popular in the future, according to Malik Ducard, the companys chief content officer. By aggregating what users save, pin to boards, or create on the site, that helps inform what people are interested in nowand the biggest trends that have not yet happened, he added.
Those are the types of signals that we focus the mathematics of our systems on, because what we find is that that then drives higher quality experiencesmore about time well spent, than time just simply spent or poorly spent, Ducard said.
Oh, the humanity!
But its important to add a human touch in deciding what to do with the insights that data provides.
The data don’t make the decisions, and the data doesn’t come out of the blueits powered and informed by people, Ducard said. Remembering that puts data and intuition less at odds, because ultimately the data goes up to a point and then we need to make a decision.
Sunday invests heavily in both the data and science necessary to offer a custom prescription for a lawn care solution to its customer. But teams must leave room to be able to constantly make on-the-fly decisions, Smith said: The world doesnt wait for data analytics.
For SharkNinja, spending time with consumers to really understand their needs, pain points, and what problems they encounter with products is also an integral part of the process. At the panel, Crossan-Matos recounted experiences that still give her goosebumps, that highlight specific pain points that the companys products could solve.
At every point, we’re iterating and learning, she said.
Chipmaker Nvidia will invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI and provide it with data center chips, the companies said on Monday, a tie-up between two of the highest-profile leaders in the global artificial intelligence race.
The deal, which will see Nvidia start delivering chips as soon as late 2026, will involve two separate but intertwined transactions, according to a person close to OpenAI.
The startup will pay Nvidia in cash for chips, and Nvidia will invest in OpenAI for non-controlling shares, the person said.
The first $10 billion of Nvidia’s investment in OpenAI, which was most recently valued at $500 billion, will begin when the two companies reach a definitive agreement for OpenAI to purchase Nvidia chips
Nvidia did not respond to immediate requests for clarification about the deal. The pact is among a spate of agreements between major technology players that includes years of investment in OpenAI from Microsoft and a deal last week between Nvidia and Intel to collaborate on AI chips.
The two companies signed a letter of intent for a landmark strategic partnership to deploy at least 10 gigawatts of Nvidia chips for OpenAI’s AI infrastructure.
They aim to finalize partnership details in the coming weeks, with the first deployment phase targeted to come online in the second half of 2026.
“Everything starts with compute,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement.
“Compute infrastructure will be the basis for the economy of the future, and we will utilize what we’re building with Nvidia to both create new AI breakthroughs and empower people and businesses with them at scale.”
Nvidia shares were up 4.4% while shares of Oracle, which partners with OpenAI, SoftBank, and Microsoft on the $500 billion Stargate AI data center project, gained nearly 5%.
Nvidia’s investment comes days after it committed $5 billion to struggling chipmaker Intel.
OpenAI and its backer, Microsoft, also announced earlier this month that they have signed a non-binding deal for new relationship terms that would allow for OpenAI’s restructuring into a for-profit company.
Nvidia also backed OpenAI in a $6.6 billion funding round in October 2024. However, the world’s most valuable firm making another sizeable investment in OpenAI could lead to antitrust scrutiny.
The Trump administration has taken a much lighter touch on competition issues compared with former President Joe Biden’s antitrust enforcers.
In June 2024, the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission reached a deal that cleared the way for potential antitrust investigations into the dominant roles that Microsoft, OpenAI, and Nvidia play in the artificial intelligence industry.
Arsheeya Bajwa, Deepa Seetharaman, and Stephen Nellis, Reuters
Spirit Airlines said on Monday it is preparing to furlough one-third of its flight attendants after filing for its second bankruptcy in a year, as the carrier grapples with dwindling cash and mounting losses.
The low-budget airline will temporarily lay off about 1,800 flight attendants from its total strength of approximately 5,200, effective December 1.
Spirit filed for bankruptcy again last month after a previous reorganization failed to put it on firmer financial footing. The company forewarned job cuts in a memo sent to employees last Wednesday, adding that it also plans to slash flight capacity 25% year-over-year by November.
“We need to shift our focus to a complete rightsizing of the airline, which means volume-based adjustments to our flight attendant group,” the airline said in an email to employees seen by Reuters on Monday.
The Association of Flight Attendants, in a separate memo also seen by Reuters, said: “The problem is that the significant reduction of aircraft and flight hours requires a much higher reduction in force and the company is clear that a furlough is necessary.”
The airline, with more than 800 staff voluntarily absent now, has so far relied only on voluntary furloughs rather than imposing mandatory ones.
It will continue offering voluntary furloughs, even as it moves forward with additional staffing reductions. According to the union, voluntary furloughs are being offered for six months to one year time periods and are set to begin on November 1.
The union also said in its memo that it is coordinating to arrange preferential interviews for its members at other airlines.
Spirit’s financial difficulties, combined with U.S. carriers competing for premium travelers, have raised concerns that the era of ultra-low fares may be ending for budget-conscious passengers.
Last week, United Airlines said it would not pursue Spirit’s assets if they become available as part of the carrier’s restructuring.
Doyinsola Oladipo, Aishwarya Jain, and Aatreyee Dasgupta, Reuters
President Donald Trump’s appointee to the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors said Monday that the central bank’s key interest rate should be much lower than its current 4.1% level, staking out a position far different than his colleagues.
Stephen Miran, who is also a top economic adviser to Trump, said in remarks to the Economic Club of New York that sharp declines in immigration, rising tariff revenue, and an aging population all suggest that the Fed’s rate should be closer to 2.5% instead. According to projections released last week, that’s almost a full percentage point lower than any of his 18 colleagues on the Fed’s rate-setting committee, an unusually high divergence.
Miran’s comments underscore the different perspective he brings to the Fed’s deliberations over interest rate policy. His appointment has been controversial because he has kept his position as the head of the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers while taking unpaid leave, raising concerns about the Fed’s traditional independence from day-to-day politics. His term on the Fed’s board expires in January, and Miran has suggested he would return to the White House after that, though he could remain on the board until a successor is appointed.
It should be clear that my view of appropriate monetary policy diverges from those of other . . . members of the committee, Miran said in written remarks. I view policy as very restrictive, he added, meaning that it is holding back the economy and poses material risks to the Fed’s congressional mandate of seeking maximum employment.
Miran said that fewer immigrants should free up more housing and lower rental costs, reducing inflationary pressures. And tariff revenueswhich may top $300 billion a year, according to Congressional Budget Office estimatesshould reduce the deficit, he added. Over time, that would mean the Fed doesn’t have to keep its benchmark interest rate as high as it is now to bring inflation down.
By Christopher Rugaber, AP economics writer
Shares of Kenvue Inc. (KVUE), the parent company of Tylenol, are down around 6% in midday trading on Monday on news the Trump administration is expected to link the over-the-counter pain relief medicine to autism.
According to MSNBC, there is growing alarm in the medical community ahead of an expected announcement after Trump told reporters he believed Tylenol was a very big factor in autism risk.
Longtime Tylenol maker Johnson & Johnson spun off the Tylenol brand in 2023 to become a standalone publicly traded company, Kenvue, known for such household products as Band-Aid, Listerine, and Zyrtec.
Tylenol, which has been available in some form in the U.S. since 1955 and available for purchase over-the-counter since 1960, is the brand name for acetaminophen, the pill’s active ingredientand one of the most widely used medications around the world. Acetaminophen is a pain reliever and fever reducer for minor aches and pains.
According to a number of publications, including the Washington Post, federal health officials on Monday are expected to raise concerns about pregnant women using acetaminophen based on researchincluding an August review by Mount Sinai and Harvardsuggesting a potential link between Tylenol use in early pregnancy and an increased risk of autism in children.
However, it is important to note that Tylenol is generally considered safe to use and generally not linked to autism. A study from JAMA also found using acetaminophen during pregnancy was not associated with increased risk of autism, ADHD, or intellectual disability in children. The study refuted recent research papers that argued otherwise.
At the same time, officials are expected to introduce leucovorin, a lesser-known drug, as a potential treatment for autism. Leucovorin is a folinic acid, an active form of vitamin B9 (folate) used to treat side effects and enhance chemotherapy drugs and anemia, and treat vitamin B9 deficiencies. Speculation comes after Trump reportedly said Sunday that the administration “found an answer to autism.”
Trump is set to make an announcement late Monday afternoon with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., according to USA Today. Tylenol’s owner, Kenvue, told the outlet in a statement that the active ingredient “acetaminophen does not cause autism.”
Kennedy has said finding the cause of autism is one of his priorities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said one in 31 American 8-year-olds were diagnosed with the condition in 2022, compared with one in 150 in 2000, Politico reported.
On a battlefield swarming with deadly Russian drones, Ukrainian soldiers are increasingly turning to nimble, remote-controlled armored vehicles that can perform an array of tasks and spare troops from potentially life-threatening missions.
The Ukrainian army is especially eager to deploy what soldiers refer to as robots on wheels as it faces a shortage of soldiers in a war that has dragged on for more than 3 years. The vehicles look like miniature tanks and can ferry supplies, clear mines and evacuate the wounded or dead.
It cannot fully replace people, said the commander of a platoon of the 20th Lyubart Brigade who goes by the call sign Miami and spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military rules. I would put it this way: A person can go in there, but for a human its (sometimes) far too dangerous.
The robotic vehicles are mostly made by Ukrainian companies and range in cost from about $1,000 to as much as $64,000, depending on their size and capabilities.
While they have become vital to Ukrainian troops along the 1,000 kilometer (620 mile) front line, such vehicles are not new to warfare.
The German army used a remote-controlled miniature tank tethered by a wire — called the Goliath in World War II. In recent decades, the U.S., Israel, Britain and China have developed modern versions used for combat engineering and other battlefield roles, according to Ben Barry, a fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. But Ukraine’s extensive deployment of these vehicles is noteworthy and could lead to advances, Barry said.
The Russian army also uses remote-controlled vehicles.
From drones to autonomous vehicles
Miami joined the army on the first day of Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. He served as an infantryman and later a drone operator before his latest assignment. His path reflects how the war itself has evolved.
“I couldnt even imagine that I would become a (drone) pilot, he said. But war is progress, and we cannot stand aside.
The robotic vehicles his team deploys are armored and mounted on either wheels or tracks. Painted in military colors, they crawl slowly over rubble or dirt roads, easily navigating terrain that would be difficult or too dangerous — for soldiers.
They arrive in one condition, and we improve them, Miami said. We adapt the controls to work better (in the face of Russia’s) electronic warfare so the connection doesnt cut off.”
Miamis 10-man team is just starting to incorporate the machines into their missions, mostly using them to deliver food and ammunition to soldiers near the front.
Just like remote-controlled, or first-person view, drones, the use of these vehicles will only grow, said a soldier in Miamis unit who goes by the call sign Akim and spoke on condition of anonymity.
When FPV drones first appeared, they werent popular, but those who pioneered them, (now) show (the best) results, said Akim.
An autonomous vehicle ‘doesn’t get tired’
Before sending a remote-controlled vehicle forward, Akim flies a drone along the planned route to check for obstacles or mines.
Operating from a cramped basement near Kostiantynivka, less than 10 kilometers from the front, Akim can hear the muffled thuds of aerial bombs, the sharp cracks of artillery and the buzzing of drones.
Kostiantynivka, once home to 67,000 people, is a largely deserted city on a shrinking patch of Ukrainian-held territory just west of Bakhmut. It is nearly encircled on three sides by Russian forces. Apartment blocks are scarred by strikes, smoke still rises from recent bombings, and the roads leading toward nearby Pokrovsk are littered with burned-out cars.
The aerial drone allows Akim to scout the city and routes without risking his life.
Every time a drone or a robot does something, it means one of our fighters doesnt have to, Akim said. On top of that, the machine doesnt get tired. It can carry as much as needed.
Akim works in tandem with another soldier operating the robotic vehicle with a joystick. The vehicle has no camera; instead, Akims drone feed provides its eyes.
On one recent mission, the team loaded it with 200 kilograms (440 pounds) of supplies ammunition, fuel, water and food and sent it several kilometers to drone operators closer to the front. The machine moved forward at about six kilometers per hour, delivered its cargo into a well-hidden position in the forest, and returned to base.
Bumps along the road
Because robotic vehicles move more slowly than cars or trucks, and usually across open ground, they are an easy target and this is one factor slowing their adoption.
Thats why we havent evacuated many wounded (on these vehicles),” said Miami. “Some refuse to leave because its dangerous.
There are also cost considerations, with the vehicles his platoon uses averaging roughly 400,000 hryvnias ($9,700). Thats not too expensive, but when three or four get destroyed in a week, the total adds up, Miami said.
To make them less vulnerable, Miami and his soldiers have tried welding grill-like cages onto the machines or attaching metallic rollers in front to detect mines. The war provides real-time feedback that is incorporated into newer models being built.
Hanna Arhirova, Associated Press
Vasilisa Stepanenko and Yehor Konovalov contributed to this report.
A recall has been issued for Kirkland Signature Ahi Tuna Wasabi Poke due to potential listeria contamination. The recalled item, sold in plastic clamshell to-go containers, was sold at Costco stores.
According to a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) press release, more than 3,300 pounds of the product has been recalled by Annasea Foods Group. Per the release, the product was recalled after green unions used in the item tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes. The affected product has a pack date of 9/18/2025 and a sell by date of 9/22/2025. No illnesses have been reported.
Per the release, 33 states sold the now-recalled ready-to-eat product. They are: Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Listeria can cause serious infections and is sometimes fatal, especially “in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems.” It said, “Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, Listeria infection can lead to serious pregnancy complications among pregnant women.”
The FDA has advised anyone who purchased the product to throw it away or to return it to Costco for a full refund. Customers with any concerns have been advised to call Western United Fresh Co. DBA Annasea Foods Group at (425) 558-7809, 7:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Pacific Time, Monday through Friday, or email info@annasea.com.The latest recall comes just days after Costco recalled its Kirkland Signature brand of Prosecco amid concerns about exploding bottles.
Every change starts with a grievance. Theres things people dont like and they want them to be different. At any given time in any organization, there are things that arent working as well as they should. Employee turnover is too high, sales are down, and customers are complaining. For whatever reason, things need to change.
Smart leaders know that they cant just stay mired in grievance. If youre only focusing on problems, youll get caught up in an endless to-do list. It is no longer enough to simply plan and direct action, we must inspire and empower belief and that means creating an aspirational vision that can form the basis of a shared purpose.
Yet you cant just jump to the vision all at once. In the beginning, the idea is flawed and unproven, the organization isnt ready for it, and it is bound to incur visceral resistance in some quarters. Early on, ideas need to be protected and nurtured until they begin to gain some traction. As I explained in Cascades, the best way to do that is with a Keystone Change.
1. Define the vision
A strategy is never created on an empty canvas. While we can make rational assessments about whether we want to pursue a strategy based on low costs, differentiation, or an attractive niche. We can, through investments and divestments, fill in missing pieces on a PowerPoint chart, but the fate of a strategy ultimately hinges on personality and ambition.
The success of Apple cant be separated from Steve Jobss ambition to weave technology and design into products that were insanely great. Southwests dominance in the travel industry is a direct consequence of Herb Kellehers mission of being THE low cost airline, which drove everything he did from the planes he bought to which routes he competed on.
Vision is inherently aspirational. It shouldnt be reduced to metrics or specific objectives. Martin Luther King Jr.s vision wasnt simply about voting rightsit was about creating a Beloved Community. Microsofts original mission was a computer on every desk and on every home, but when that was attained, it needed to shift to the broader vision to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
When we work with organizations in one of our ChangeOS workshops, we always start by getting the team focused on the initial grievanceor the problem to be solved. Then we ask participants to imagine waving a magic wand: what would the world look like if that problem were fully resolved? That picture is the vision.
Yet if your vision is sufficiently aspirational, you cant get there in just one step and thats where the Keystone Change comes in. A good Keystone Change has a clear and tangible goal, usually with a metric attached. It involves multiple stakeholders and paves the way for future change. Once you achieve a successful Keystone Change, youll be well on your way.
2. Start with a majority
One of the most common mistakes change leaders make is to try to start with a bang. They come up with a snappy slogan, create a sense of urgency and excitement, then set up a huge launch event to generate energy around the initiative, get off to a fast start, build momentum, and create a sense of inevitability around the initiative.
But that approach rarely worksand often backfires. Every new idea starts out weak and vulnerable. While a launch event may create excitement among some, its also likely to trigger resistance before the initiative has any chance to gain traction. Any time you set out to make an impact there will always be some who will work to undermine you in ways that are dishonest, underhanded, and deceptive.
So instead of trying to create and maintain the energy yourself, go to where the energy is. Find people who are already enthusiastic and want the initiative to work. Keystone Changes are done with allies. You should never have to convince anyone about a Keystone Change. The urge to persuade is a red flag. It means you either have the wrong change or the wrong people.
Thats why when we seek to bring about large-scale change, its important to start with a majority. Once you are in the minority you will get immediate pushback. The secret is that you get to choose where you start. It might be a small, local majority of, say, three people in a room of five. As long as supporters outnumber detractors, you can move forward and gain traction.
As I explained in Harvard Business Review, you dont need to convince everyone at once and you shouldnt try. Start with a core team thats already onboard.
3. Iterate towards a successful solution
One of the hardest parts of change is accepting that your ideas can only be validated going forward, never backward. You never know if you have the right idea until its tested in the real world and, even then, there could be some confounding factor you may be missing. The truth is that your initial idea is always wrong. Sometimes its off by a little and sometimes its off by a lot. But make no mistake, its always wrong.
Thats why it helps to take a Bayesian approach. Instead of clinging to the notion of a right idea, focus on making it less wrong over time. As Rita Gunther McGrath has put it, its no longer as important to learn to plan as it is to plan to learn. We need to be more iterative, see what works, and change course as needed.
This is also why its critical to start with a core team thats already on board. Theyll help you push through early setbacks and learn from inevitable failures. If you expect to iterate, then failure is just data. Your job is to collect enough of it to uncover the solution that truly moves things forward.
And once you get it right, you have something to build on. We know from decades of evidence that the tipping point for change is typically between 10% and 20% participation. Once you have a proven model, you can start building to that.
4. Scale with a co-optable resource
Traditional change management practices focus on communication and traininga holdover from an earlier age, when leaders had more cntrol and the goal was simply to inform and coordinate. Today, however, most change initiatives involve behaviorwhat people think and do every dayand that naturally triggers resistance.
To create genuine transformation, we need to get out of the business of selling ideas and into the business of selling success. Thats what a Keystone Changea clear and tangible goal, involving stakeholders that paves the way for future changeallows you to do. The next step is to design a Co-optable Resource that will help empower people to spread the idea themselves.
For example, in the ’80s and ’90s, Don Berwick pioneered quality practices in healthcare and founded the Institute for Healthcare Improvement to advance them. Despite clear results, adoption laggeduntil the 100,000 Lives Campaign equipped hospital allies with change kits and how-to guides. That broke the logjam, and quality practices began to take hold.
Thats the model for successfully implementing large-scale change: start with a core team of enthusiasts that will help you iterate and achieve a Keystone Change. Once youve gained some traction, help people spread the idea through peer networks by supplying them with a Co-optable Resource so that they can bring in others, who can bring in others still.
In the final analysis, transformational change is driven by small groups, loosely connected, but united by a shared purpose. It all starts with a Keystone Change.
Pfizer is fattening its drug portfolio by betting that more people will want to slim down. The New York drugmaker announced Monday that its acquiring Metsera, and its portfolio of four medications for obesity and cardiometabolic diseases, in a deal valued at as much as $7.3 billion.
In addition to potential future payments tied to specific clinical and regulatory milestones, Pfizer said it will acquire all outstanding shares of Metsera stock for $47.50 per share. Metsera shares closed at $33.32 on Friday and surged more than 60% on Monday to as high as $54.47 per share. New York-based Metsera emerged from stealth mode last year to take on the weight-loss market and completed its initial public offering earlier this year.
The acquisition, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors at both companies, will help Pfizer gain a foothold in the increasingly competitive market for weight-loss drugs. And it will help it compete with other drugmakers, including Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly.
The proposed acquisition of Metsera aligns with our focus on directing our investments to the most impactful opportunities and propels Pfizer into this key therapeutic area, Albert Bourla, chairman and CEO of Pfizer, said in a statement.
A $5 BILLION PIPELINE
Pfizer is banking on the best-in-class potential of Metseras pipeline of drugs, which could be a key driver of growth for its business.
David Risinger, an analyst at Leerink Partners, has projected that Metseras drug pipeline could generate more than $5 billion in combined peak sales, according to reporting by Reuters. And a likely series of drug launches beginning in the 20282029 time frame would accelerate Pfizers growth trajectory following the major loss of exclusivity, according to reporting by The Wall Street Journal.
THE OZEMPIC EFFECT
Since 2021, when Novo Nordisks Ozempic was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for weight management in adults with obesity, theres been a rush of new drugs that have come to market. The global market for obesity drugs is projected to reach $150 billion by 2035, according to Morgan Stanley Research.
But Pfizer has stumbled in its efforts to successfully bring a weight-loss medication to market.
The drugmaker announced in April that it discontinued development of a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) weight-loss pill called danuglipron after a trial patient experienced a potential drug-induced liver injury that resolved after discontinuation of the medication.
By broadening its portfolio in the weight-loss medication market, Pfizer also cushions itself from the likely decline in demand for vaccines. Last week, a Centers for Disease Control (CDC) panel voted to scrap its previous universal recommendation for annual COVID-19 vaccine shots for any American 6 months and older, instead leaving it up to individual decision-making. Pfizer partnered with BioNTech to make one of the two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.
The Pfizer-Metsear deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025.
