WeightWatchers recently announced a $132 million deal to acquire telehealth company Sequence and enter the prescription drug space (think: GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic). It begs the question: why is a company built on personal accountability facilitating medical interventions? We ask our guest, WeightWatchers CEO Sima Sistani. Before and after the int ... Show More
Mar 5
Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug
Friction gets an bad rap, according Jennifer Vail. As a tribologist, she studies interacting surfaces in relative motion, and she’s worked on everything from aerospace materials to syringes to dog food. Her new book, Friction: A Biography, explores the science of rubbing surfaces ... Show More
53m 53s
Mar 2
Gavin Newsom on His Memoir, Trump, and Plans for 2028
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is the current front runner on the list of Democrats eyeing a 2028 White House run. While he hasn’t made his presidential ambitions official, he has a new memoir out, called “Young Man in A Hurry.” And his book tour conveniently has him passing throug ... Show More
1h 13m
Feb 2024
The Big Business Behind Weight Loss Drugs
It’s become a multibillion-dollar business: weight loss drugs. Demand is high, as is the cost. How did medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound become so popular and so profitable? And what kind of impact might they have on the future of food and healthcare? Dr. Sa ... Show More
33m 54s
Oct 2023
Semaglutide: Decoding the hype around the weight loss wonder drug
<p>From Elon Musk to several Hollywood celebrities, the weight loss wonder drug, semaglutide, is taking the world by storm. What was an unintended consequence of a diabetes control med, the emergence of significant weight loss has raised the expectation of the wonder drug becomin ... Show More
32m 7s