Wake-up haul: an Ozempic moment for the brain

Key takeaways

Peptides like orexins are a hot area of pharmaceutical research with potential applications beyond sleep disorders, possibly rivaling GLP medicines in scope.
Japan's startup ecosystem faces significant hurdles—mainly lack of risk capital, cultural attitudes, and premature IPOs—but recent reforms show promise for growth.
Procrastination has serious consequences on earnings, health, and mental well-being; strategies like mental contrasting and exercise can help reduce it, though no specific medication exists yet.

Summary

Peptides and the Next Big Pharma Breakthroughs

This section explores the burgeoning interest in peptides, particularly orexins, within the pharmaceutical industry. Orexins are neuropeptides involved in regulating sleep and wakefulness, with recent developments focusing on orexin agonists for treating sleep disorders like narcolepsy. The discussion highlights recent drug approvals, research origins, and potential beyond sleep regulation, including applications for depression, ADHD, and addiction. Industry giants like Eli Lilly and biotech firms are heavily investing in this promising field, which could rival the success of GLP-based medicines.

Japan's Startup Ecosystem and Its Challenges

This segment analyzes the decline of Japan's post-war innovation boom, emphasizing its current struggles to produce unicorn startups and the factors behind this slowdown. Key challenges include limited venture capital funding, cultural perceptions of entrepreneurship, and the tendency for startups to go public too early, which hampers long-term growth. The discussion covers recent governmental efforts and stock exchange reforms aimed at rejuvenating the ecosystem, along with the potential in areas like AI and the importance of scaling to create globally competitive decacorns.

The Rising Issue of Procrastination and Its Implications

The final part examines how procrastination affects income, health, and mental well-being. Studies reveal significant financial losses, increased health risks, and mental health decline associated with delaying tasks. The discussion discusses underlying causes, such as the influence of smartphones, working from home, and sleep deprivation, as well as strategies to combat procrastination, including mental contrasting, physical exercise, and dietary considerations. Although no medications currently target procrastination, promising research with stimulants like lisdexamfetamine offers hope for future treatments.

Show notes

Orexins are peptides involved in the body’s sleep-wake system—and are big pharma’s next big thing. Like multi-purpose GLPs, they may have far more uses than just regulating shuteye. We ask why Japan’s post-war innovation boom petered out, and what must be done to breed more unicorns. And why procrastination seems to be on the rise, and how to beat it.

Guests and host:

Shailesh Chitnis, global business correspondent
Ethan Wu, Asia business and finance editor
Benjamin Sutherland, science writer
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

orexins, peptides, sleep disorders, pharmaceuticals
Japan, innovation, startups
procrastination

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