Hims & Hers Health did its best impression of Grandpa Simpson entering and leaving a building in one continuous motion after locking eyes with the FDA Bart. The telehealth company announced on Thursday that it would sell a $49 compounded version of Wegovy’s weight loss pill, but on Saturday announced it would stop.

It comes down to compounds

Compounding pharmacies are allowed to customize drug formulations for patients, such as mixing semaglutide with vitamin B12, although such custom drugs are not FDA-approved.

And during official medication shortages, compounders can make and distribute versions that are essentially copies to meet demand:

• That’s how off-brand GLP-1 injectables proliferated in the market. The active ingredients of Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound entered shortages in 2022 due to their rising popularity.
• Those shortages ended in late 2024 and early 2025. Subsequently, the FDA ordered compounding pharmacies to stop making the copycats. But a legal gray area remains: the customization space.

Take a pill. Novo Nordisk launched an oral form of Wegovy last month. Its active ingredient is semaglutide, and it relies on Novo’s proprietary technology known as SNAC to be properly absorbed by the body.

After Hims & Hers announced its alternative pill, some industry-watchers wondered how the product would fare against Novo Nordisk’s drug patents. Morningstar analyst Karen Andersen told Reuters that it might be “a legal red ​line.”

Thumb on the scales: On Friday, the FDA released a statement name-checking Hims & Hers, saying it intended to “take decisive steps” against it and other compounding pharmacies using GLP-1 active ingredients to make alternatives to FDA-approved drugs, and warned that “legal action without further notice” might be headed their way.

On Saturday, Hims & Hers said it was discontinuing its $49 Wegovy alternative pill.

Zoom out: Times are tense in the weight loss drugs space. Novo and Eli Lilly want to protect their patent rights and ensure their good names don’t get sullied by ineffective knock-offs, and compounding pharmacies want to get in on the action by meeting the needs of price-sensitive consumers.—HVL

Seahawks, Bad Bunny were Super Bowl LX standouts. The Seattle Seahawks bested the New England Patriots in Santa Clara, 29–13, in a title game where the Pats didn’t get on the board until the fourth quarter. But Bad Bunny scored at halftime with a joyous show that celebrated his homeland of Puerto Rico. Special guests Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin joined in the performance. Bad Bunny’s first English words in the performance were “God Bless America,” after which he proceeded to name Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, and other countries of the Americas before finishing with the USA, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The final message of the halftime show appeared on a screen before the game resumed: “The only thing stronger than hate is love.” The night’s other big winner was Charlie Puth, who nailed the national anthem.

Japan’s snap elections hand major win to pro-US PM. Just three months into her tenure as Japan’s prime minister, Sanae Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party swept snap parliamentary elections she called “seeking the people’s trust” to pursue her economic vision. The LDP and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, won “overwhelming control” of the lower chamber of Parliament, and the ability to overrule the small upper house, according to the Wall Street Journal. Takaichi considers the results a mandate to increase defense spending and manufacturing in Japan, and to become the US’ key ally in Asia.

Washington Post CEO leaves, owner Bezos refocuses on “data.” On Saturday evening, WaPo CEO Will Lewis, who was tapped by Jeff Bezos to lead the outlet in 2023, said he was stepping down from his post days after the newspaper initiated mass layoffs of nearly one-third of staff. Washington Post’s CFO Jeff D’Onofrio was named acting CEO and publisher. Following Lewis’s departure, Bezos released his first public statement since the layoffs. It did not address the outgoing CEO, but said the Post had an “extraordinary opportunity,” and its “roadmap to success” would come from readers’ data telling it “what is valuable and where to focus.”—HVL

Like everyone in the elevator at the end of Willy Wonka, US-based Corning is riding glass to new heights. The 175-year-old company’s stock hit an all-time high on Friday and is up more than 130% over the past year because it’s a surprising AI winner.

Window to the future: Corning has long been an innovator, producing everything from Edison’s first light bulbs to Pyrex bakeware. Then, in 1970, the company’s researchers developed fiber-optic wire. But over time, that glass fiber product started to look like it needed Windex.

In 2018, Corning focused on making thinner, tougher glass cables that performed especially well in data centers. When the AI boom hit, the company was perfectly positioned to help build out the infrastructure:

• Late last month, Corning signed a $6 billion fiber-optic cable contract with Meta.
• The glassmaker expects other AI “hyperscalers” to follow suit.

Glass bubble? Corning was on a similar trajectory from 1997 to 2000, but when the dot-com bubble popped, the company lost more than 90% of its value. The company says it’s more diversified now. In August, Corning signed a $2.5 billion deal to manufacture all of the cover glass for iPhones and Apple Watches.—BC

It’s jobs report week (again): January jobs data was supposed to be released last week, but a short-lived government shutdown postponed the report until Wednesday. December’s data was weaker than expected, so analysts will be watching to see whether the labor market hit the gym with everybody else in January and got stronger. The government shutdown also delayed the release of the consumer price index (CPI) report by a couple of days, so we’ll have to wait until Friday to get an inflation check.

Another significant Meta case gets underway this week: For the second time in 2026, the Facebook and Instagram parent company will be in court today over allegations that its products harm children. New Mexico’s attorney general alleges that Meta’s social media apps expose children to exploitation by prioritizing engagement over safety. A Meta spokesperson said the trial will prove the company’s “longstanding commitment to supporting young people.” Meta also went to trial late last month in a separate California case alleging it tried to get young people addicted to its apps.

Love is in the air on Saturday: The Valentine’s Day poem you wrote for your partner may be priceless, but not everyone’s a wordsmith. Consumer spending on the holiday is expected to hit a record $29.1 billion this year, according to the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, with the most popular gifts being candy, greeting cards, and flowers (yawn—we’re partial to coffee).

Everything else:

• It’s still earnings season, so keep an eye out for results from Coca-Cola, CVS Health, and Spotify tomorrow, and Cisco, McDonald’s, and Shopify on Wednesday.
• Starting today, crypto enthusiasts will be discussing “the future of finance” at Bitcoin Investor Week in New York. Rule No. 1 of planning a bitcoin party: When the chips are down, buy the dip.
• Plenty of options hit movie theaters on Friday, including Wuthering Heights, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi. Or bring the kids to see the animated sports romp GOAT (not those kids).

A lot has changed since Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers won the first Super Bowl back in 1967, but only three fans remain who witnessed the game’s evolution in person. Octogenarians Tom Henschel, Don Crisman, and Gregory Eaton have been to all 60 Super Bowls.

In 1967, tickets cost $12. The University of Arizona and Grambling State marching bands played the halftime show. And about 24 million people watched it on TV.

This year, it cost thousands to get in, Bad Bunny played the halftime show, and more than 100 million viewers watched it at home. Super Bowl LX probably had more AI commercials than the first big game, too.—BC