Eli Lilly agreed to acquire Ventyx Biosciences for approximately $1.2 billion in cash to add oral NLRP3 inhibitors to its pipeline. Lilly said the acquisition strengthens its inflammation and neurodegeneration strategy, bringing programs in cardiometabolic, Parkinson’s and other inflammation-associated indications into its portfolio. Ventyx’s lead candidate showed biomarker and early clinical signals in mid-stage studies, prompting Lilly to pay a 62% premium. Lilly’s statement framed the deal as an acceleration of its expansion plans in neuroscience and immunology. Ventyx executives and investors backed the transaction as a path to scale late-stage development and commercialization. The deal underscores Big Pharma’s continued appetite for differentiated oral immunomodulators and represents another example of strategic M&A as companies shore up pipelines against patent cliffs and diversify modality exposure.