Eli Lilly agreed to buy Centessa Pharmaceuticals for about $6.3 billion up front, plus contingent value rights that could add roughly $1.5 billion tied to FDA approvals for Centessa’s orexin receptor 2 (OX2R) agonists. The deal expands Lilly’s neuroscience portfolio beyond its obesity franchise into sleep-wake regulation. Centessa’s lead candidate, cleminorexton (formerly ORX750), has shown what Centessa characterized as a potential best-in-class profile in Phase 2a trials across narcolepsy type 1, narcolepsy type 2, and idiopathic hypersomnia. Additional clinical-stage assets include ORX142 and ORX489, aimed at broader neurological and neuropsychiatric indications. Lilly will pay $38 per share for Centessa, representing an about 41% premium to the prior 30-day average trading price. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter, with investors reacting positively to the announcement.