The Boston hub, which Novo Nordisk said will be one of its largest outside Denmark, will be home to most of its US-based R&D activities, while also leveraging its presence at existing sites in Lexington, Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts.

Novo Nordisk anticipates adding more than 200 new jobs in the Boston area this year. More than 150 of these will be lab-based and clinical development personnel in Lexington and Watertown and involved in data science, biology or chemistry research and ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) research and clinical development.  

“The Boston area is the leading center of biopharmaceutical innovation in the US,” said Marcus Schindler, executive vice president for research & early development and chief scientific officer. “With today’s announcement, we are committing to further expansion and to having a major life sciences presence in the Boston area, to support pipeline expansion into new modalities, with the ultimate goal of delivering new innovative medicines to people living with chronic diseases.” 

Consequently, Novo Nordisk will close the R&D facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, and transfer its lab-based discovery activities from Seattle, Washington, to other locations in its global network. The closure is expected to result in the loss of approximately 20 jobs in Indianapolis and about 80 positions in Seattle, where the company said it will now focus on digital therapy, data science and artificial intelligence.

In 2022, Novo Nordisk began to convert a 100,000 ft² space, which includes a new lab, adjacent to its existing facilities in Lexington. The space will house its RNAi R&D and oral formulation units, while more than 80,000 ft² of existing lab and office space will be available for use by R&D groups co-locating in Lexington.

The drugmaker’s R&D site dedicated to manufacturing of stem cells and stem cell-based therapies will continue to be based in Fremont, California. 

Author: Elaine Burridge, Freelance Journalist