Oct 1 (Reuters) - Kailera Therapeutics, a new venture

looking to secure a foothold in the booming market for

anti-obesity therapies, launched on Tuesday with $400 million in

funding from four investors.

The startup will be headed by CEO Ron Renaud, who previously

led Cerevel Therapeutics - a developer of drugs for neurological

conditions - and oversaw its acquisition by AbbVie ( ABBV ) in

an $8.7 billion deal last year.

Several startups are looking to grab a slice of the market

for weight-loss drugs, which, according to some estimates, could

exceed $150 billion by early 2030s.

Buoyed by the massive popularity of Eli Lilly's ( LLY )

Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, investors are

also pouring money into smaller companies developing obesity

treatments.

Shares of BioAge Labs ( BIOA ), a weight-loss drug developer

that debuted last week, are trading nearly 16% above their

initial public offering price.

"In this period of rapid innovation in the metabolic space,

I believe that Kailera is poised to make an impact beyond the

current market leaders," Renaud said in a statement.

The company's fundraise is much bigger than typical Series A

funding rounds. The median size for early-stage venture capital

deals was $5.4 million, as of June 30, according to PitchBook.

Investment firms Atlas Venture, Bain Capital Life Sciences

and RTW Investments co-led Kailera's round. Lyra Capital also

participated.

Kailera is developing several injectable and oral therapies

for weight management. Its most advanced candidate, KAI-9531,

has demonstrated "compelling results" in mid-stage trials in

obesity and type 2 diabetes in China, the company said.

John Milligan, former CEO of biopharma firm Gilead Sciences ( GILD )

, has also joined Kailera as chair of the board.