It does say it in those two later sentences you quoted: But unlike those three medications, Eli Lilly’s pill is not a peptide medication. But so-called small

It does say it in those two later sentences you quoted: But unlike those three medications, Eli Lilly’s pill is not a peptide medication. But so-called small molecule pills [orforglipron] will at least be easier for Eli Lilly to manufacture than injections. In medicinal chemistry parlance, a "small molecule drug" normally means one that can be synthesized by flasks-and-beakers organic chemistry of the sort one learns in an organic synthesis class. (And it has a lower molecular weight than peptide or biologic drugs, hence the name.) Peptide drugs are synthesized by a specialized kind of organic chemistry that mimics aspects of protein synthesis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peptide_synthesis https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peptide_synthesis The industrially relevant thing is that small molecule drugs typically cost less to produce, once the molecule goes into full scale production. Lower cost is an advantage for the first manufacturer while the drug is under patent and it's an advantage for buyers once the drug's patent exclusivity expires.