Tennis champion Serena Williams said she has lost 31 pounds after nearly a year on a GLP-1 weight-loss medication and is now the celebrity ambassador for Ro, the direct-to-consumer telehealth company that has prescribed the drugs since 2023. The multi-year partnership launched 21 Aug 2025 aims to normalize the use of GLP-1 therapies, which curb appetite by mimicking a gut hormone. Williams told NBC’s “Today” that she turned to the medication after traditional diet and exercise failed to return her to a healthy weight following the births of her daughters. She cited family diabetes risk and knee problems as additional reasons for seeking medical help, stressing that the drugs are not “shortcuts” but part of a broader health plan. Ro, backed by Williams’s husband and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, joins a growing number of telehealth providers capitalizing on surging demand for GLP-1s such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro. Williams adds her name to a roster of high-profile users—including Oprah Winfrey and Charles Barkley—whose endorsements are pushing the once-niche treatments firmly into the mainstream.