Gray-market Chinese peptides gain traction among Silicon Valley tech workers

Gray-market peptides, often called "Chinese peptides," have spread through parts of Silicon Valley’s tech community, showing up at hacker houses, start-up offices and themed "peptide raves." Enthusiasts in their 20s and 30s say they use the drugs for weight loss, productivity, fitness and other forms of self-optimization.

Peptides are short chains of amino acids; the P in GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy is a peptide. Outside the approved GLP-1s, a wider array of unproven peptides — including BPC-157, TB-500, oxytocin, epitalon and retatrutide — are being bought off-market. U.S. customs data show imports of hormone and peptide compounds from China rose to $328 million in the first three quarters of 2025, from $164 million in the same period of 2024.

The Food and Drug Administration has warned that many peptides pose "serious safety risks," has barred pharmacies from compounding them and says enforcement is uneven; most doctors advise against personal use, and Dr. Eric Topol called it "unfounded and reckless." Users buy powders directly from Chinese factories or through U.S.

intermediaries; supplies often arrive labeled "for research use only," then are mixed with sterile water and injected. Off‑market equivalents can cost about one-fifth of prescription GLP-1 prices, and a San Francisco supplier said anonymously that the typical customer is not a wealthy executive.

Key Topics

Business, Chinese Peptides, Silicon Valley, Retatrutide, San Francisco, Fda