Mark Litton, Ph.D., is the President and CEO of Athira Pharma, a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing small molecules to restore neuronal health and slow neurodegeneration for those suffering from Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and more. Mark talks about being a CEO for the first time and what he’s learned. He discusses how the biotech ecosystem and its ability to raise capital for companies has changed over the last couple of years and how that’s informing how he’s operating at Athira. He talks about fundraising strategy and how he communicates with team members who perhaps haven’t been involved in fundraising cycles and value creation at biotech before. Finally, he shares how he thinks about business development and his approach to partnerships.

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Ram Aiyar, Ph.D., MBA, is the President & CEO of Korro Bio. Korro Bio harnesses the body’s natural RNA editing machinery to make precise, single-base RNA edits to modulate protein function, addressing the medical needs of patients. Having founded several companies, Ram talks about some of the non-obvious differences in terms of being senior leadership and founder of a company versus being CEO. He discusses his approach to fundraising and how it’s changed over time. He talks about the field of RNA editing, the evolution of that space, and where he sees it heading long term. Finally, he discusses where the company is from a pipeline building perspective and how he thinks about indication selection.

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Michelle Werner is the CEO of Alltrna and the CEO/Partner at Flagship Pioneering. Alltrna is the world’s first tRNA platform company to decipher tRNA biology and pioneer tRNA therapeutics to treat thousands of diseases. Flagship Pioneering conceives, creates, resources, and develops first-in-category bioplatform companies to transform human health and sustainability. Michelle discusses her 20+ year career in drug development and the importance of bringing new innovations to people who need them. She talks about her motivations behind going to business school in London and why she felt she needed to supplement her science and math education with the fundamentals of business in order to transition her career to commercial from R&D. She discusses tRNA as a treatment modality and its potential to be a platform technology. Finally, she shares where the company is from a development perspective and fundraising announcements.

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Bernard Coulie is the President and CEO of Pliant Therapeutics, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel therapeutics that seek to halt progression of fibrotic diseases — ultimately preserving organ function. Bernard discusses the arc of his career and shares his perspective on the European biotech ecosystem compared to the United States, and how that’s changed over the last 10 years. He talks about the importance of having access to lots of capital in the early days of starting a company. He discusses fibrotic disease, the high medical need to treat it, and the indications they are pursuing. Finally, he discusses the challenges of focusing on multiple therapeutic areas and the advice he would give to others.

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Mahesh Karande is the President and CEO of Omega Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of a new class of programmable epigenomic mRNA medicines for unprecedented control of gene regulation and cellular function. Through its OMEGA platform, the company engineers mRNA therapeutics called Omega Epigenomic Controllers™ (OECs), with the goal of treating or curing a broad range of diseases. Mahesh discusses his early years in engineering and consulting before moving into the pharmaceutical industry. He talks about the transition from big pharma to biotech and the lessons he learned from his days in pharma. He discusses being a CEO and how he approaches the role differently the second time around. He talks about company culture and leadership at Omega and how he motivates team members in such a fast-paced environment. Finally, he dives into programmable approaches to biology, what it really means, and the intersection of biology and technology.

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Joseph Payne is the Founder, President and CEO of Arcturus Therapeutics, a global late-stage clinical messenger RNA medicines and vaccines company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapeutics for rare diseases and vaccines. Joseph discusses the founding story behind Arcturus and the impetus behind starting his own company. He talks about fundraising and what he would do differently now, and shares his perspective on the dynamic between entrepreneurs and VCs. He shares his thoughts on the evolution of messenger RNA over the last decade, the challenges the modality has faced and how we've overcome some of those challenges. Finally, he dives into the work Arcturus is pursuing now, where they are from a development perspective, and recent partnerships.

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Robert Blum and Fady Malik are the President & CEO and EVP, Research and Development, respectively, of Cytokinetics, ​​a late-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing potential medicines that impact the mechanics of muscle and may improve the lives of people living with debilitating diseases. Robert and Fady discuss how they have developed a company culture that embraces some of the learnings that come along with failure and the advice they would provide other leaders. They talk about how the current capital market environment shapes the way the company is operating. They also discuss the cardiovascular market and overall landscape, where Cytokinetics is from a development perspective, and some upcoming milestones. Finally, they each share a piece of advice they wish they could provide to their younger selves knowing what they now know.

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James McArthur is the CEO of PepGen, a biotech company creating a pipeline of disease-modifying therapeutics with the potential to safely and effectively target the root cause of serious genetic diseases, with an initial focus on neuromuscular diseases. James talks about his experience on the venture capital side and how that has influenced his management style and overall approach to company building. He shares his advice to others who may be interested in pursuing a leadership role at their company. He discusses drug development in the rare disease space and what motivates him and his team. Finally, he talks about some of the challenges involved in running a rare disease company.

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Paul Lammers, M.D., is the CEO of Triumvira Immunologics, a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company developing unique, targeted autologous and allogeneic T cell therapeutics that co-opt the natural biology of T cells to treat a broad range of patients with cancer. A Dutch-trained biologist and physician, Paul talks about starting his career in pharma and some of the commonalities between operating in pharma and biotech. He talks about being a CEO and how his approach to running a company has evolved over the years. He discusses the uncertainty in the market and how that’s informing how the company is approaching development activities. He dives into the fundamental challenges and opportunities within cell therapy and the work Triumvira is doing to treat cancer.

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Andrew Scharenberg is the Co-founder and CEO of Umoja Biopharma, a company pioneering the future of immunotherapy by reprogramming T cells in vivo. Umoja’s groundbreaking integrated platform therapeutics reprogram the immune system in the patient’s body to target cancer cells and generate lasting remissions. Andrew talks about the CAR T-cell therapy space, the opportunities he sees, and how he sees the space evolving over the next two decades. He discusses the work that his team is pursuing at Umoja to develop a new approach to cancer therapy that retools a patient’s immune system in vivo, enhancing the body’s natural capacity to fight cancer, and where the company is from a development perspective. He also talks about how he thinks about indication selection, particularly in the early stages of biotech. Finally, he shares how the pandemic impacted his approach to team building and his thoughts on distributed teams.

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Theresa Heah, M.D., is the CEO of Intergalactic Therapeutics. Intergalactic is overcoming the limitations of viral-based gene therapy and developing a best-in-class non-viral alternative. Intergalactic uses synthetic biology and engineered gene circuits to make covalently closed and circular DNA (“C3DNA”) molecules designed to provide a potentially safer and more effective solution for patients. Theresa has over two decades of global drug development and commercial experience. She talks about her choice to focus in ophthalmology, where ophthalmology as a therapeutic area is from a drug development perspective, and some of the opportunities she sees ahead for this space. She discusses the importance of having mentors and the emotional aspects of being a CEO. Finally, she dives into the work Intergalactic is doing, where they are from a company building perspective, and how she thinks about driving more access and scale for gene therapies given the high cost for development and scalability.

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