Dr. Carla Bauer is a business development professional who leads Oncology Search and Evaluation for the Boston Hub of Merck & Co. Before moving into business development, Carla spent several years developing programs within the Respiratory Disease Area at the Novartis Institutes of BioMedical Research, where she was fortunate to contribute to the Investigational New Drug application of six novel assets that progressed into clinical trials. Carla later held multiple roles across business development at Novartis, spanning alliance management, transactions, and search and evaluation. With a passion for collaborating with diverse teams and fostering impactful partnerships, Carla is always eager to share candid perspectives on how to best foster relationships that lead to closing a future business development deal.

Jamil joined SV in 2024 as a Partner on the Biotech team and currently sits on the board of AdvanCell. Jamil is a life science investor and company builder focused on advancing break-through science into transformational medicines for patients. Prior to joining SV, Jamil was a Partner at 5AM Ventures, a US-based life sciences venture fund, where he was responsible for investing in biotech companies across therapeutic areas and modalities and ranging from company creation to later, clinical-stage companies. Over his career, Jamil has been involved in over twenty private financings, seven public offerings, and three M&A transactions. He has operated in six venture-backed startups and contributed to the advancement of multiple FDA approved products. Select investments and operating roles include Akouos (NASDAQ: AKUS, acquired by Eli Lilly), Aprea (NASDAQ: APRE), Kinaset Therapeutics, Nido Biosciences, RallyBio (NASDAQ: RLYB), Sage Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SAGE), Transave Inhalation Therapeutics (merged with Insmed) and several stealth biotech startups. Jamil brings a wealth of entrepreneurial and operational expertise from his time building companies like Sage Therapeutics and Nido Biosciences.

Christine Brennan, Ph.D. has over 20 years in the life-science industry including business development, corporate strategy, and venture investment. She is currently Managing Director at Vertex Ventures HC (VVHC), an independent venture fund investing in preclinical to clinical stage biotechnology companies and late clinical or early commercialization stage medtech companies. She is board director for Boundless Bio [NASDAQ:BOLD] and Redona Therapeutics as well as board observer for Epirium Bio and Matchpoint Therapeutics. She previously served as board observer for Eyebiotech Ltd [acquired by Merck for $3B] and Septerna, Inc. [NASDAQ:SEPN]. Prior to VVHC, she was a Partner at MRL Ventures Fund from 2017-2021 where she was on the boards of Alector, Inc. [NASDAQ:ALEC], Entrada Therapeutics [NASDAQ:TRDA], Tallac Therapeutics and Therini Bio. She was also an observer on the boards of Invivyd Therapeutics [NASDAQ:IVVD], LifeMine Therapeutics, PAQ Therapeutics and Translate Bio [NASDAQ:TBIO]. Prior to MRL Ventures Fund, she was Principal at the Novartis Venture Fund from 2013-2017 where she was on the board of Altimmune [NASDAQ:ALT] and an observer on the boards of several companies including lnnocrin Pharmaceuticals, ROX Medical and Viamet Pharmaceuticals. Prior to Novartis Venture Fund, she was Chief Business Officer at Vitae Pharmaceuticals from 2010-2013. She also held positions in business development and marketing at small biopharmaceutical and large pharmaceutical companies. Christine received her Ph.D. in neuroscience from Dartmouth Medical School and was a post-doctoral fellow in developmental neurobiology at the National Institutes of Health.

Polly leads Oncology business development activities, including search and evaluation, transactions and alliance management. She also leads the development and execution of a fully integrated Oncology R&D BD strategy. Within this role, Polly has overseen the in-licensing of multiple small and large molecules, collaboration agreements, as well as the acquisitions of Gracell Biotechnologies and Fusion Pharmaceuticals, bringing in new therapeutics and complementary capabilities that are pivotal for advancing AstraZeneca’s Oncology strategy. Polly is a highly experienced leader with 19 years’ experience in the industry, focussed on Oncology across business development, strategy, analytics and finance. With deep disease expertise and strong leadership skills, she previously held roles as VP Head of Strategy, where she led a team of 80+ people, and Head of Tumour Strategy for the Oncology Business Unit at AstraZeneca. After earning a bachelor’s degree in maths and physics from the University of Bristol, Polly qualified as a Chartered Management Accountant while working as a Business Analyst in finance at AstraZeneca. She has studied and worked in the UK, France and USA, and currently resides in Boston, MA.

Dr. Ildiko Csiki, MD, PhD is Head of External Innovation for Oncology Early Development at Pfizer, where she leads external innovation, business development strategy and AI-enabled transformation initiatives across the oncology early development portfolio. An oncologist by training, Dr. Csiki brings more than 20 years of experience spanning academic medicine, biotechnology, drug development, and oncology innovation. Prior to joining Pfizer, she served as Chief Medical Officer of Geneos Therapeutics, a clinical-stage company developing personalized cancer immunotherapies. Before Geneos, she held executive leadership roles including Chief Commercial R&D Officer at City of Hope and Chief Medical Officer at Sensei Biotherapeutics. Dr Csiki started her career as a physician-scientist at the Univ of Pennsylvania, Perelman Cancer Center. At Pfizer, Dr. Csiki is responsible for identifying and evaluating novel oncology opportunities, building strategic external partnerships, and accelerating the application of artificial intelligence to drug discovery, clinical development, and business development decision-making. She is particularly focused on emerging oncology platforms, innovative therapeutic modalities, and leveraging AI to improve how new cancer medicines are discovered and developed.

Stephen Curtis, PhD, is Senior Director of New Ventures at BrightEdge, the innovation and impact investing arm of the American Cancer Society (ACS). In this role, Steve leads strategic initiatives across BrightEdge’s innovation acceleration programs — supporting emerging oncology-focused entrepreneurs — and its core impact investing strategy of backing mission-aligned healthcare startups that can deliver both financial returns and patient-centric impact. He brings nearly two decades of experience spanning oncology research, biotech operations, business development, company creation, and venture capital. Before joining BrightEdge, Steve was Managing Director of MPM Capital’s Oncology Innovations Fund — a hybrid venture/philanthropy investment collaboration with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute — through which he launched and invested in multiple biotech companies. Previously, he was Senior Director of Business Development at Eli Lilly and Company, overseeing several of Lilly’s limited partnership relationships with top-tier venture funds, direct strategic investments in biotech companies, and shared-risk collaborations. Earlier in his career, he co-led the Bioscience Ventures group at 2M Companies, the Dallas-based family office of Morton H. Meyerson, and led Technology Evaluation and In-Licensing at Reata Pharmaceuticals. Steve is a Kauffman Fellow and former co-chair of the Life Sciences and Healthcare Special Interest Group. He currently volunteers on the Follicular Lymphoma Foundation’s Allocation Advisory Board, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s IBD Ventures Advisory Committee, and the Milken Institute’s FasterCures TRAIN initiative. He earned his PhD from Harvard Medical School and holds dual Bachelor of Science degrees in Biological Sciences and in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University.

Ann is a General Partner at Engine Ventures. She serves as a Board Member for Vaxess Technologies, Droplet Biosciences, Matrisome Bio, Cellino Bio, Predicta Biosciences, and Bexorg. Before joining Engine Ventures, Ann was at Sanofi where she held senior roles in business development and strategic venture investment. Prior to Sanofi, she was at Flagship Pioneering. Ann started her career in R&D at 3M Company, working across fields of materials, biology and engineering. Ann holds an MBA from Harvard and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from MIT. She serves as a Key Advisory Board member of Harvard’s Blavatnik Fellowship in Life Science Entrepreneurship, she is a member of Investment Advisory Committee for Prime Coalition and she serves on the Board of Directors of Nucleate.

Anna French, D.Phil., joined Qiming US in 2017 from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where she was a healthcare management consultant advising leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies on their strategy and operations, with a focus in advanced therapies. Previously, she led a global industry-academic consortium centered on cell therapy commercialization, the Centre for the Advancement of Sustainable Medical Innovation (CASMI)’s Translational Stem Cell Consortium, a partnership between Oxford University and University College London. Anna is a Managing Partner with the fund and currently serves on the boards of Umoja Biopharma, Empirico Inc., Auron Therapeutics, Entact Bio, and several stealth company incubations. She led Qiming’s investment in Cadent Therapeutics (acquired by Novartis) and Jasper Therapeutics (NASDAQ:JSPR). Anna earned a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford, UK, where her research focused on the hematological differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. She has authored over 20 publications in the field of stem cell research. Anna received her BSc in Biochemistry with first class honors from the University of Bristol.

Dr. Brian Goodman has spent the past decade as an entrepreneur and investor in biotech. Before joining Vida, he was a Partner at MPM BioImpact and served on the investment committee of the BioVentures Fund where he focused on company creation as well as traditional venture investments. Dr. Goodman is a co-founder of Aktis Oncology (and currently serves as an Advisor to the company) and ReNAgade Therapeutics (acquired by Orna Therapeutics). He served on the board of directors of Orna Therapeutics, Seawolf Therapeutics, and Antiva Biosciences. Dr. Goodman has played key leadership roles at portfolio companies during the early stages of development, including leading Business Development at Orna and ReNAgade and serving as Chief Operations Officer and Chief Business Officer at Aktis Oncology. Prior to joining MPM BioImpact, he cofounded Evelo Biosciences (IPO), led the innovation and technology team there, and was a Senior Associate at Flagship Pioneering. He has worked across a diverse span of science, drug discovery and development including RNA medicines, nonviral nucleic acid delivery, radiopharmaceuticals, the microbiome, and extracellular vesicles and is an inventor on multiple patents. He holds a PhD in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology from Harvard Medical School, and BS and BA degrees in biochemistry and economics, respectively, from Brandeis University.

David Greenwald, PhD, is a Managing Director on the Public Structured Finance team. Dr. Greenwald joined the Firm in 2018 as Vice President, Business Development before transitioning to his current role in 2025. Prior to joining Deerfield, Dr. Greenwald was the Director of Business Development at Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures. He was a co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Relay Technology Management, Inc. and a co-inventor of the Relay Innovation Engine software platform. After Relay was acquired by Decision Resources Group, Dr. Greenwald served as the Director of Client Solutions at Decision Resources Group. Before that, he was an Associate Investigator at the Naval Medical Research Center in Silver Spring, MD, where he worked on developing diagnostic devices for dengue fever. Dr. Greenwald was a Howard Hughes Medical Institute research fellow while earning a BS in Cellular Biology and Molecular Genetics from the University of Maryland, College Park and earned his PhD in Genetics from Tufts University.

Luba Greenwood is a distinguished executive, investor, and company builder with over 20 years of experience in the healthcare and tech sectors. Luba has served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board of Gallop Oncology and Kojin Therapeutics. She was previously the Managing Partner of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute Venture Fund, Binney Street Capital (BSC), which she has founded, investing and building companies across therapeutics, diagnostics, and digital sectors. She has also served as a lecturer at Harvard University in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Ms. Greenwood has extensive board experience globally and serves on public and private boards, across multiple industries, including healthcare and tech, and has successfully contributed to the growth and profitability of numerous organizations, bringing her operational, industry, and financing expertise. She has a proven track record of building world-class teams and companies, building SABs with renown scientists and industry leaders, driving digital transformation and artificial intelligence initiatives, guiding companies through mergers & acquisitions, complex business development transactions, financing, and organizational change and scaling. With a strong understanding of board dynamics and corporate governance best practices, and as a former lawyer, she has also guided organizations through compliance, activist actions, and human resources challenges. She has served as Chair of the board as well as on the Compensation, Audit, and Nomination committees of a number of companies including In8Bio (INAB), BenchSci, Swiss-based Stalicla, Abcam (Abcam), where she has spearheaded the sale to Danaher (DHR), and non-profit, Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MassBio). Ms. Greenwood has previously served in leadership roles at Google Life Sciences (Verily) and as Vice President of Global Business Development and Mergers & Acquisitions at Roche, where she also led diagnostics BD and established and led the East Coast Innovation Hub. Luba has led $5B+ in M&A, BD deals, and investments across multiple therapeutic areas, diagnostics, life sciences, and tech sectors globally. She has also co-founded and advised biotech and digital health companies in the immunotherapy, AI/ML, women's health, and microbiome space, including Luca Biologics. Her invaluable contributions to the healthcare industry have earned her recognition as a thought leader and a trusted advisor to CEOs of leading academic centers worldwide, including the Dana Farber Institute and Wyss Center for Bio and Neuroengineering in Geneva. She is a Thought Leader for the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) Catalyst and serves on Investor Committee for the National Cancer Institute. With a background as a former lawyer at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr and expertise in regulatory, policy, and intellectual property matters, Ms. Greenwood brings a unique perspective to the table. Her commitment to advocating for women in science and technology has garnered several awards and honors, including the Science Club for Girls Catalyst Award.

Jason currently serves as Managing Director of Sanofi Ventures. Prior to Sanofi, Jason was the Director of Corporate Development at Translate Bio (fka RaNA Therapeutics), a company co-founded by his previous firm Atlas Venture. While at Atlas, Jason was an Associate in the Life Sciences group. Previously, he was a Flagship Ventures Entrepreneurial Fellow, and consulted for the technology transfer company at the University of Cambridge while performing his doctoral research. Before his time at Cambridge, Jason was an analyst at JSB Partners LP, an investment banking firm, focusing on advisory and business development activities in the life sciences space.

Helen has two decades of experience in building fully integrated biopharmaceutical companies that have brought transformative medicines to patients with cancer and rare diseases. At Parabilis, she leads corporate growth strategy, business development and portfolio management, and oversees corporate communications, alliance management and new product planning. Helen most recently served as Chief Business Officer of Blueprint Medicines. She joined Blueprint Medicines in 2018 and, throughout her tenure, was responsible for driving the company’s corporate strategy and leading business development, alliance management, portfolio leadership and new product planning. She also served as Chair of the Portfolio Management Team, accountable for the company’s portfolio strategy. Prior to joining Blueprint Medicines, Helen served as Vice President and Head of Corporate Development at TCR2 Therapeutics where she led portfolio strategy, business development and investor and public relations, culminating in the closing of a $125M Series B crossover financing. Prior to TCR2 Therapeutics, Helen was Director, Business Development and Operations at Agios Pharmaceuticals where she played a broad role in company building during her six-year tenure having led the business development licensing function, supported the company’s IPO and built its Rare Genetic Disorders and Immuno-Oncology franchises. Previously, Helen was a management consultant at L.E.K. Consulting, leading engagements from both Boston and Shanghai offices. She holds a PhD in Cell Biology from Yale University and a BS in Biochemistry from University of California, Los Angeles.

Philina is a seasoned biopharmaceutical executive with more than 20 years of experience and a proven track record of leading cross-functional teams to successfully develop and commercialize innovative therapies in oncology. Before joining AdvanCell, Dr. Lee served as Chief Commercial Officer at Blueprint Medicines (acquired by Sanofi). She was instrumental in shaping the company’s strategy and building its commercial infrastructure in oncology and mast cell disorders. Earlier in her career, she held senior roles at Algeta ASA, where she helped build the organization that successfully launched the first and only approved alpha therapy, Xofigo®, in collaboration with Bayer AG. She has also held leadership positions at Sanofi and Genzyme. Dr. Lee also served on the Board of Directors of radiopharmaceutical company Fusion Pharmaceuticals, prior to its acquisition by AstraZeneca. She holds a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Alberta and a PhD in Cell Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

James Li is a Venture Partner at Frazier Life Sciences, where he focuses on venture creation and cross-border biotech innovation. He also serves as Chairman of AirNexis Therapeutics, a respiratory company he co-founded through the in-licensing of a PDE3/4 dual inhibitor. Previously, Dr. Li co-founded and served as CEO of JW Therapeutics, where he built a fully integrated cell therapy company and led the development and launch of China's first domestically developed CAR-T therapy. During his tenure, he raised more than $520 million in private and public financing and led the company's successful IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2020. Earlier in his career, Dr. Li held leadership roles at Amgen and Merck & Co., and was a Partner at Kleiner Perkins, where he focused on life sciences investing. Dr. Li holds an M.D. from Shanghai Medical University and an M.S. in Microbiology from the University of Montana.

Dr. Jay Mei is the Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Antengene. He has nearly 30 years of global experience in the clinical research and development of oncology therapeutics and has successfully led or contributed to the development of multiple oncology drugs throughout his career. Prior to founding Antengene in 2017, Dr. Mei held key global clinical development roles at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, Novartis Oncology and Celgene, now part of Bristol Myers Squibb. At Celgene, he was one of the leading members involved in the clinical development of several major oncology therapies, including REVLIMID®, one of the world’s best-selling oncology drugs, as well as POMALYST® and IDHIFA®, a first-in-class therapy for acute myeloid leukemia. Before joining the biopharmaceutical industry, Dr. Mei spent nearly eight years conducting cancer research at the National Cancer Institute of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, following his medical and doctoral training. He has authored more than 70 publications and is the co-inventor of multiple patents.

Irena Melnikova, Ph.D. is a Partner at Pfizer Ventures. She is an accomplished biopharma and finance executive with over 25 years of experience in equity financings in both public and private markets, corporate strategy, business development, and operations. She currently serves as a Board Director of Artios Pharma, CellCentric, Crossbow Therapeutics, Enodia Therapeutics, Flare Therapeutics, Levicept, Oblenio Bio, Priovant Therapeutics and was a Director of Telavant Holdings (acquired by Roche for $7.1 billion). Prior to Pfizer Ventures, Dr. Melnikova served as the Chief Financial Officer at Umoja Biopharma where she was a senior member of the executive team responsible for all aspects of financial strategy and operations of the company. Prior to Umoja, Dr. Melnikova was a Managing Director, Biopharma Investment Banking at Leerink Partners, where she provided critical advice to biopharma companies and their boards on equity financing strategies, completing over 80 transactions raising over $9 billion for clients. Earlier in her career, she held leadership positions at Sanofi and TVM Capital. Dr. Melnikova holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine/Molecular Biology from the University of Texas.

Michael J. Partsch is a seasoned venture capital leader with more than 34 years of experience in life sciences investing and startup development. Renowned for his ability to build and support entrepreneurial management teams, he has a particular expertise in university-based spinouts. Mike currently serves as the inaugural Chief Venture Officer at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), where he oversees a venture fund and portfolio exceeding $200 million and leads initiatives focused on company creation. Over the course of his career, Mike has held leadership and investment roles at Accuitive Medical Ventures, Versant Ventures, EDF Ventures, and the CEO Venture Fund. As a co-founder of Accuitive Medical Ventures, he helped establish the firm’s investment strategy and was instrumental in raising and deploying its funds. His investment track record includes several successful medical device companies, such as IntraLase, AcuFocus, and Neuronetics. Mike also founded AcceleMed Management, where he advanced early-stage medical device innovations, including Nalu Medical. A Kauffman Fellow, he combines deep operational and financial expertise, having served as interim CFO and company founder. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University.

Michal Preminger is an experienced biopharma executive, biotech entrepreneur, and co-founder and CEO of BioMed X Venture Labs in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a Build-to-Solve venture creation and incubation company that partners with pharmaceutical companies, disease-focused foundations, and investors to develop solutions for critical pipeline gaps—including in oncology—through talent crowdsourcing and a design-thinking-based innovation process. She also serves as an advisor to Jefferson Life Sciences Venture Fund. Most recently, Michal led Johnson & Johnson Innovation’s East North America team, responsible for identifying and executing strategic research collaborations, licensing transactions, venture investments, company creation, and startup incubation through JLABS to enrich and advance J&J’s product pipelines. Previously, Michal served as Executive Director of Harvard University’s Office of Technology Development, where she led technology licensing, startup formation, and strategic corporate alliances, all with the goal of advancing Harvard discoveries toward commercialization. Earlier in her career, she held senior leadership roles at Compugen, contributing to the development of computational biology technologies and an oncology- focused product pipeline. Michal has served on the boards of multiple biotechnology companies and nonprofit organizations focused on promoting innovation in specific disease areas, innovation ecosystem building and collaboration, as well as leadership development. She earned an MSc and PhD from the Weizmann Institute of Science, a bachelor’s degree in medicine from the Hebrew University, and an MBA from INSEAD.

Matthew Roden is President and Chief Executive Officer at Aktis Oncology, and a member of the Aktis Board of Directors. Matt is also an Executive Partner at MPM BioImpact and serves on the Boards of Directors of ORNA Therapeutics and a stealth NewCo. Matt’s career has spanned senior leadership roles in the biopharma industry, the healthcare equity capital markets, and in basic science as an immunologist and structural biologist. Prior to Aktis Oncology and MPM, Matt was a senior leader at Bristol Myers Squibb, serving as SVP and Head of Enterprise Strategy, as Head of Strategic Corporate Development, accountable for mergers and acquisitions, and as Head of Global BD Assessment, leading business development search and evaluation activities worldwide for all therapeutic categories. Matt served on the R&D Leadership Team representing External Innovation and led teams on business development transactions cumulatively valued at over $125 billion. Prior to his corporate leadership career, Matt was a leading equity research analyst covering the global biotechnology sector at UBS and J.P. Morgan. He holds a PhD from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and was a pre-doctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute. In his free time, Matt enjoys tackling home improvement projects and spending time with his family sailing or on the ski slopes.

Vishal is an Investment Director, responsible for investing in digital health and enabling technologies, with an emphasis on precision medicine and diagnostic solutions. Vishal brings over 16 years of research and deal experience in the healthcare industry. Prior to joining the GHI team, Vishal was a member of Lundbeck’s Corporate Business Development & Strategy team, where he led business development projects across pre-clinical, clinical, and commercial stages. Before his tenure at Lundbeck, he served as a Director at the MRL Discovery Centre, leading a team of scientists dedicated to target identification and early-stage drug discovery initiatives. Vishal began his career with 11 years at Eisai and GSK, during which he led pre-clinical and translational research projects. Vishal holds a PhD in Development Neurobiology from University College London, a Master's degree in Experimental Neuroscience from Imperial College London, and a Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Science from King’s College London.

Uciane Scarlett is a former principal of MPM Capital, where she was involved in various investments and company builds, including ashibio and Crane BioTherapeutics. Uciane also oversaw the $100m DFCI/MPM fund. Prior to joining MPM, Uciane was a principal at Oxford Sciences Enterprises (OSE), a $1B Oxford (UK)-affiliated firm, where she co-led the life science sector. While at OSE, Uciane led company financings and drove start-up builds for companies including T-Cypher Bio, where she served as Interim Executive Chair, ORFonyx, PepGen. She represented OSE on the boards of T-Cypher, PepGen, Miro Bio, Scenic Bio, and DJS. Prior to OSE, Uciane was on the investment team at Atlas Venture where she supported financings for Dyne Therapeutics (DYN) and Quench Bio and served in operational roles for AVROBIO (AVRO) and KorroBio. Uciane was the Director of BD & Strategy at Compass Therapeutics prior to Atlas and prior to Compass was a Manager at the life sciences consultancy, Clarion | Lumanity. Uciane holds a PhD in cancer immunology from Dartmouth College. She received her BSc, first-class honors, in biotechnology (major) and zoology (minor) from the University of the West Indies.

Nandita Shangari is a Managing Director at RA Capital. Prior to joining RA Capital, she was a Managing Director at the Novartis Venture Fund (NVF), where she led the U.S. investment team. Before her venture role, Nandita held several positions at Novartis across Business Development & Licensing and R&D. She was a key member of the Kymriah® Global Program Team, helping bring this first-in-class cell therapy to market. Earlier in her career, she held leadership positions in Novartis’ Preclinical Investigative Toxicology organization. Nandita holds a BSc in Biochemistry and a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Toronto.

Steve brings over 25 years of experience as a CEO, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist across biotech and medical devices working with companies from company formation through R&D, clinical, regulatory, and commercial launch. As Managing Director of the Novartis Venture Fund for twelve years, he was actively engaged in all investment decisions across the $800M global portfolio. Prior to Novartis, Steve was on the life science team at Prism Venture Partners, a $1.25B family of funds. He began his venture career as a Kauffman Fellow with Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds. Steve has consulted to Genentech Neuroscience Innovation evaluating novel approaches to treating neurological diseases. He is a member of the Product Development Review Council for the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), an advisor to UPMC Enterprises, and an Expert-in-Residence to Digitalis Commons supporting ARPA-H’s innovation initiative.

John Wu, PhD is a Managing Director and Partner in BCG’s Boston office, where he leads the Biopharma sector in North America. He combines strategic acumen with deep scientific expertise to help global life sciences clients address their most critical R&D and organizational challenges. John has advised multinational pharmaceutical and biotech companies on enterprise and R&D strategies across oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and rare diseases. He is BCG’s topic expert on advanced modalities, including cell and gene therapy, gene editing, antibody–drug conjugates, protein degradation, and radioligand therapies. His work spans R&D strategy, portfolio optimization, clinical trial acceleration, regulatory transformation, due diligence, and operating model redesign. A molecular biologist and biophysicist by training, John holds a PhD in Engineering and Physical Biology from Harvard University and a BS in Biology from MIT. He has authored multiple first-author publications in Cell and PNAS on genome organization and epigenomic regulation.