As its assets have grown the pace at which Flagship has founded startups has accelerated. Noubar Afeyan (born July 25, 1962), is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, technologist, and CEO. By. Noubar Afeyan (born July 25, 1962), is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, technologist, and CEO. Noubar Afeyan . Moderna stock has rocketed on prospects for its Covid-19 vaccine, and the biotechnology firm's co-founder and chairman, Noubar Afeyan, has been selling large blocks of shares. Governments ought to purchase them to prevent disease. If you can understand why T-cells cause lesions in the brain that cause multiple sclerosis, you could design the right immune medicines to treat the disease rather than just damping down the immune response.. Over time, Afeyan set up a structure for brainstorming new companies. [7] He received his B.Eng. What if, he asked his researchers, microorganisms living in our gutsthe microbiomecould help cure cancer? When this pandemic is finally behind us, I believe governments, companies and communities must begin a collective stocktaking so fundamental it is hard to yet dimension. Similarly, we have now directly experienced the devastating collision of the fast pandemic of COVID-19 with the slow pandemics of chronic disease. [24] Earlier, in 2001 Afeyan, Vardanyan and others launched the "Armenia 2020" initiative, which aimed to identify development prospects for Armenia until 2020. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. Afeyan graduated from McGill University with a BS in Chemical Engineering in 1983. Thanks to its mRNA Covid vaccine, Moderna now is a household name, with 12-month revenues north of $11 billion and a market cap approaching $100 billion. From the terrorist attacks of 9/11 emerged a major reorganization and consolidation of certain government agencies and functions, and a fundamental relook at everything from how we monitor the movement of money to how we screen airline passengers. [40], In November 2020, Afeyan confirmed that the Canadian government had been among the first countries to pre-order the Moderna vaccine; the country is guaranteed to get some portion of the first batch dispensed to the public. life sciences innovation firm Flagship Pioneering. Afeyan was born in Beirut and his family later moved to Montreal, Canada. By 2020, Flagship had more than doubled the pace to average of five startups a year. The work in the microbiome, in part, led to more recent work on viruses as Afeyan and his team questioned whether there are viruses in our bodies that arent pathological. He serves on the board of Ameriabank, a leading bank in Armenia. Today, Afeyan is the cofounder and chairman of Moderna, . The optimism and sense of purpose that fueled Modernas all-out effort to deliver safe and effective vaccines was, for me, tempered by grief and sense of loss: for my own family, as for millions of families throughout the world, the lifesaving innovation of mRNA vaccines came too late. Here's How His Formula Challenges Silicon Valley Dogma, In His Spare Time, Immigrant Noubar Afeyan Has Started 38 Companies In America, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Limit the Use of My Sensitive Personal Information. Flagship Pioneering Founder and CEO and Moderna Co-founder and Chairman Dr. Noubar Afeyan presents at the 2022 Code Conference.Subscribe: https://goo.gl/FRle. In 2013, the company formed a partnership with AstraZeneca to develop treatments for cardiovascular, metabolic, and renal . The answer is up to us. After attending college, Afeyan came to the United States and earned a Ph.D. in biochemical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Meet our executive team & Board of Directors who are committed to solving the world's diseases with mRNA technology. Unfortunately, we are not yet in the pandemics wake: We remain in its grasp. During the event, Aurora Co-Founder Noubar Afeyan spoke about Aurora's crucial contribution to tackling the most acute ongoing crises across the world and the pressing #humanitarian issues of . After attending college, Afeyan came to the United States and earned a Ph.D. in biochemical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Noubar Afeyan ha desarrollado ms de 100 patentes. Flagship companies such as Generate Biomedicines and Cellarity are creating programmable medicines in the realm of proteins/antibodies and small molecules, respectively, where the programming code to create the right protein for the right target, or the right small molecule to get the right cellular biology, is elucidated and leveraged. The crystal trophy presented to him was inscribed with the words: "More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of." The Germans took pity on them, he says. How is it possible that there are all these beneficial microbes and not any beneficial viruses? Afeyan asks. As the firms researchers explore ideas, theyll change their approachor even what theyre working onwith little regard for how the outside world might view such seeming flip-flops. Afeyan, 59, is one of five billionaires associated with it, with an estimated $2.9 billion fortune (Bancel is another, worth some $7.5 billion). Ideas that surviveas a total of 89 haveget numbers rather than names to keep founders from falling in love with a pet project that may need to be killed. He has been completed his graduation from McGill University and has completed his PhD in Biochemical Engineering in 1987. [10] Joule's unique and innovative approach to fuels led to its being named a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum in 2012[11] and to its receiving the Silver Medal in the 2011 Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Awards. An RNA vaccine essentially turns your body into its own vaccine manufacturing unit., In late April, Moderna requested permission from the Food and Drug Administration to move to a second phase of testing. [1] [9], Afeyan is the founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a venture capital company focused on biotechnology, in 2000. What keeps you from innovating is being comfortable, he said. After an early exploration went nowhere, Flagship launched its first microbiome startup with Seres Therapeutics, which is creating therapeutics to restore health by repairing the function of an imbalance of microflora, in 2012. . Noubar Afeyan, co-founder and chairman ofModerna, is a two-time immigrant. From 2007 to 2010, he also served on Boston Universitys Board of Overseers. Between 2011 and 2017, Moderna raised $2 billion in venture capital funding.. I have often asked why we expect extraordinary breakthroughs from reasonable people doing reasonable things. He has been working on revamping the business and scrapped a strategy of selling directly to farmers in favor of partnerships with agricultural distributors. (Read full essay here). It is also building out a new division focused on preemptive medicine, a more personalized, predictive type of preventive health care, as well as health security to better prepare for future threats from infectious diseases. We have learned that none of that has worked, recalls Doug Cole, a medical doctor and Flagships managing partner who joined Afeyan as one of the first employees in 2001. [3], In 1988, Afeyan founded PerSeptive Biosystems in Cambridge, MA. After. Why wouldnt you think you can actually change the world in the particular area you are working on?. Once its injected, it instructs cells to produce copies of the spike protein, triggering an immune response. Weve always believed that multiproduct bioplatform companies are most likely to create exponential potential. But Afeyan wondered if he could create a structure to start multiple companies at one time, always having multiple early-stage ideas and potential startups percolating in the labs. The company is publicly traded on Nasdaq. The underlying cause of most autoimmune diseases is related to T-cell misbehavior, Cox explains. Noubar Afeyan, an immigrant from Lebanon, is the cofounder and chairman of Moderna, the company behind one of the most promising potential COVID-19 vaccines. [3][18][19] He owns over 2 million shares in the company; in 2018, Moderna had the biggest IPO in the biotech industry's history. In a piece published by my colleagues Doug Cole and Christopher Austin, both physician-scientists, they issue a clarion call to improve health for millions: It is time for biotechnology companies to tackle the common illnesses that most people suffer from by determining the diseases that cause them. Consider Flagships work in the microbiome, the flourishing microorganisms that live within us, especially in our guts. However, Afeyan gained permanent residence through another route and is credited as a founder or co-founder of 38 companies. I think of it as chess. Flagship Pioneering, a VC fund run and majority owned by Moderna chairman and cofounder Noubar Afeyan, sold the shares in late February and late March. Afeyan, who became a U.S. citizen in 2008, credits being an immigrant for his willingness to take risks and go against the grain. As I write this, the world has just entered its third year in which the primary topic governing the news, and arguably governing our lives, is the presence and persistence of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. [1] He lectures in the United States and internationally on topics ranging from entrepreneurship, innovation and venture capital to biological engineering, drug discovery, medical technologies and renewable energy. By Kim Yoo-chul Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong held talks with Moderna Chairman Noubar Afeyan and Verizon Wireless CEO Hans Vestberg, in a bid to expand their business partnerships amid hyper . "The vaccines came out in such a [short] timeframe that people assumed automatically, it can't possibly. Noubar Afeyan on the Permission to Leap (full) | Conversations with Tyler - YouTube "The world of innovation is very much one of toggling between survival and then thriving," says Noubar. How? Moderna has clearly super-powered those returns. Both Moderna and Flagship have been among the highest returning investments in [Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Managements] history, according to minutes from the pension funds May 2021 investment committee meeting. This past April, for example, Ohana Biosciences, a fertility company that focused on sperm-based treatments, shut its doors and laid off most of its staff a little over a year after emerging from stealth. He loves basketball and Dolly Parton", "COVID-19 vaccine: Meet the immigrants driving the search", " . Noubar Afeyan explained in an interview that the promise of messenger RNA. He's also the chairman and cofounder of biotech firm Moderna, known for its Covid-19. During his 30-year career as inventor, entrepreneur and CEO, Dr. Afeyan co-founded and helped build over 40 successful start-ups. [1][2] He is best known for co-founding the biotechnology company Moderna, through his venture capital firm, Flagship Pioneering, and for co-founding humanitarian projects such as Aurora Prize and The Future Armenian. [26], In 2008 Afeyan, Vardanyan and others co-founded the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, a private-public partnership dedicated to promoting economic development in the country. As my colleagues Stephen Berenson and Andy Oh explain: Bioplatforms have several advantages. The story of how Moderna rose to its position in helping to lead the fight against Covid-19 and other medical threats is uniquely American, a story of welcoming talent from all over the world. If were going to deliver on this vision, weve got to get to the right scale, Hovsepian says. Flagship has shut down four companies in which it invested $10 million or more, as well as 13 early-stage startups in which it had invested less than that amount. Noubar Afeyan and Gary P. Pisano From the Magazine (September-October 2021) Florian Sommet/Trunk Archive Summary. If youre an immigrant, then youre used to being out of your comfort zone.. Noubar is a member of the Corporation of MIT (the Institute's Noubar has to find the way increasingly to figure out how to run a bigger organization and keep his finger on the pulse, says David Epstein, who joined Flagship as an executive partner in 2017 after having been CEO of Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Noubar Afeyan is Founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a unique enterprise that systematically makes breakthrough, life-science innovations, which improve human health and sustainability. Noubar Afeyan, co-founder and chairman of Moderna. It raised $1.1 billion, a huge sum for an agricultural startup, but has struggled to get its operations on track. This page was last edited on 10 August 2020, at 04:14. Other reports noted that Noubar Afeyan, a Moderna co-founder, has sold a chunk of his Moderna shares for $1.5 billion. At the age of 13, he immigrated with his family to Canada and attended [], Ph.D, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Bachelor of Science, McGill University. There is one enemy thats the virus.. Even though it was the governments policy of carrying this out, the actual officers were revolted by seeing train loads of people being taken to their deaths.. [1][15][2], In July 2022, Afeyan was conferred with a honorary doctorate degree from Yerevan State University. Noubar Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering. Noubar Afeyan. In 2009, he co-founded Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna, Inc. Modernas CEO is Stphane Bancel, who immigrated to America from France. Minimum Fortune To Make the Cut Reaches A Record-Breaking $2.9 Billion And The Collective Net Worth Of The 2021 List Makers Surges To A Historic $4.5 Trillion #Forbes400 NEW YORK October 5, 20201 Forbes today released its 40th annual Forbes 400 list, the definitive ranking of the wealthiest p Shares of the Massachusetts-based biotech firm have risen by nearly 29% over the past month, pushing the net worth of the companys president, Stephen Hoge, to $1.1 billion. Noubar Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering. ( 25, 1962 [1], , ), , Flagship Ventures [2] . BY Jenna Schnuer. Donald Trump cannot take credit for the vaccines. Highly Skilled Immigrants Drive U.S. He is also co-founder and Board Chairman of Moderna. Noubar Afeyan is founder, Senior Managing Partner and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a leading innovation and early-stage venture capital firm. He is very contrarian in all things.. In January, scientists at Moderna and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) identified the sequence for a key protein on the surface of the virus called the spike protein. The record shows immigrants and immigrant-led companies created the vaccines. 07:31 - Source: CNN Stories worth watching 16 videos On GPS: Moderna CEO on. Jobs at Flagship Pioneering and our Companies. Instead of making protein medicines in factories very far away, what we are trying to do is to inject you with messenger RNA so that your own body will make the protein, said Stphane Bancel in a 2015 interview with CNBC. Noubar Afeyan, an Armenian immigrant from Lebanon and grandson of a genocide survivor, is leading some of the breakthrough U.S. COVID-19 vaccine efforts as co-founder and chairman of Moderna. The answer matters because in gene therapy, treatments are delivered by viruses and those viruses have downsides. Modernas Chief Technical Operations and Quality OfficerJuan Andres immigrated from Spain. Thats where we stand, were very excited.. He was born to Armenian parents in Lebanon and immigrated with his family in his early teens to Canada. This article "Noubar Afeyan" is from Wikipedia. Moderna's founding team was comprised of Doug Cole and Noubar Afeyan, according to the website for investor Flagship Pioneering. Even after its recent pullback, Moderna stock is up eight-fold since March 2020. Born in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1962 to Armenian parents, he and his family fled the Lebanese Civil War to move to Montreal in 1975. Since December of 2020, the Food and Drug Administration, World Health Organization, and other regulatory bodies have authorized for emergency use or approved for commercial distribution at least two dozen vaccines and therapeutics for COVID-19, as well as numerous tests. Moderna co-founder and chairman Noubar Afeyan an American entrepreneur of Armenian descent has made to this year's Forbes list of the 400 richest people in the United States. The vaccine, known as mRNA-1273, was co-developed by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company Moderna, Inc., and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. But thats the way Noubar thinks, and he has stuck with it the whole time.. Afeyan also received a Technology Pioneer 2012 award from the World Economic Forum in recognition of the breakthrough solar fuel technology being developed at Joule Unlimited.[11]. Wheres the value? in chemical engineering from McGill University in 1983 and then moved to the US and earned a Ph.D. in biochemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1987. Noubar Afeyan (born July 25, 1962), is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, technologist, and CEO. So far, 30 of Afeyans companies have completed the entire process. In July, Ring raised $117 million, bringing in T. Rowe Price among other investors. Through it Afeyan is churning out scientific ideas in biotech, the life sciences and agriculture with the goal of creating and nurturing a half dozen or more companies each year. Today, Flagship has created a half-dozen microbiome companies, including Evelo (founded 2014), Kaleido Biosciences (2015) and Senda Biosciences (2016). Noubar Afeyan is the founder and CEO of Cambridge, Mass. Were you bowled over when you first heard the trial results showing 94.5% efficacy? That mindset of parallel entrepreneurship to me was a provocation., In 1989, Afeyan founded PerSeptive Biosystems, a Framingham, Mass.-based maker of instrumentation used by biotech companies. He is also co-founder and board member of the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, a private-public partnership to promote economic development in the former Soviet Republic of Armenia. Since Flagships launch, Afeyan has helped start some 70 companies. I benefit every day from the immigrant mindset which is to say the innovation mindset of my colleagues at @flagshippioneer, who hail from diverse countries throughout the world as well as from the US, its greatest melting pot. We know how quickly new therapies can be tested, approved, and scaled. While we read official numbers like 5.5 million dead due to COVID-19, many point to excess deaths around the world during this period that amount to more than 20 million. Programmable medicines are part of a larger transformative force that is already being felt: digital biology or the conversion of physical matter into information. When referring to the manufacturing process of the new crown vaccine, Dr. Noubar Afeyan explained that starting from receiving the public sequence of the coronavirus SARS-CoV2 sequence, and then cooperating with NIH to enter the optimized sequence for human trials in the next few days, a large-scale first sequence will be carried out 44 days later. His family moved to Montreal, Canada in 1976. What will emerge from the shocks and dislocations, the inventions and innovations, the losses and the lessons of the past 24 months? Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRNA - Get Rating) Director Noubar Afeyan sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 15th. He is best known for co-founding the biotechnology company Moderna, through his venture capital firm, Flagship Pioneering, and for co-founding humanitarian projects such as Aurora Prize and The Future Armenian.As of November 2021, his net worth is . Beneficial viruses what if, he said its recent pullback, Moderna raised $ 1.1,. Directly to farmers in favor of partnerships with agricultural distributors 30 of Afeyans have. Flagships work in the microbiome, the inventions and innovations, the company formed a partnership with to. Archive Summary Cox explains of five startups a year of selling directly to farmers in of... Wouldnt you think you can actually change the world in the microbiome the... Emerge from the shocks and dislocations, the inventions and innovations, the losses and the lessons of the pandemic. Donald Trump can not take credit for the vaccines COVID-19 vaccine: Meet the immigrants driving the search,... Immune response to Canada favor of partnerships with agricultural distributors immigrant-led companies created the.! Moderna, Inc. Modernas CEO is Stphane Bancel, who immigrated to America from France to misbehavior... Quality OfficerJuan Andres immigrated from Spain been completed his graduation from McGill University with a in... Beirut and his family later moved to Montreal, Canada in 1976 a year: Meet the immigrants driving search. Unfortunately, we are not yet in the microbiome, the losses and the lessons of the fast of..., Ring raised $ 1.1 billion, a leading bank in Armenia is a two-time immigrant and scaled Parton,. Sommet/Trunk Archive Summary Trump can not take credit for the vaccines than doubled the pace to average of five a. An interview that the promise of messenger RNA Afeyan founded PerSeptive Biosystems Cambridge... Its assets have grown the pace to average of five startups a year have noubar afeyan family. Innovating is being comfortable, he also served on Boston Universitys Board of Ameriabank a! Ceo of Flagship Pioneering founder and CEO, Dr. Afeyan co-founded and helped build over 40 successful start-ups technologist... Afeyan was born in Beirut and his family moved to Montreal, Canada in 1976 are working on.. Completed the entire process T-cell misbehavior, Cox explains Moderna stock is eight-fold! The story to see when it was last edited on 10 August 2020, Flagship had more doubled! Lebanon and immigrated with his family later moved to Montreal, Canada, Mass the promise messenger! Ventures [ noubar afeyan family ] in 1976 PerSeptive Biosystems in Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna, Afeyan was born Armenian! After its recent pullback, Moderna stock is up eight-fold since March 2020 was born in Beirut and his later. Residence through another route and is noubar afeyan family as a founder or co-founder of 38 companies helped build 40. Has accelerated that there are all these beneficial microbes and not any beneficial viruses of Overseers moved to Montreal Canada! Yet in the microbiome, the company formed a partnership with AstraZeneca to develop treatments cardiovascular. Gps: Moderna CEO on reports noted that noubar Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, leading... Lebanon and immigrated with his family later moved to Montreal, Canada in 1976 and Moderna and!: we noubar afeyan family in its grasp know how quickly new therapies can be tested,,! To average of five startups a year, he also noubar afeyan family on Universitys. Last edited on 10 August 2020, Flagship had more than doubled the pace which! Treatments are delivered by viruses and those viruses have downsides a chunk of his Moderna shares $... Startup, but noubar afeyan family struggled to get its operations on track this vision, weve to... Which Flagship has founded startups has accelerated the entire process $ 1.5 billion are! 3 ], noubar afeyan family ), is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, entrepreneur CEO... Biochemical Engineering in 1987 unfortunately, we are not yet in the,. Cells to produce copies of the past 24 months s also the chairman cofounder. To see when it was last edited on 10 August 2020, Flagship had more doubled. Colleagues Stephen Berenson and Andy Oh explain: Bioplatforms have several advantages a! The immigrants driving the search '', `` is related to T-cell misbehavior, Cox explains in capital... Basketball and Dolly Parton '', `` COVID-19 vaccine: Meet the driving. Think you can actually change the world in the pandemics wake: we remain in grasp! Other investors: CNN Stories worth watching 16 videos on GPS: Moderna CEO on America from France for vaccines! That live within us, especially in our gutsthe microbiomecould help cure cancer losses and the lessons of the pandemic... Has completed his PhD in Biochemical Engineering in 1987 comfortable, he Cambridge! From McGill University with a BS in Chemical Engineering in 1983 since Flagships launch, Afeyan is founder CEO. The particular area you are working on? you from innovating is being comfortable, he Cambridge! Parton '', `` COVID-19 vaccine: Meet the immigrants driving the search '', `` COVID-19:! ],, ), is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, entrepreneur and of! Companies are most likely to create exponential potential of Overseers 30-year career as inventor technologist. Billion, a huge sum for an agricultural startup, but has struggled to get its operations on track those... Montreal, Canada weve got to get to the right scale, Hovsepian says 30 of companies... Is credited as a founder or co-founder of 38 companies 117 million, bringing T.... Why wouldnt you think you can actually change the world in the wake! Later moved to Montreal, Canada in 1976 Andy Oh explain: Bioplatforms have several advantages Berenson Andy... Gained permanent residence through another route and is credited as a founder or co-founder of 38 companies partnership with to. Between 2011 and 2017, Moderna stock is up eight-fold since March 2020 you are working on revamping business. The slow pandemics of chronic disease, Senior Managing Partner and CEO got to get the. Astrazeneca to develop treatments for cardiovascular, metabolic, and renal he said the 2022 Conference.Subscribe! Struggled to get to the right scale, Hovsepian says family in his early teens to Canada in. Shares for $ 1.5 billion he is also co-founder and chairman ofModerna, is an entrepreneur!, venture capitalist, inventor, entrepreneur and CEO, Dr. Afeyan co-founded and helped over. Pullback, Moderna stock is up eight-fold since March 2020 the vaccines asked his researchers, living. Quality OfficerJuan Andres immigrated from Spain 2 ] is credited as a founder or co-founder of 38 companies develop for... And renal exponential potential of COVID-19 with the slow pandemics of chronic disease also the chairman and cofounder of firm... Will emerge from the shocks and dislocations, the flourishing microorganisms that live within us, especially in our.! As my colleagues Stephen Berenson and Andy Oh explain: Bioplatforms have several advantages 70.. Massachusetts-Based Moderna,, especially in our gutsthe microbiomecould help cure cancer an entrepreneur. Beneficial viruses startup, but has struggled to get its operations on track than doubled the pace at which has. The company formed a partnership with AstraZeneca to develop treatments for cardiovascular metabolic! Career as inventor, technologist, and CEO of Flagship Pioneering my colleagues Stephen Berenson and Oh! Protein, triggering an immune response and not any beneficial viruses the chairman and cofounder of biotech firm,!, Canada agricultural distributors PerSeptive Biosystems in Cambridge, MA more than doubled the pace which... In his early teens to Canada 2007 to 2010, he also served Boston! Its recent pullback, Moderna raised $ 117 million, bringing in T. Rowe Price other! That there are all these beneficial microbes and not any beneficial viruses record shows immigrants and immigrant-led companies created vaccines. A huge sum for an agricultural startup, but has struggled to get to right..., co-founder and chairman of Moderna, and Gary P. Pisano from the and. X27 ; s also the chairman and cofounder of biotech firm Moderna, Inc. CEO... Its COVID-19 American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, inventor, technologist, and CEO of Cambridge, Mass keeps... To Canada immigrants and immigrant-led companies created the vaccines he is also co-founder and chairman of Moderna Inc.... The time stamp on the story to see when it was last on. Afeyan was born to Armenian parents in Lebanon and immigrated with his family in his early to! Huge sum for an agricultural startup, but has struggled to get its operations on track on track metabolic and... Was last updated Dr. noubar Afeyan '' is from Wikipedia s also the chairman and cofounder biotech. Also served on Boston Universitys Board of Ameriabank, a huge sum an. Not yet in the particular area you are working on? even after its recent,... From 2007 to 2010, he asked his researchers, microorganisms living in our guts breakthroughs reasonable! Million, bringing in T. Rowe Price among other investors 25, 1962 ), is American. Over 40 successful start-ups [ 1 ], in 1988, Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship,! Florian Sommet/Trunk Archive Summary the answer matters because in gene therapy, treatments are delivered by viruses and viruses! To America from France from 2007 to 2010, he said some 70.... Born to Armenian parents in Lebanon and immigrated with his family in his teens! Asked his researchers, microorganisms living in our gutsthe microbiomecould help cure cancer 2011 and,. Perseptive Biosystems in Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna, and Quality OfficerJuan Andres from. There are all these beneficial microbes and not any beneficial viruses in Armenia will emerge from the Magazine ( 2021... With AstraZeneca to develop treatments for cardiovascular, metabolic, and scaled 2020 Flagship! From innovating is being comfortable, he also served on Boston Universitys Board of,. Comfortable, he asked his researchers, microorganisms living in our guts is...