Dr. John Mulligan is a scientist and executive with 30 years of experience in research management, drug discovery, technology innovation and company formation.  He was the Founder and CEO of Good Therapeutics until it was acquired by Roche in 2022.  Prior to Good he founded Glycostasis, where he invented a glucose-responsive insulin technology and sold the company to Eli Lilly.  As the Director of Genomics at Darwin Molecular he pioneered a genetic approach to target discovery that yielded an osteoporosis drug target. Romosozumab, an antibody to this target, was recently approved in the US, Europe and Japan for the treatment of osteoporosis.

After leaving Darwin Molecular he founded Blue Heron Biotechnology, an early synthetic biology company that was acquired by Origene, and co-founded the International Gene Synthesis Consortium, an industry group focused on biosecurity and the appropriate regulation of synthetic biology. He received a BS in Biology from MIT, then spent twelve years at Stanford as a Ph.D student with Sharon Long in the Department of Biology, a postdoctoral fellow with Ronald W. Davis in the Department of Biochemistry, and a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics where he helped set up the Stanford Genome Technology Center.

Dr. Diane Hollenbaugh is a drug discovery scientist and executive with more than 25 years of experience in biologicals research and discovery, and early development.  She joined Good Therapeutics in 2019 and transitioned to Bonum Therapeutics following the acquisition by Roche in 2022.  Prior to Good, she was Executive Director, Immuno-oncology Discovery at AbbVie where she oversaw the growth of IO efforts, including early discovery and translational science, licensing partnerships, and five discovery projects brought to IND. Prior to AbbVie, she has experience at multiple large and small companies, including BMS, Medarex, FivePrime Therapeutics and Schering-Plough/Merck.

She received her PhD from the California Institute of Technology Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering following her BS in Chemistry from the University of Washington.

Dr. Neela Patel is a scientist and business development executive with more than 25 years of leadership experience in drug discovery & development, project & portfolio management, and pipeline development through external innovation. Prior to Bonum, as Chief Business Development Officer at Good Therapeutics she co-led the Roche transaction and spinout of Bonum. Previously, as Executive Director of Corporate Development at Seagen, she played an integral role in deal sourcing and execution to build the pipeline, including agreements with Pieris and FivePrime. Dr. Patel’s sourcing and diligence at AbbVie in resulted in more than twenty five executed deals including collaborations, licensing, and participation in consortia. Dr. Patel spent the first 16 years of her career in drug discovery with positions of increasing responsibility, advancing small molecules and biologics from target ID and validation through IND filing at Poniard Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, SUGEN/Pharmacia, and Roche Bioscience.

Dr. Patel completed her post-doctoral training at the DNAX Research Institute after receiving her PhD in Molecular Biology from UCLA. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford with a B.S. in Biology and a B.A. in Humanities with Honors.

Cindy Yee brings over 25 years of drug discovery & development, partnership and portfolio experience.  She leads corporate strategy & operations, development, project & alliance management.  She joined Good Therapeutics in 2021 and transitioned to Bonum Therapeutics after the acquisition by Roche in 2022.   Previously, she served as Director of Alliances at BeiGene where she led implementation of global strategic partnerships spanning equity investment, clinical collaboration, and licensing arrangements for immuno-oncology therapeutics, and contributed to the build out of the strategy and partnerships organization.  Prior, Cindy was at Alphabet’s life science company Verily as Partnership Engagement and Program Management Lead bringing academic, nonprofit, and global pharma partners together with internal innovative product development teams to create and launch cutting-edge life science technologies in Digital Biomarkers, Neurology, and Baseline’s rapid COVID-19 response.  In her role in Portfolio Program Management at AbbVie she co-led the advancement of internal and partnership immuno-oncology biologics from late research through clinical proof of concept.  Earlier in her career, Cindy held positions of increasing responsibility advancing biologics and small molecules at Merck/Schering-Plough, Genentech, Genencor Intl, and Pharmacia/Searle.

Dr. Justin Killebrew brings over 15 years of research and drug discovery experience in the areas of oncology and immunology. He joined Good Therapeutics in 2018 and transitioned to Bonum Therapeutics following the acquisition by Roche in 2022. Before joining Good, he was Director of Discovery Biology at Silverback Therapeutics, where he oversaw in vitro and in vivo research in support of their lead ADC program.

Prior to Silverback, he held positions of increasing responsibility within the research organization at Bristol-Myers Squibb, where he advanced multiple therapeutic programs within the areas of Immuno-Oncology and Immunoscience. Dr. Killebrew received his Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of Washington.

Dr. Linda Liang brings over 20 years of biologics discovery and development experience. She joined Bonum Therapeutics in 2023. Prior to Bonum, she held senior positions in antibody discovery and early development at Pionyr Immunotherapeutics, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck, Schering-Plough, and Organon where she advanced programs in immuno-oncology, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, and metabolic diseases. Linda received her Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of California, Berkeley.

Rhonda Knudsen is a business operations management professional with more than 25 years of experience in the life science, medical device, and technology sectors. She leads the finance, human resources, and business administration functions for Bonum Therapeutics. She joined Good Therapeutics in 2021 and transitioned to Bonum Therapeutics after the acquisition by Roche in 2022. She previously served in leadership positions at Darwin Molecular, Blue Heron Biotech, Institute for Systems Biology, BD Biosciences, and Olympus. 

Rhonda holds a BA from the University of Montana and an MBA from City University of Seattle.

Dr. John Mulligan is a scientist and executive with 30 years of experience in research management, drug discovery, technology innovation and company formation.  He was the Founder and CEO of Good Therapeutics until it was acquired by Roche in 2022.  Prior to Good he founded Glycostasis, where he invented a glucose-responsive insulin technology and sold the company to Eli Lilly.  As the Director of Genomics at Darwin Molecular he pioneered a genetic approach to target discovery that yielded an osteoporosis drug target. Romosozumab, an antibody to this target, was recently approved in the US, Europe and Japan for the treatment of osteoporosis.

After leaving Darwin Molecular he founded Blue Heron Biotechnology, an early synthetic biology company that was acquired by Origene, and co-founded the International Gene Synthesis Consortium, an industry group focused on biosecurity and the appropriate regulation of synthetic biology. He received a BS in Biology from MIT, then spent twelve years at Stanford as a Ph.D student with Sharon Long in the Department of Biology, a postdoctoral fellow with Ronald W. Davis in the Department of Biochemistry, and a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Genetics where he helped set up the Stanford Genome Technology Center.

Samuel Bjork is a Partner at Digitalis Ventures, where he leads the firm’s life sciences practice. 

He has served as a director or observer on the boards of multiple companies, including Elemental Machines, EpiBiologics, Good Therapeutics (acquired by Roche), Nuvig Therapeutics, PetMedix (acquired by Zoetis), T-Therapeutics, and Terray Therapeutics, among others. Prior to Digitalis, Samuel was a member of the healthcare and clean energy practices at the Boston Consulting Group. He received graduate degrees from Cambridge and Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar and an A.B. in Chemistry from Harvard University.

Karl D. Handelsman is the founder and Managing Partner, Codon Capital, and a key contributor and builder in the US biotech innovation ecosystem. Through his network and leadership, he drives Codon Capital to intensely focus on the best biotech targets for investments. The key criteria are the team, the technology, and the investment syndicate. Karl is looking for what he calls “an unfair technology advantage, a team uniquely qualified around that technology opportunity, and multiple routes to success.” Without knowing the technology and the team, he notes, the what if should look “impossible” to the outside world.

The key: find something disruptive, and be confident that technical success will generate a great return on invested capital, and as importantly, make the stock options valuable for those doing the work. Repeat entrepreneurs who can build even bolder startups are the limiting resource, and Karl considers it a privilege to work with them as an investor.

John has three decades of drug development and investing experience in life sciences. He joined RiverVest in 2008 and focuses on early-stage biotechnology investments. Currently, John serves on the boards of Allakos, Inc. (IPO), OncoResponse, Inc., Bonum Therapeutics, Arch Oncology, Inc., and Adarza Biosystems, Inc. He previously served on the boards of Lumena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (acquired by Shire Plc), Otonomy, Inc. (IPO) and ZS Pharma, Inc. (acquired by AstraZeneca Plc).

Prior to RiverVest, John was president and CEO and a director of Kalypsys, Inc. from 2003 to 2008, and an executive at Searle/Pharmacia (Pfizer, Inc.) from 1987 to 2003, where he held increasingly responsible positions, including the global head of Research. John helped establish the groundwork for studies that led to the commercialization of several major products, including DayPro®, Arthrotec®, and Celebrex®, one of the leading pharmaceuticals to treat arthritis. He also served on the boards of IDM Pharma, Inc. (acquired by Takeda America Holdings, Inc.), Epimmune, Inc., and Keel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Prior to 1987, John was a senior scientist at E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, a member of the Basel Institute for Immunology in Basel, Switzerland, and a research associate in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Washington University in St. Louis.

John holds a Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of Chicago and a B.S. in Biology from Northern Illinois University. He has co-authored more than 70 published, peer-reviewed scientific papers, and holds more than 50 patents and numerous patent applications, primarily in the areas of cancer treatment and inflammatory disease.

Monique is a Senior Investment Director at the Roche Venture Fund. Former roles include serving as the Chief Operating Officer at Inthera Bioscience AG, a previous Director position at Roche Venture Fund from 2009 to 2018, and a principal position with BankInvest’s BioMedical Ventures Group in Copenhagen. In addition, Monique’s background includes several years in Roche’s Pharma business development group, and various other positions in academia, biotech and venture capital, both in Switzerland and the San Francisco Bay Area. Monique holds a M.Sc. in microbiology from the University of Zurich (Switzerland) and an MBA from the University of San Francisco.

Nicholas Walrod is a Managing Partner with American Century Investments’ Private Investments team. He brings 20 years of experience as an investor, board member, and strategic partner to the service of ground-breaking companies in the life sciences and climate solutions. Before joining American Century, Nick co-founded 3×5 Partners, a venture-capital investment firm. Previously, Nick sourced and managed hedge fund and private equity relationships at Arnerich Massena. Nick serves on the boards of directors of Bonum Therapeutics, Claros Technologies and SOURCE Global. Along with his investment leadership, Nick also owns Dancing Moon Farm, an organic vegetable and flower farm in Hood River, Oregon. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in public policy studies from Duke University. He lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and three children. 

Dr. Aggarwal is a seasoned life sciences investor with over 20 years of experience. He is currently a Managing Partner at Vivo, having previously served as Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer for its U.S. public fund. His past roles include executive and investment positions at Ocera Therapeutics, Investor Growth Capital, Panorama Capital, and JPMorgan Partners.

He serves on the boards of Unicycive Therapeutics and Geron, and has held board positions at several other biotech and medical device companies. Dr. Aggarwal holds an M.D. from Columbia University and a B.S. in Agricultural Economics from Cornell University.

Samuel C. Blackman, M.D., Ph.D. is a physician-scientist and experienced cancer drug developer and biopharmaceutical executive, who has been involved in the early stage clinical development of numerous cancer therapeutics over the past 17 years. He was the co-founder and Head of Research and Development of Day One Biopharmaceuticals where he led the acquisition and development of OJEMDA™ (tovorafenib) through FDA approval and commercialization. Prior to founding Day One in 2018, Dr. Blackman held positions of increasing responsibility in large pharmaceutical companies (Merck, GlaxoSmithKline) and biotechnology companies (Seattle Genetics, Juno Therapeutics, Silverback Therapeutics, Mavupharma). He is also a member of the board of directors of Presage Biosciences. Sam is a graduate of the pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship program at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital Boston, and the pediatric residency program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Dr. Blackman received his B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Chicago, and his M.D. and Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Mitchell Mutz, PhD, is an accomplished venture investor, biotech serial entrepreneur, and inventor. He is the Senior Principal at Samsara BioCapital. Mitchell focuses on investment opportunities in therapeutics.

Prior to joining Samsara, Mitchell was the Entrepreneur Partner at Vivo Capital, a global venture firm with $6B under management. Mitchell was also formerly Senior Investment Director at the Roche Venture Fund, a $750M Swiss corporate venture fund which invests for financial return.

Deals sourced/led have included Pandion Therapeutics (acquired by Merck), Enliven Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ELVN), Good Therapeutics (acquired by Roche), Jasper Therapeutics (NASDAQ:JSPR), Kumquat Biosciences, lino Biotechnology (acquired by Miltenyi Biotech), Stratos Genomics (acquired by Roche), Fabric Genomics (acquired by GeneDx), Nimble Therapeutics (acquired by Abbvie), Scale Biosciences (acquired by 10X Genomics), and Purigen Biosciences (acquired by Bionano Genomics).

Previously, Mitchell was a co-founder, president, chief scientific officer, and board member of Amplyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotherapeutics company and Stanford University spinout. Amplyx attracted over $140M in venture financing and was acquired by Pfizer in April 2021.  He also helped found Labcyte, Inc., a biotechnology tools company that employs acoustic beams to move liquid.  The company was acquired by Danaher in 2019.