Alan M. Spiro

About Alan M. Spiro

After a 30-year legal career in business and intellectual property litigation and trial practice, I retired due to progressive blindness. I continued philanthropic efforts as a National Trustee of the Foundation Fighting Blindness, the world\'s largest private source of funding for research into treatments and cures for blindness. In addition, I channeled my fascination with the dramatically accelerating science of vision restoration and my longstanding interest in investment into the formation of ExSight Ventures, a venture capital firm devoted exclusivedly to vision and ophthalmology. I serve on the Advisory Board of Odylia Therapeutics, a nonprofit biotech working to accelerate the advancement of gene therapies for rare retinal diseases from the lab into phase I/II clinical trials.

Experience

1. National Trustee

   Foundation Fighting Blindness

   Oct 2012 — Present

   The Foundation Fighting Blindness is the largest private philanthropic source of funding for scientific research on treatments and potential cures for blinding retinal degenerative conditions. Alan has been involved with the Foundation since 2005. In June 2012, he served as co-Chair of the inaugural Boston Visionary Awards Dinner, a major fundraising event for the Foundation. In September 2012, he was elected a National Trustee of the Foundation. He served as Chair of the Visionary Awards Dinner in April 2013, and, together with David Guyer and Brian Mansfield, organized a full-day Symposium on Retinal Innovations, featuring many leading researchers, executives and investors in the vision space. Alan continues to support the vital mission of the Foundation.

Education

• Kenyon Colle

  A.B.

  1968 — 1972

• Harvard Law School

  J.D., Law

  1979 — 1982

• Kenyon College

  A.B., Philosophy, Psychology

  1968 — 1972

• Princeton University

  Ph.D., Philosophy, The Emotions, Nietzsche

  1973 — 1977

• Université catholique de Louvain

  Phenomenology, Philosophy, Psychology

  1972 — 1973