Babak Alizadeh

About Babak Alizadeh

I am a biotech business development leader with 20+ years of experience driving partnerships, investment strategy, and R&D across therapeutics, diagnostics, and tools. My career blends deal-making, company building, and thought leadership, supported by a global influential network of pharma, KOLs, and investors. My key experience & strengths include- Business Development: Pharma deal sourcing, licensing, alliance management, and competitive market intelligence- Investment Strategy: CVC portfolio diligence & management; supported >$40M in capital raises and $12M in non-dilutive funding- Portfolio & Pipeline Strategy: Translating KOL/academic insights into trial design, FDA interactions, and pipeline expansion across oncology, immunology, CNS, and inflammation- Global Partnerships: Co-led multi-national collaborations with biopharma, academia, and CROs/CMOs across the US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific- Broad Therapeutics Modalities, DX and Tools Experience: RNA/oligonucleotides, small molecules, antibodies, cell therapeutics, immunotherapies, epigenetics, CTCs, gene editing, and next-gen platforms- Operations - Co-managed consultants across regulatory, CMC, toxicology from FDA interaction, IND to start of phase 2 trial.Management & Mentorship: Built and led SABs, mentored scientists and entrepreneurs, and managed operations in startups up to 60 people- Thought Leadership: Keynote speaker, panelist, and chair at international conferences on oncology, RNA therapeutics, and epigenetics- Patient Advocacy: 30+ years helping uninsured and late-stage cancer patients access innovative treatments worldwide.

Experience

1. Head of Business Development

   Epicentrx, Inc

   Dec 2022 — Present · San Francisco, CA, US

   At EpicentRx, I’ve focused on building external partnerships and academic collaborations to advance two FDA Fast Track-designated first-in-class therapies—RRx-001 and AdAPT-001—toward NDA submission and commercialization. RRx-001 (Nibrozetone) is a Phase 2b/3 NLRP3 inhibitor that protects healthy tissue from chemo, radiation, and inflammation, and is also being studied in neurodegeneration (pre-clinical) with support from the Michael J. Fox Foundation, FightMND, and CDMRP.AdAPT-001 is a TGF-β–targeting immunotherapy that restores checkpoint inhibitor sensitivity. ASCO ’24 data showed durable responses in several CPI-refractory tumors.

Education

• University of Michigan

  B.S., Cell & Molecular Biology

• Stanford University

  M.S., Biological Sciences

• Stanford University

  Post-Doctorate, Cancer Biology

• Stanford University

  Ph.D., Cancer Biology