Versant Ventures

Managing Director at Versant and head of Ridgeline Therapeutics, Versant's Basel-based Discovery Engine, with deep experience in drug discovery and medicinal chemistry. He previously served as global head of chemistry at Roche over a 14-year career and holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Oxford, with post-doctoral training at Stanford and an undergraduate degree from Imperial College London.

Carlo Rizzuto, a PhD virologist-turned-VC who pioneered and championed epitranscriptomics and backed Gotham Therapeutics early, is a hands-on builder who often serves as acting CEO/CBO to create first-wave biology companies.

Clare Ozawa combines a Stanford Ph.D. with experience as COO/CBO at Inception Sciences, leads San Diego–Bay Area investments and sits on boards of Capsida, Lycia, Gate Bioscience and 858 Therapeutics.

Jerel Davis is a PhD-trained life scientist and Vancouver-based investor who builds biotechs from scratch via pharma partnerships—co-founding BlueRock with Bayer ($225M) and designing ventures with acquirers in mind.

Markus is a Versant partner in Basel who helps launch new companies from the firm's Ridgeline Discovery Engine. A drug discovery and protein engineering expert, he previously served as CSO and management board member of MorphoSys, which he joined in 2002, and holds a Ph.D. from the Technical University of Stuttgart.

Nigel Sheail is a Versant partner based in Basel with over two decades of pharmaceutical leadership experience. He previously served as Global Head of M&A and Business Development & Licensing at Novartis, and held business development and M&A leadership roles at Bayer Healthcare and Roche.

Tom Woiwode is a PhD medicinal chemist with operating experience as CBO/COO who led IPOs/M&A exits including CRISPR Therapeutics and co-founds companies early with academics like Jim Wilson (iECURE).

Barbara Lubash is Principal at Atlantic Pacific Advisors and has served as a board member and advisor for over 15 years across more than 10 corporate and nonprofit boards. She co-founded Versant Ventures, a firm focused on business-to-business tech-enabled health services and health technology companies, and previously held senior governance roles at California HealthCare Foundation, including Board Chair, where she oversaw the development of one of the first healthcare foundation Program Related Investment funds in the United States. Her experience spans health care operations, business innovation scaling, and strategic oversight functions including CEO succession, investment strategy, and audit and compliance committees.

Beckie Robertson is a Principal at Longridge Business Advisors with more than 30 years of experience across venture capital, engineering, entrepreneurship, and corporate management. She has served as an investor, board member, and advisor, with expertise in business and technology strategy, M&A, organizational design, and financial assessment. Robertson has experience in fundraising and collaborating with management teams on capital formation and strategic initiatives.

A scientist and company builder who joined Versant after serving as Chief Business Officer at ReCode Therapeutics and as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Oxford Science Enterprises, with prior experience as an investment banker at Evercore Partners. He holds a B.S. from Duke and a Ph.D. in Clinical Neuroscience from Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and has co-founded companies in genetic medicines and RNA biology.

Principal in Versant's Toronto office who joined in 2014 and has been involved in the creation and launch of several companies in the US and Canada, with a focus on early company formation. Holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Toronto (2012).

Mehmet Badur joined Versant in March 2022 as a Senior Associate and was promoted to Principal later that year, focusing on investments and company creation opportunities primarily on the West Coast. He previously worked at Rheos Medicines in business development and as a discovery scientist, and holds a PhD in Bioengineering from UC San Diego.

Principal at Versant focused on building and investing in new companies and driving pharma partnerships. Previously at Flagship Pioneering on the venture creation team, where he co-founded four biotech companies, and earlier co-founded and led ARCHITECHealth and Industry Link.

Nikita Sharma joined Versant in February 2024 as a Principal based in Basel, supporting portfolio companies and new opportunities in Europe and North America. She previously served as M&A Director at Novartis, leading acquisitions of Chinook Therapeutics, Calypso Biotech and SanReno Therapeutics, and earlier held roles at Sandoz and Axalta. She holds an MBA from Symbiosis International University.

Venture Partner in Versant's San Francisco office focused on investing and new company creation, with a background as a company creator, operator and dealmaker. She previously was President and COO of Pionyr Immunotherapeutics, held business development roles at Versant portfolio companies including Tempest Therapeutics and Inception Sciences, worked at Boston Consulting Group, and earned a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from Stanford.

Venture Partner focused on cardiometabolic disease, obesity and diabetes, with drug development and commercialization expertise. Joined Versant in July 2024 after nearly a decade at Novo Nordisk (where he founded its Seattle Obesity Research unit) and 20 years at Oregon Health Science University.

Monal Mehta is a Venture Partner in Versant's NYC office focused on early-stage healthcare companies. She was previously a Managing Director at Avidity Partners' Private Fund and served on several biotech boards, with prior roles in business development at Pfizer and consulting at Navigant. She holds a Ph.D. in Cancer Biology.

Peter Emtage joined Versant Ventures as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence in October 2020 and became a Venture Partner in April 2021. He previously led cell therapy research at Kite Pharma (a Gilead company) and held senior scientific roles at Cell Design Labs and MedImmune, with over 20 years of drug development experience in oncology, autoimmunity, infectious diseases and inflammation.

Venture partner focused on company creation, bringing both investment and drug discovery expertise. Previously a general partner at Mubadala Capital building its U.S. healthcare platform, co-founder and CEO of EpiBiologics, and a 16+ year Genentech R&D leader in oncology and immunology. Holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from McGill with postdoctoral training at Harvard.

Venture partner at Versant and president and CSO of Versant's Inception Sciences Discovery Engine, with expertise in developing and translating novel therapies. He joined Inception as CSO in 2018 after leading search and evaluation at Novartis and holding research leadership roles at the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation, Eos Biotechnology, and Phenomix Corporation; he trained in immunology and genetics at ICRF London and Stanford (HHMI).

Venture partner supporting Versant's Frontier discovery engine in Toronto and contributing to new investments. He was previously SVP and chief scientific officer at AbbVie and the inaugural President and Scientific Director of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, and holds an M.D. from the University of Montreal.

Venture Partner at Versant with extensive experience leading drug discovery across small molecule, biotherapeutic, and technology platforms. Previously co-founded and served as CEO of Interline Therapeutics, was CSO of Denali Therapeutics, and held drug discovery leadership roles at Genentech, Roche, Novartis, and Revolution Medicines. He works with entrepreneurs to build new companies from early-stage science.

Marcelo Bigal is President and CEO of Ventus Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines in immunology, inflammation, and neurology using structural biology and computational chemistry approaches. He brings over 16 years of pharmaceutical experience spanning R&D, medical, and scientific affairs, including previous roles as Head of R&D, Chief Scientific Officer, and Chief Medical Officer at Teva, and Chief Medical Officer at Labrys, where he led development of fremanezumab, a CGRP monoclonal antibody approved in the US, Canada, and EU. Bigal previously held faculty and research director positions at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and multiple headache research centers, and has authored approximately 330 peer-reviewed publications and edited six neurology textbooks.

Markus Warmuth serves as Chief Executive Officer at Monte Rosa Therapeutics and is a board member at Ventus Therapeutics. He is a physician scientist with experience in drug discovery, translational research, and clinical development across the pharmaceuticals industry.

Operating Partner at Versant and COO of the firm's Ridgeline Discovery Engine, who joined in 2018 from Roche where he was VP of Business Development at Roche Molecular Solutions and previously Basel Site Head for Roche Partnering. He began his career in pharmaceutical manufacturing and worked in pharma business at Ciba-Geigy and Novartis in the UK, holding a BSc in Chemistry and an MBA.

Ed Olhava joined Versant in 2026 as a Scientist in Residence with over 20 years of experience leading small molecule drug discovery programs. He previously served as SVP of Preclinical Development at IFM Therapeutics, advised Third Rock Ventures, was the first medicinal chemist at Epizyme, and co-invented NINLARO at Millennium Pharmaceuticals.

Operating Partner at Versant and SVP of Preclinical Development at the firm's Ridgeline Discovery Engine, with drug development expertise. He joined Ridgeline in 2018 from Roche, where he led DMPK-PD project leaders and headed non-clinical safety in Shanghai, and previously worked at Novartis and Merck-Serono. He holds a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the University of Geneva and is a certified toxicologist (DABT).

Lara Hoth is Versant's VP of management company finance and accounting, working with the CFO on the firm's financial and administrative operations across the U.S., Canada, and Switzerland. Before joining Versant in 2016 she spent six years at Novartis, held controller roles at two other companies, and began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers; she holds a BA from UC Berkeley.

Laura joined Versant in June 2024 as a CBO-in-Residence, focused on strengthening business development across Versant's portfolio companies. She previously served as Senior Director of Corporate Development at Gilead, led the MiroBio acquisition, and held roles at Genentech, AbbVie, and Abbott Laboratories. She holds an MBA and M.S. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley and a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University.

Max Eisenberg is COO and General Counsel at Versant, overseeing legal aspects of investment transactions, management company operations, fundraising, HR, and regulatory compliance. He previously served as the first General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Polaris Partners.

Rich Van Doren is the CFO of Versant Ventures with about 20 years of financial experience, previously serving as CFO of Samsara Biocapital and holding CFO/COO roles at Pacific Grove Capital, Marcato Capital, and Cannell Capital. He holds a B.S. in Finance from the University of San Francisco and a Graduate Certificate in Tax from Golden Gate University.

Rick Dewey joined Versant Ventures in 2024 as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence with over 15 years translating human genome insights into new medicines. He previously was Chief Scientific Officer of Foresite Labs and Head of Translational Genetics at Regeneron Genetics Center, and is a board-certified physician-scientist trained at Stanford.

Robin Praeger combined two decades as his firm's CFO (2000–2022) with investment leadership, bringing a CPA and Master of Taxation background that strengthens complex fund structuring and tax strategy.

Steve Edelson handles Versant's messaging, external and LP communications, and media relations. Before joining the firm, he spent 18 years at BioCentury Inc., rising from Staff Writer to Senior Editor and covering financial and emerging trends in the life science industry. He holds an M.S. in biotechnology and a B.A. in biochemistry from Northwestern University.

Vincent Ruland joined Versant in August 2025 as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence in Basel, supporting existing portfolio companies and new opportunities in Europe and North America. He previously was SVP, Head of R&D Strategy, Portfolio and Operations at Bayer Pharmaceuticals, and is a physician-scientist trained in neuropathology with an M.D. from the University of Münster and an M.Phil. from the University of Cambridge.