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Stella Paffenholz

Investor

Senior Associate at Atlas Venture

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

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About

Stella Paffenholz is a senior associate at Atlas Venture, where she builds and invests in early-stage companies developing therapies from novel biology. She was previously a principal on the investment team at Nextech Invest, investing from Series A through public markets, and earlier held roles at McKinsey & Company, Apollo Health Ventures, and Merck KGaA. She holds a PhD from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where she studied genetic determinants of cancer treatment response, along with an MS from the German Cancer Research Center/University of Heidelberg and a BS from the University of Bonn.

Invests in

Biotech

Experience

  1. Atlas VentureSenior Associatecurrent2026 — present
  2. Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation - MMRFIndependent Investment Committee Membercurrent2026 — present
  3. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterEntrepreneur in Residence & Advisorcurrent2025 — present
  4. NucleateAdvisorcurrent2023 — present
  5. Sesame TherapeuticsBoard Observer2025 — 2026
  6. Nextech InvestPrincipal2025 — 2026Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  7. Nextech InvestAssociate2023 — 2025Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  8. Nextech InvestVenture Fellow (full-time)2022 — 2023Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  9. Be BiopharmaBoard Observer2025 — 2026
  10. Flare TherapeuticsBoard Observer2024 — 2026
  11. Tubulis GmbHBoard Observer2024 — 2026
  12. Delphia TherapeuticsBoard Observer2023 — 2026Boston, Massachusetts, United States
  13. Mariana OncologyBoard Observer2023 — 2024
  14. Homeward Bound ProjectsHomeward Bound Team HB72022 — 2023
  15. Included VCVenture Capital Fellow (Class '22)2022
  16. Apollo Health VenturesVenture Developer2022
  17. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterPh.D. Student2017 — 2022New York City Metropolitan Area
  18. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterGraduate Teaching Assistant2019 — 2020
  19. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer CenterCo-Chair GSK Women in Science2017 — 2019
  20. Tri-Institutional Biotech ClubPresident2021 — 2022New York, United States
  21. Tri-Institutional Biotech ClubDirector Of External Affairs2019 — 2021
  22. Tri-Institutional Biotech ClubDirector of Finance2018 — 2019Großraum New York City und Umgebung
  23. McKinsey & CompanyAssociate Intern2022Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany
  24. European Forum AlpbachScholarship Recipient2020Virtual
  25. Mount Sinai Innovation PartnersInnovation Fellow2019 — 2020
  26. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, GermanyMerck Innovation Cup 20192019Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany
  27. Lindau Nobel Laureate MeetingsYoung Scientist2018Lindau
  28. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, GermanyIntern in Inhouse Consulting2016Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany
  29. DKFZ German Cancer Research CenterResearch Associate2016Dr. Michael Milsom and Prof. Andreas Trumpp, Division of Stem Cells and Cancer
  30. DKFZ German Cancer Research CenterMaster Thesis Student2015Dr. Michael Milsom and Prof. Andreas Trumpp, Division of Stem Cells and Cancer
  31. St. Peter ZülpichOrganist and Church Choir Leader2008 — 2015Zülpich, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
  32. Whitehead InstituteResearch Intern2015Prof. Robert A. Weinberg, Biology Department
  33. Harvard Medical SchoolResearch Intern2014Prof. Pier Paolo Pandolfi, Division of Genetics
  34. LIMES (Life and Medical Sciences) InstituteBachelor Thesis Student2013Prof. Günter Mayer, Department of Chemical Biology
  35. Bayer HealthCareResearch Intern2012Lead Discovery Biochemistry / HTS Technology
  36. Weizmann Institute of ScienceSummer Research Intern2010Prof. Adi Kimchi, Department of Molecular Genetics
  37. LIMES (Life and Medical Sciences) InstituteResearch Intern2010Prof. Michael Hoch, Department of Molecular Developmental Biology

Skills & more

Public Speaking1Team Work1Leadership1Clinical DevelopmentM&A Due DiligenceResearch SkillsBiotechnology IndustryBiomedical ResearchBiotechnologyVenture CapitalPortfolio ManagementInvestment Management
+12 moreDue DiligenceProject ManagementData AnalysisPresentation SkillsCell BiologyWestern BlotCell CultureMolecular BiologyFlow CytometryCancer BiologyGenome EditingMicrosoft PowerPoint

Languages Englisch · French · German · Latin

  • VC University — VC University
  • Included VC Fellowship (2022) — Included VC
  • Beginner to Pro in Excel: Financial Modeling and Valuation — Udemy
  • AI For Everyone — DeepLearning.AI
  • Problem Solving with Excel — PwC
  • Business Strategy Specialization — University of Virginia Darden School of Business
  • Financial Markets (with Honors) — Coursera
  • Introduction to Project Management — edX
  • Business Concepts for Life Scientists — Science Communication Lab
  • Responsible Conduct of Research — Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

From Stella's professional profile.

Investments

Board seats

Delphia TherapeuticsTubulis

Per the firm's website.

Colleagues at Atlas Venture

Aimee Raleigh
Principal at Atlas Venture
Aimee Raleigh, PhD
Principal at Atlas Venture
Akshay Vaishnaw, MD, PhD
Venture Partner at Atlas Venture
Alex Harding, MD, MBA
Entrepreneur-in-Residence; Chief Executive Officer, Stealth NewCo at Atlas Venture
Alex Lugovskoy, PhD
Atlas Advisor; Chief Executive Officer, Diagonal Therapeutics at Atlas Venture
Alfica Sehgal, PhD
Entrepreneur-in-Residence; Chief Scientific Officer, Judo Bio at Atlas Venture
Andrea DiMella
Senior Vice President, Head of Talent at Atlas Venture
Angela Lam
Executive Assistant at Atlas Venture

Frequently asked questions

Who is Stella Paffenholz?
Stella Paffenholz is a senior associate at Atlas Venture, where she builds and invests in early-stage companies developing therapies from novel biology. She was previously a principal on the investment team at Nextech Invest, investing from Series A through public markets, and earlier held roles at McKinsey & Company, Apollo Health Ventures, and Merck KGaA. She holds a PhD from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where she studied genetic determinants of cancer treatment response, along with an MS from the German Cancer Research Center/University of Heidelberg and a BS from the University of Bonn.
Where does Stella Paffenholz work?
Stella Paffenholz is Senior Associate at Atlas Venture.
What does Stella Paffenholz invest in?
Stella Paffenholz invests in Biotech.
What boards does Stella Paffenholz sit on?
Stella Paffenholz holds tracked board seats at Delphia Therapeutics, Tubulis.
Where did Stella Paffenholz go to school?
Stella Paffenholz studied at Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Cancer Biology); Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Drug Development Course - From Molecule to Prescription); Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (Programming for Biology).

Same school

Shared employers