David Schenkein, former chief executive of biopharmaceutical company Agios Pharmaceuticals, has been hired by GV, a corporate venturing subsidiary of internet technology conglomerate Alphabet, as a general partner.
Schenkein had joined Agios in 2009, and helped transform the company from a preclinical-stage startup to a business with two US-approved cancer drugs in the market. He announced his plans to step down from the CEO role in September 2018, though he will remain chairman.
Prior to joining Agios, Schenkein was the senior vice-president of clinical haematology and oncology at pharmaceutical company Genentech, after five years at Millennium Pharmaceuticals where he oversaw the clinical development of Velcade, a cancer therapy aimed at treating non-Hodgkins lymphoma.
In the new role, Schenkein will co-lead GV’s life sciences investment team, which also features fellow general partners Blake Byers and Krishna Yeshwant, the latter of whom was a board member at molecular data technology provider Foundation Medicine with Schenkein.
In addition to focusing on life sciences investments, Schenkein will also help to develop portfolio companies such as Oxford Science Innovation, Impossible Foods, 23andMe, Carrick Therapeutics, Clover Health, Spruce Health and Pact Pharma.
Schenkein told Bloomberg: “I knew I wanted to continue to try and grow the breadth of my impact in healthcare and on patients but do it in a different way.
“I cannot think again of any other firm that has as broad a remit in healthcare. It is the delivery of healthcare; it is the insurance of healthcare; it is healthcare broadly.”
Image of David Schenkein courtesy of GV.