Adam Freund

Adam Freund is the founder and CEO of Arda Therapeutics. Adam was previously a Principal Investigator 2 at Calico Life Sciences, where they led multiple R&D teams focused on understanding and modulating the aging process.

At Calico, Adam initiated and led the company's most advanced anti-aging therapeutic program, a first-in-class biologic that neutralizes a validated aging pathway. The project successfully transitioned from early-stage research through multiple stages of the drug development pipeline. As a member of the leadership team, Adam coordinated activities including target discovery, target validation, preclinical proof of concept, mechanism of action investigation, biomarker development, lead optimization, pharmacology, DMPK, safety, first-in-human planning, and IP considerations.

Adam also founded and managed a research lab with the mission of developing interventions that slow or reverse aspects of aging. The lab utilized a wide variety of tools including small molecules, biologics, gene therapy, cell therapy, preclinical models, mouse genetics, human biospecimens, modern cell and molecular biology techniques, functional genomics (CRISPR/Cas9), single-cell RNA sequencing, genome-wide association studies, automated behavioral monitoring, high content imaging, FACS, machine learning and bioinformatics.

In addition to their work on anti-aging therapies, Adam initiated and led multiple early stage R&D programs applying big data analytics and machine learning to dimensional representations of cell and organism state.

Adam helped grow Calico from 15 to >200 employees. Adam managed direct reports and matrixed teams. Collaborated with dozens of CROs, academics, and industry partners. Enthusiastically took part in the “whatever needs doing” model of a growing startup – contributed to early decisions regarding infrastructure, hiring, company strategy, and business development. Routinely gave presentations to executive management to update on lab progress, preclinical development, external collaborations, and to propose new directions for the company.

Adam Freund received a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of California, Berkeley. Adam then pursued a career in biotech entrepreneurship, first at the University of California, San Francisco and then at Stanford University, where they received a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering.

A direct report to Adam Freund is and Remi-Martin Laberge - VP, Research.