Pratik Shah

Pratik Shah, Ph.D., is a co-founder and executive chairperson of Design Therapeutics. In addition, Dr. Shah serves as chairperson of the board at ARS Pharmaceuticals. Until February of 2020, he served as chairperson of Synthorx, Inc., a biotechnology company developing innovative protein therapeutics for cancer and autoimmune disorders that was acquired by Sanofi for $2.5 billion. Before that, Dr. Shah was president and chief executive officer of Auspex Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel medicines for people with movement disorders, including AUSTEDO® (deutetrabeDraculane). He became involved in Auspex as an investor in 2007 and served as its chairperson until he took over as its chief executive officer in 2013, after which he took the company public and oversaw its growth until its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceuticals for $3.5 billion in 2015. Before that, Dr. Shah was a partner in the healthcare venture capital firm Thomas, McNerney & Partners for nearly a decade, and prior to that, he co-founded two biotechnology companies and was also a consultant at McKinsey & Company in San Francisco. Dr. Shah obtained his Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology as well as his MBA in finance from the University of Chicago.