Craig C. Chambliss

Craig Chambliss has 30 years invested in the biopharma and drug delivery arenas, with primary focus on rare diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) and epilepsy, in particular. He co-founded Neurelis in 2007, serving as CEO and President, and has raised over $300M in funding to progress the company to a fully integrated organization, from early-stage development through commercialization.

Mr. Chambliss was previously integral to the reengineering of NextWave Pharmaceuticals to a CNS focus as Chief Business Officer, raising $45M in Series C financing and culminating in the sale of NextWave to Pfizer for over $700M in 2012. Prior to NextWave and Neurelis, he led commercial operations at Questcor Pharmaceuticals, from 2005-2007, where he was integral in also engineering the transition to a CNS-focused company and establishing the commercial infrastructure to support the relaunch of Acthar® Gel (repository corticotropin injection) to treat a rare epilepsy disorder in pediatrics.

Mr. Chambliss began his career in pharmaceutical sales at Bristol Myers Squibb and joined Alza Pharmaceuticals upon the launch of their commercial organization in 1994. While at Alza Pharmaceuticals, he served in various sales and marketing roles prior to joining Elan Pharmaceuticals, where he served as Director of Business Development for CNS assets. In 2001, along with other former Dura and Elan executives, Mr. Chambliss launched Xcel Pharmaceuticals, a CNS start-up focused on epilepsy and, primarily, the treatment of seizure emergencies. He led commercial operations and the successful launch of Diastat® (diazepam rectal gel) until Xcel's acquisition by Valeant Pharmaceuticals in 2005 for $280M. Mr. Chambliss holds a BS in Finance and a BS in Accounting from Missouri State University.