Vida Ventures is a next-generation life sciences investment firm that is passionate about building and funding medical breakthroughs.

Venture Capital

Vida Ventures

Joshua is a Co-Founder and Director of [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures).

Joshua Kazam is a Co-Founder and Partner of [Two River](/org/two-river), where he has served as Partner since its inception in 2004. He is a Co-Founder and Director of [Allogene Therapeutics](/org/allogene-therapeutics), and was a Co-Founder and Director of Kite Pharma, where he served on the Board of Directors from inception until its acquisition by [Gilead Sciences](/org/gilead-sciences) in 2017. Joshua also serves as a Director of several privately held companies including [Kronos Bio](/org/kronos-bio), [Hubble Contacts](/org/hubble-contacts), ByHeart Inc, and Breakthrough Properties, LLC. Joshua is a Member of the Wharton School’s Undergraduate Executive Board and serves on the Board of the Desert Flower Foundation. He received his B.S. in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Joshua Kazam

Helen S. Kim is a Senior Managing Director at Vida Ventures.

Ms. Kim has over 27 years of experience in leadership roles in biotechnology. Most recently, Ms. Kim was a Partner at The Column Group. Prior, Ms. Kim served as Executive Vice President of Business Development at Kite Pharma, Inc. where she led all business and corporate development initiatives successfully selling Kite Pharma to Gilead in 2017.

Previously, Ms. Kim served as Strategic Advisor of NGM Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. from January 2012 through November 2014. Ms. Kim served as the Chief Business Officer at NGM Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. from August 2009 to January 2012. Prior to NGM, she was the Chief Executive Officer and President of Kosan Biosciences where she restructured and repositioned the company prior to successfully selling the company to Bristol-Myers Squibb in 2008. Ms. Kim’s additional industry experience includes executive positions at Affymax, Onyx Pharmaceuticals and Chiron Corporation. Ms. Kim received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University and a M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.

Ms. Kim currently serves on the Board of Directors for A2 Biotherapeutics, Inc., ReCode Therapeutics, Inc., IconOVir Bio, Inc., Aktis Oncology, PACT Pharma, Protego Therapeutics, and InduPro Labs.

Helen S. Kim

Owen Witte received his undergraduate degree from Cornell and his MD from [Stanford University](/org/stanford). He completed postdoctoral research at MIT then joined the faculty at UCLA where he presently is a University Professor of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics and holds the President’s Chair in Developmental Immunology. He is the Director of the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA.

Dr. Witte has made significant contributions to the understanding of human leukemias, immune disorders, and epithelial cancer stem cells. His work includes the discovery of tyrosine kinase activity for the ABL gene and the demonstration of the BCR-ABL oncoproteins in human leukemias. This has had practical impact in leading to the development of kinase targeted therapy as an effective treatment for these leukemias and other cancers. His work also led to the co-discovery of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) which is required for normal B-lymphocyte development, and when mutated leads to X-linked agammaglobulinemia, a form of immune deficiency. New inhibitors for BTK are entering clinical practice for the treatment of certain lymphomas and leukemias. Recent work has concentrated on defining the stem cells for epithelial cancers of the prostate and other organ sites to help define new types of therapy for these diseases.

Dr. Witte has extensive experience consulting in the biotech and pharmaceutical industry. He is currently on the Board of Directors and Scientific Advisory Board at [Allogene Therapeutics](/org/allogene-therapeutics), and a Founder and Scientific Advisory Board Chair at [Kronos Bio](/org/kronos-bio).

He is a member of the [National Academy of Sciences](/org/national-academy-of-sciences), the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Medicine. He has received many awards for his research including most recently the Association of American Medical College’s Award for Distinguished Research in Biomedical Sciences and the [Stanford University](/org/stanford) School of Medicine’s Arthur Kornberg and Paul Berg Lifetime Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences.

Owen Witte

Jean-Philippe Kouakou-Zebouah is the current Chief Financial and Operating Officer at [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures). Prior to this, they served as Senior Vice President - Finance at [Versant Ventures](/org/versant-ventures) from August 2017 to September 2019. From February 2009 to July 2017, they were the Senior Director - Head of Finance for US Bio Oncology Business Unit at [Genentech](/org/genentech). Jean-Philippe also served as the CFO at OQO from July 2007 to February 2009 and as the Director - Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A) at Solectron from July 2006 to July 2007.

Kouakou-Zebouah began their career at [Levi Strauss & Co](/org/levi-strauss-co) in March 2002 as Senior Manager, Finance & Strategy. Jean-Philippe then moved to [Booz Allen Hamilton](/org/booz-allen-hamilton) in August 2000 as an Associate before joining PriceWaterhouseCoopers in July 1994 as a Manager.

Jean-Philippe Kouakou-Zebouah has an MBA from [Harvard Business School](/org/harvard-business-school), a BS from [ESSEC Business School](/org/essec-business-school), and is a CPA from CNAM - Paris.

They are on a team with Kate Bechtold - Senior Director, Investor Relations, Rajul Jain - Managing Director, and Alicia McCauley - Executive Assistant. Their manager is Arie Belldegrun, Co-Founder & Senior Managing Director. Some direct reports include Stephanie Ott - Senior Accounting Associate, Scott Mccurry - Senior Accounting Associate, and Travis Olson - Senior Accounting Associate.

Jean-Philippe Kouakou-Zebouah

Travis Olson is a Senior Accounting Associate at [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures). Travis previously worked as a Senior Associate, Accounting at TPG from April 2020 to March 2021. Prior to that, they were an Equity Trader at the Employees Retirement System of Texas from March 2012 to March 2020. Before that, they were a Tax Analyst at Marsh & McLennan Companies from January 2011 to March 2012. Travis began their career as a Staff Accountant at [IBC Bank](/org/ibc-bank) from May 2010 to December 2010.

Travis Olson has a Bachelor of Business Administration from St. Edward's University in Finance and is certified from the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy as a CPA with License # 110768.

Their manager is Jean-Philippe Kouakou-Zebouah, Chief Financial and Operating Officer. They are on a team with Victoria Stephens - Controller, Stephanie Ott - Senior Accounting Associate, and Scott Mccurry - Senior Accounting Associate.

Travis Olson

Victoria Stephens is currently the Controller at [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures). Victoria has previous experience as a Controller at Tarrant Management LLC from January 2018 to April 2021, Vice President at TPG Sixth Street Partners from April 2017 to November 2018, and Assistant Vice President at SandsPoint Capital Advisors LLC from April 2014 to April 2017. In their role as Accounting Manager for two private equity funds totaling $4.2 billion holding investments in domestic and foreign regions, they were responsible for all aspects of financial reporting. This included preparing monthly financial statements, overseeing the annual audit process, and managing the budgeting and forecasting process. Prior to their work in private equity, they were an Accounting Supervisor at [The Bombay Company](/org/the-bombay-company) from March 2000 to May 2002. Victoria Stephens has over 20 years of experience in accounting and finance.

Victoria Stephens has a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from The University of Texas at Arlington.

Some of their coworkers include Kate Bechtold - Senior Director, Investor Relations, Clint Spruill - Accounting Manager, and Travis Olson - Senior Accounting Associate. Their manager is Jean-Philippe Kouakou-Zebouah, Chief Financial and Operating Officer.

Victoria Stephens

Stephanie Ott, CPA, is a Senior Accounting Associate at Vida Ventures.

Stephanie has over thirteen years of experience in small business and partnership accounting, private equity, fund administration, financial reporting, and investment management. Prior to her role at Vida, Stephanie worked as an Accounting Manager for Tarrant Management, TPG’s Family Office. Stephanie’s previous work experience also includes roles at MUFG Investor Services (Formerly UBS Fund Services (Cayman) Ltd.), Quantlab Financial and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Stephanie received her BSBA in finance and accounting from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. She earned her master’s degree in accounting from Texas A&M University and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Stephanie Ott

Alex Loftis, Ph.D. is an Associate at Vida Ventures.

Before joining Vida’s Los Angeles office in 2022, Alex was a life sciences consultant at L.E.K. Consulting in Boston, where he focused on due diligence and corporate strategy for biopharma clients. Prior to that, Alex worked as a Fellow in Vida’s Boston office. Alex received his Ph.D. from MIT, where studied antigen-specific tolerance induction, peptide drug discovery, and protein engineering as a Biotechnology Training Program Fellow. He graduated summa cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis with an A.B. in Chemistry.

Alex Loftis

Alicia McCauley is an Executive Assistant at Vida Ventures.

Prior to Vida, Alicia worked as a Project Manager at InLine Mechanical LLC. As a Project Manager, Alicia was responsible for tracking project schedules firmwide, ensuring all deadlines were met in a timely manner, and building/maintaining independent and long-term relationships with General Contractor companies to ensure needs were being met. Alicia’s previous experience includes various roles in project management, operations, and marketing.

Alicia received her B.S. in Business Management from Roger Williams University.

Alicia McCauley

Alex was most recently a member of Kite Pharma’s Corporate Strategy team, where he drove development of long-range strategic plans and processes to scale up organizational agility. Previously, Alex gained a breadth of entrepreneurial experience through his work with early-stage companies, accelerators/incubators, and as a founding member of a Y Combinator-backed medical device company.

Alex received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering with a focus in Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) and Nanotechnology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Alex remains involved with academia, contributing to entrepreneurial programs at UCLA.

Alex Shen

Scott McCurry is a Senior Accounting Associate at Vida Ventures.

Scott has over 14 years of experience in family fund accounting, real-estate, private investments, healthcare, insurance and public audit services. Prior to his role at Vida, Scott worked as a Senior Accountant for Tarrant Management, TPG’s Family Office.

Scott received his BA in accounting and finance from Texas Tech University and his master’s degree from The University of Texas at Dallas.

Scott Mccurry

Jessica Lasorsa is an Executive Assistant at Vida Ventures.

Previously, Jessica held a variety of administrative, operational, and managerial roles across companies focused in the health and wellness industry. Prior to that, Jessica worked for And Partners, a branding and design agency in New York City, where she supported the President of the company.

Jessica received her B.S. degree in Mass Communications (Public Relations, Journalism) from Miami University.

Jessica Lasorsa

Rajul Jain, M.D. is a Managing Director at Vida Ventures and physician-scientist by background.

Prior to coming to Vida, he was most recently leading the Development organization at Kite Pharma, a Gilead company where he oversaw a team of approximately 200 people developing engineered cell therapy products to treat a variety of blood cancers and solid tumors. Rajul joined Kite in 2014 and was instrumental to the company’s growth and success, including the advancement of Yescarta® and Tecartus® from pre-IND phase through global regulatory approvals.

Previously, Rajul was at Amgen where his last role was Global Development Lead. There he oversaw the development of small molecules and biologics in the oncology and bone health therapeutic areas and was instrumental in advancing the R&D pipeline including regulatory approvals of Xgeva and Prolia.

Rajul completed his BA in chemistry and biochemistry at Rice University, and MD and Internal Medicine internship and residency at UT Southwestern Medical school, where he was a Howard Hughes Fellow. He completed his post-doctoral training in biophysics at Rockefeller University, and fellowship training at MD Anderson Cancer Center, where he was Chief Fellow.

Rajul serves on the Board of Directors of Capstan Therapeutics, InnoSkel, LocanaBio, and Neogene Therapeutics.  Rajul was previously a volunteer Attending Physician treating underserved patients at UCLA Harbor Medical Center and continues to lecture regularly at UCLA.

Rajul Jain

Fred Cohen

Kate Bechtold, M.B.A. is Senior Director of Investor Relations and Communications for [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures).

Kate most recently served as Senior Director of Investor Relations for [UroGen Pharma](/org/urogen-pharma) where she developed and implemented a strategic IR program from the ground up and also played a central role in the communications efforts for the approval and launch of Jelmyto™, (mitomycin) for pyelocalyceal solution, the first and only non-surgical treatment indicated for adults with low-grade upper tract urothelial cancer. Previously, Kate served as a key member of the Kite Pharma Investor Relations and Communications team in multiple roles, including Associate Director of Investor Relations and Associate Director of Product Communications, where she supported the approval and launch of Yescarta™ (axicabtagene ciloleucel), the first approved chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T therapy for the treatment of adult patients with relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma. With an extensive healthcare background, Kate’s prior experience includes roles of increasing responsibility at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. She holds a B.A. from Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences and an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.

Kate Bechtold

Stefan Vitorovic

Arjun Goyal

Arie Belldegrun

Christine Cassiano

Heba Nowyhed

Jill Goldstein

Ralph DeBerardinis, M.D., Ph.D. is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board at [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures).

Ralph has been on the faculty at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center since 2008. He is a Professor in the Children’s Medical Center Research Institute and an Investigator in the [Howard Hughes Medical Institute](/org/howard-hughes-medical-institute). Ralph serves as Chief of Pediatric Genetics and Metabolism and directs the Genetic and Metabolic Disease Program at UT Southwestern. His laboratory studies the role of altered metabolic states in human diseases, including cancer and pediatric inborn errors of metabolism. He has published over 200 research articles in genetics and metabolism and is on the editorial board of several journals. He has also served on the Scientific Advisory Boards of several companies, including [Agios Pharmaceuticals](/org/agios-pharmaceuticals) and [Peloton Therapeutics](/org/peloton-therapeutics).

 

Ralph was born and raised in the Philadelphia area, earning a B.S. in Biology from St. Joseph’s University and M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the [University of Pennsylvania](/org/university-of-pennsylvania). He trained in Pediatrics, Medical Genetics and Clinical Biochemical Genetics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, ultimately obtaining board certification in all three areas. Ralph performed post-doctoral work with Craig Thompson, M.D., in the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute at Penn, where he began to establish versatile systems to assess metabolism in cancer cells and tissues. Work in the DeBerardinis lab at UT Southwestern has uncovered new pathways and new metabolic liabilities in human cancer, and has used clinical genomics and metabolomics to identify new Mendelian metabolic diseases in children.

Dr. DeBerardinis has received several awards for his laboratory’s contributions, including an Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Cancer Institute in 2017 and the Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Medicine from the Academy of Medicine, Engineering & Science of Texas in 2019. He was elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation in 2012 and to the Association of American Physicians and National Academy of Medicine in 2020.

Ralph DeBerardinis

Dinah Sah, Ph.D. is a Scientific Advisor to [Vida Ventures](/org/vida-ventures).

She most recently served as Chief Scientific Officer at [Voyager Therapeutics](/org/voyager-therapeutics), a biotech company that she helped launch in 2014, focused on the discovery and development of AAV gene therapy for the treatment of severe neurological diseases. Prior to [Voyager Therapeutics](/org/voyager-therapeutics), Dinah was Vice President of Research at [Alnylam Pharmaceuticals](/org/alnylam-pharmaceuticals), and led research efforts from 2005-2012 to develop a new class of drugs based on RNA interference. She previously served at [Biogen](/org/biogen) from 1999-2005 and Signal Pharmaceuticals from 1993-1999 where she provided neuroscience research leadership focused on protein therapeutics and neural stem cells, respectively. Dinah’s accomplishments include leadership of multiple programs from early research through Phase 1 clinical trials, and the discovery of novel therapeutic targets and drug candidates that advanced into clinical development. Her leadership of drug discovery and development programs based on RNAi therapeutics resulted in the landmark demonstration of human proof-of-mechanism for this novel class of drugs in TTR amyloidosis patients which led to the approval of ONPATTRO® (patisiran).

Dinah obtained a B.S. in Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in Neurobiology from [Harvard University](/org/harvard). She serves as a member of the scientific advisory boards of [Voyager Therapeutics](/org/voyager-therapeutics). 

Dinah Sah

Howard Y. Chang M.D., Ph.D. is Director of the Center for Personal Dynamic Regulomes and the Virginia and D.K. Ludwig Professor of Cancer Genomics at [Stanford University](/org/stanford). He is a [Howard Hughes Medical Institute](/org/howard-hughes-medical-institute) Investigator; he is also Professor of Dermatology and of Genetics at [Stanford University](/org/stanford) School of Medicine. Chang earned a Ph.D. in Biology from MIT, M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and completed Dermatology residency and postdoctoral training at [Stanford University](/org/stanford). His research addresses how large sets of genes are turned on or off together, which is important in normal development, cancer, and aging. Chang discovered a new class of genes, termed long noncoding RNAs, can control gene activity throughout the genome, illuminating a new layer of biological regulation. He invented ATAC-seq and other new methods for defining DNA regulatory elements genome-wide and in single cells. The long term goal of his research is to decipher the regulatory information in the genome to benefit human health.

Dr. Chang is a member of the [National Academy of Sciences](/org/national-academy-of-sciences), National Academy of Medicine, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and Academia Sinica. His honors include the NAS Award for Molecular Biology, Outstanding Investigator Award of the [National Cancer Institute](/org/national-cancer-institute), Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research, Judson Daland Prize of the American Philosophical Society, and the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise. His work was honored by the journal Cell as a Landmark paper over the last 40 years and by Science as “Insight of the decade”.

Dr. Chang co-founded Epinomics (now part of 10x Genomics), [Accent Therapeutics](/org/accent-therapeutics), and [Boundless Bio](/org/boundless-bio).

Vida Ventures

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