Andy Herbert — Founder

Founder, executive director, and Chief Scientific Officer with experience building and leading biotech companies across immunology, antibody and biologics platforms, translational medicine, and early clinical development. I have co-founded multiple life-science companies, including Gemini Therapeutics, which progressed from founding science to NASDAQ listing (GMTX), and Invizius, where I remained as an executive through pre-clinical development, first-in-human studies, and £12m+ in private financing. My work focuses on identifying and validating biologically differentiated therapeutic platforms, protecting them through disciplined IP strategy, and de-risking them via rigorous experimental and clinical design. I have applied this approach across inflammation, fibrosis, oncology-adjacent biology, and other immunology-driven indications including mechanism-driven antibody discovery and functional biologics programmes. Alongside my scientific roles, I have operated within executive leadership teams, contributing to company-level decision-making, operational prioritisation, and capital allocation in lean biotech environments. I have led the translation of scientific concepts into coherent company strategy, shaping organisational structure, programme focus, and execution momentum in ways aligned with founder-CEO responsibilities. I have also developed hands-on literacy in applied machine learning and AI, enabling me to critically evaluate data-driven approaches in biology and to guide their appropriate use in target validation, translational strategy, and clinical decision-making. I have held statutory director roles, operated at board level, and worked closely with investors, clinicians, and regulators to align data, strategy, and governance. I am interested in CSO, CEO, and non-executive director roles where strong science, capital discipline, and clear execution are required to build enduring biotech value.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a leader in biotechnology with a focus on immunology and translational medicine.

Experience: 20 yrs 9 mos

Skills

Biotechnology
Ip Strategy
Clinical Strategy
Translational Medicine
Operations Management
Drug Development
Strategic Thinking
Molecular Biology
Biochemistry
Protein Chemistry
Biophysics
Structural Biology

Career Highlights

Co-founded multiple successful biotech companies.
Led innovative clinical strategies in immunology.
Expert in translating complex science into business value.

Work Experience

Invizius

Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) (6 yrs 3 mos)

Founder and Executive Director (6 yrs 2 mos)

GEMINI THERAPEUTICS

Founder and Scientific Advisor: Precision Complement Therapuetics (4 yrs 11 mos)

The University of Edinburgh

Project Director - Translational Impact (2 yrs 8 mos)

Structural biologist and Biophysicist (3 yrs 11 mos)

AH-Bio

Founder, Biotechnology Venture & Platform Creation (11 yrs 5 mos)

University of Liverpool

NMR Structural biologist (1 yr 4 mos)

University of Edinburgh

Post doctoral research fellow (5 yrs)

University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler

Post Doctoral Research Fellow (3 yrs)

Education

PhD at The University of Edinburgh

Bsc (Hons) at University of Aberdeen

at Stockport Grammar School

Andy Herbert

Founder

United Kingdom20 yrs 9 mos experience

Most Likely To SwitchAI Enabled

Key Highlights

Co-founded multiple successful biotech companies.
Led innovative clinical strategies in immunology.
Expert in translating complex science into business value.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a leader in biotechnology with a focus on immunology and translational medicine.

Contact

Skills

Core Skills

BiotechnologyIp StrategyClinical StrategyTranslational MedicineOperations ManagementDrug DevelopmentStrategic ThinkingMolecular BiologyBiochemistryProtein ChemistryBiophysicsStructural Biology

Other Skills

MedtechTranslational risk managementValue-inflection-point planningDrug DevManagementClinical TrialsComplementImmunologyPre-Clinical DevelopmentPre-clinical StudiesResearch and Development (R&D)cmcBoard of DirectorsTeam LeadershipFermentation Process Development

About

Experience

20 yrs 9 mos

Total Experience

4 yrs 11 mos

Average Tenure

11 yrs 5 mos

Current Experience

Invizius

2 roles

Chief Scientific Officer (CSO)

Apr 2018 – Jul 2024 · 6 yrs 3 mos · Motherwell, Scotland, United Kingdom · On-site

As Chief Scientific Officer, I led the scientific, translational, and clinical strategy for Invizius, a complement-modulating biologics and surface-coating platform company developing the H-Guard® technology to reduce inflammatory and immune responses during acute and chronic dialysis.
Key responsibilities and achievements
Led scientific and translational strategy across biologics and device-enabled platform development, from concept through first-in-human clinical evaluation.
Designed and executed the world’s largest observational study examining inflammatory and complement activation kinetics during human dialysis, validating the clinical hypothesis and informing patient selection.
Oversaw pre-clinical and early-phase clinical programmes, including protocol design, data interpretation, and clinical reporting.
Worked closely with CMOs, CROs, clinicians, and regulators to ensure compliance with regulatory and ethical requirements.
Commissioned and directed development of antibody-based reagents, including single-domain antibodies (VNAR/nanobody) and polyclonal reagents, to support assay development and platform validation.
Owned the scientific narrative for investors, partners, and clinicians, translating complex immunology into clear, decision-driving materials.

Drug DevClinical StrategyManagementClinical TrialsComplementTranslational Medicine+2

Founder and Executive Director

Apr 2018 – Jun 2024 · 6 yrs 2 mos · Motherwell, Scotland, United Kingdom · On-site

Co-founded Invizius to commercialise a novel complement-regulating fluid-coating technology (H-Guard®), addressing inflammatory complications in dialysis and extracorporeal therapies.
Key responsibilities and achievements
Co-founded the company and helped shape its scientific vision, IP strategy, and commercial positioning.
Raised £12m+ from generalist and specialist investors by distilling complex immunology into compelling, accessible investment materials.
Managed the intellectual property portfolio, working with legal teams to protect platform technology and downstream applications.
Contributed to company strategy, governance, and external partnerships, including academic and clinical collaborators.
Supported early operational build-out across R&D, clinical, and investor relations.

Operations ManagementDrug DevPre-clinical StudiesResearch and Development (R&D)cmcBoard of Directors+14

Gemini therapeutics

Founder and Scientific Advisor: Precision Complement Therapuetics

Feb 2016 – Jan 2021 · 4 yrs 11 mos · Greater Boston · Hybrid

Co-founded Gemini Therapeutics as a precision complement therapeutics company in 2016, which progressed from founding science to NASDAQ listing (GMTX) during my tenure. My responsibilities spanned scientific strategy, complement biology, and early translational and IP development, prior to the appointment of a full executive team.
Key contributions
Designed and directed a mechanism-driven antibody discovery programme translating Factor H activation biology into a functional antibody fragment, with validation of enhanced C3d binding and decay-accelerating activity.
Defined the scientific and technological platform around complement modulation and biologics strategy.
Led early IP strategy, including patentable concepts foundational to the company’s pipeline.
Supported company formation, early financing discussions, and translational strategy.
Worked closely with executive leadership and investors during the company’s formative phase.
Advised on scientific strategy, modality selection, and platform expansion in precision complement therapeutics.
Continued involvement in IP positioning and scientific differentiation.

The university of edinburgh

2 roles

Project Director - Translational Impact

Jul 2015 – Mar 2018 · 2 yrs 8 mos · Greater Edinburgh Area

Scientific lead on a project to develop anti-thrombotic and anti-inflammatory coatings for invasive medical devices. The project aims to develop these coatings into a commercial product.

Strategic ThinkingIntellectual PropertyDrug DevAnalytical SkillsSupplier EvaluationResearch and Development (R&D)+26

Structural biologist and Biophysicist

Aug 2011 – Jul 2015 · 3 yrs 11 mos · Greater Edinburgh Area

Structural biologist researching the molecular basis of bacterial evasion of the complement system.
Inventor of a completely novel class of complement inhibitor.

Protein PurificationBiacoreIT ManagementMolecular BiologyAnalytical SkillsBiochemistry+13

Ah-bio

Founder, Biotechnology Venture & Platform Creation

Jan 2015 – Present · 11 yrs 5 mos

Work focused on the creation and early development of biotechnology and medtech ventures, including platform positioning, translational risk management, IP strategy, and value-inflection-point planning. Work has spanned initial concept development through company formation and early financing, contributing to the shaping of scientific and commercial trajectories.
This work has been conducted alongside executive and non-executive roles in portfolio companies, informing subsequent venture formation and leadership roles.

BiotechnologyMedtechIP strategyTranslational risk managementValue-inflection-point planning

University of liverpool

NMR Structural biologist

Apr 2010 – Aug 2011 · 1 yr 4 mos

Structural biology / biophysics - looking at membrane associated proteins

Protein PurificationBiacoreIT ManagementAnalytical SkillsProtein ExpressionProtein Assays+11

University of edinburgh

Post doctoral research fellow

Jan 2005 – Jan 2010 · 5 yrs · Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom · On-site

Researching the mechanism by which an immune system protein recognizes the difference between human surfaces and invading microbes. I use a variety of structural and biophysical techniques to achieve this including: NMR spectroscopy; Surface Plasmon Resonance; Isothermal Titration Calorimetry; and Recombinant Protein Expression using the yeast Pichia pastoris

Protein PurificationStructural Biologystructure calculationsBiacoreIT ManagementMolecular Biology+17

University of texas health science center at tyler

Post Doctoral Research Fellow

Jan 2002 – Jan 2005 · 3 yrs

This project involved solving the atomic structure of a fragment of human factor H which contains the major host recognition regions. Following solving the structure I identified the location of the heparin binding site and compared this to the location of a number of point mutations which had been identified as causing a severe but rare kidney disease (atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome)

Protein PurificationBiacoreBiochemistryProtein ExpressionProtein AssaysNMR Spectroscopy+11