DIGITAL HEALTH / AI
DIGITAL HEALTH / AI
GENE / CELL THERAPIES
NASDAQ: RCKT
GENE / CELL THERAPIES
NASDAQ: RCKT
GENOMICS / DIAGNOSTICS
GENOMICS / DIAGNOSTICS
SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
REGENERATIVE MEDICINE
REGENERATIVE MEDICINE
MEET THE TEAM
General Partner
Shahram is the Founder and General Partner of Civilization Ventures, a mentor capital firm focused on supporting cutting edge innovations in health tech and biology.
Prior to founding Civilization Ventures, Shahram was a life sciences entrepreneur and angel investor for more than a decade. Shahram was the founding CEO and later Executive Chairman of Rgenix, a biotech company with multiple first-in-class therapeutics for cancer now in Phase 2 clinical trials. Prior to Rgenix, he was founding CFO and VP of Corporate Development at NextBio, a genomics pioneer acquired by Illumina. Shahram sits on the boards of Rewrite and Foresight and has been one of the first checks into frontier tech companies such as Omada Health, CatalogDNA, Evonetix, BilliontoOne, Lemonaid Health, Outpace Bio, Ample, Avantome (acquired by Illumina), Bina (acquired by Roche), Rocket Pharma (IPO), and Counsyl (acquired by Myriad).
Shahram began his career in Silicon Valley over twenty years ago at Wilson Sonsini and went on to advise some of the world’s preeminent technology leaders while at Goldman Sachs. He earned his JD from Harvard Law School and obtained a BA in Economics from Pomona College. Shahram founded CV in 2017 to support innovations that could – with some luck and perseverance – improve human health, preserve the world’s natural resources, and further our shared civilization.
General Partner
Shahram is the Founder and General Partner of Civilization Ventures, a mentor capital firm focused on supporting cutting edge innovations in health tech and biology.
Prior to founding Civilization Ventures, Shahram was a life sciences entrepreneur and angel investor for more than a decade. Shahram was the founding CEO and later Executive Chairman of Rgenix, a biotech company with multiple first-in-class therapeutics for cancer now in Phase 2 clinical trials. Prior to Rgenix, he was founding CFO and VP of Corporate Development at NextBio, a genomics pioneer acquired by Illumina. Shahram sits on the boards of Rewrite and Foresight and has been one of the first checks into frontier tech companies such as Omada Health, CatalogDNA, Evonetix, BilliontoOne, Lemonaid Health, Outpace Bio, Ample, Avantome (acquired by Illumina), Bina (acquired by Roche), Rocket Pharma (IPO), and Counsyl (acquired by Myriad).
Shahram began his career in Silicon Valley over twenty years ago at Wilson Sonsini and went on to advise some of the world’s preeminent technology leaders while at Goldman Sachs. He earned his JD from Harvard Law School and obtained a BA in Economics from Pomona College. Shahram founded CV in 2017 to support innovations that could – with some luck and perseverance – improve human health, preserve the world’s natural resources, and further our shared civilization.
Vice President
Themasap is the Vice President of Civilization Ventures, where he leads the firm’s scientific due diligence and academic outreach programs. Themasap has been with CV since 2018 at the inception of Civilization Ventures’ second fund.
Themasap received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, where he was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and Stanford Graduate Fellow. His research focused on using stem cell biology, genome engineering, and live imaging to elucidate biological mechanisms underlying neuropsychiatric disorders and was published in Nature Medicine. Themasap’s other research works have been published in Neuron and Cell Reports.
Prior to Civilization Ventures, Themasap consulted for CRV, Menlo Ventures and Biotech Connection Bay Area. He also started and led a successful tutoring business while at Stanford. Themasap obtained his B.S. in Neuroscience from NYU where he also did primary cancer research.
Analyst
Ruxandra is a part-time Analyst at Civilization Ventures where she works on the due diligence team and assists on other projects, including the Civilization Fellowship Program. She is currently a genomics PhD student at the University of Cambridge and the Sanger Institute. Prior to her PhD, Ruxandra obtained her Masters degree in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford. Ruxandra’s graduate work is focussed on the topic of “somatic evolution” and its interplay with ageing and cancer. You can read more about her work in her blog post.
Ruxandra was born and raised in Iasi, Romania. In her free time, she enjoys reading literature, the visual arts and philosophy.
Analyst
Ruxandra is a part-time Analyst at Civilization Ventures where she works on the due diligence team and assists on other projects, including the Civilization Fellowship Program. She is currently a genomics PhD student at the University of Cambridge and the Sanger Institute. Prior to her PhD, Ruxandra obtained her Masters degree in Biochemistry from the University of Oxford. Ruxandra’s graduate work is focussed on the topic of “somatic evolution” and its interplay with ageing and cancer. You can read more about her work in her blog post.
Ruxandra was born and raised in Iasi, Romania. In her free time, she enjoys reading literature, the visual arts and philosophy.
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