# Alexey Lugovskoy

> Alexey 'Alex' Lugovskoy is the co-founder and CEO of Diagonal Therapeutics, a Watertown/Cambridge, Massachusetts biotech building 'clustering' antibodies that switch cellular signaling back on rather than block it. A Harvard-trained biophysicist who left physics after deciding green leaves were more interesting than tau neutrinos, he spent two decades in antibody R&D at Biogen, Merrimack, Morphic, and Dragonfly before launching Diagonal in 2022. He has co-invented an FDA-approved cancer drug, authored more than 100 patents and papers, and edits the antibody journal mAbs. In January 2026 Diagonal closed an oversubscribed $125M Series B co-led by Sanofi Ventures and Janus Henderson to push its lead program, DIAG723, into human trials for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia.

- **Role:** Co-founder, President and CEO at Diagonal Therapeutics
- **Organizations:** Diagonal Therapeutics, Atlas Venture, mAbs (journal), Dragonfly Therapeutics, Morphic Therapeutic, Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Biogen
- **Nationality:** American (raised in the Soviet Union)
- **Education:** B.Sc. in Mathematics and Physics, Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Ph.D. in Biophysics, Harvard University, Advanced Certificate for Executives in Management, Innovation and Technology, MIT Sloan School of Management
- **Known for:** Co-founded and leads Diagonal Therapeutics, raising roughly $253M across Series A and B, Co-inventor of tovorafenib, an FDA-approved (2023) pan-RAF inhibitor for pediatric low-grade glioma, Author of more than 100 patents and manuscripts

## Career timeline

- **1997-2006** — Associate Director of Drug Discovery at Biogen (roughly nine years)
- **2006-2007** — Co-invented tovorafenib (a pan-RAF inhibitor) at Biogen; FDA-approved in April 2023 for pediatric glioma
- **2007-2013** — Vice President of Therapeutics at Merrimack Pharmaceuticals (about six years)
- **2015-2020** — Chief Development Officer at Morphic Therapeutic, taking programs into first-in-human studies
- **2020-2021** — Chief Operating Officer at Dragonfly Therapeutics
- **2022-01** — Co-founded Diagonal Therapeutics; also Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Atlas Venture
- **2024-04** — Diagonal emerges from stealth with $128M Series A led by Atlas, Lightspeed, Velosity
- **2026-01** — Diagonal closes oversubscribed $125M Series B co-led by Sanofi Ventures and Janus Henderson

## Achievements

- Co-founded and leads Diagonal Therapeutics, raising roughly $253M across Series A and B
- Co-inventor of tovorafenib, an FDA-approved (2023) pan-RAF inhibitor for pediatric low-grade glioma
- Author of more than 100 patents and manuscripts
- Associate Editor of mAbs, a journal dedicated to antibody R&D
- Guided multiple oncology, autoimmunity, and rare-disease programs into the clinic across four companies

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Diagonal Therapeutics closed an oversubscribed $125M Series B co-led by Sanofi Ventures and Janus Henderson to fund clinical development of DIAG723.
- **2026-01** — Company plans to initiate its first-in-human trial of DIAG723 in HHT patients in the first half of 2026.

## Links

- Website: https://diagonaltx.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexlugovskoy/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/alexey-lugovskoy
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-14