# Andrew Schiermeier

> Andrew Schiermeier is the President and CEO of AvenCell Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Dresden, Germany building switchable, universal CAR-T cell therapies for hard-to-treat cancers like acute myeloid leukemia. An engineer-turned-operator with a Harvard PhD in applied mathematics, he spent two decades across startups and global pharma - five years at CRISPR pioneer Intellia Therapeutics rising to COO, and a stint running Merck KGaA's oncology business across 60-plus countries - before taking AvenCell's helm in 2021 and leading its $112 million Series B in 2024.

- **Role:** President & CEO at AvenCell Therapeutics
- **Organizations:** AvenCell Therapeutics, Intellia Therapeutics, Merck KGaA, Aura Biosciences, Medicine in Need Corporation (MEND), Lantibio, Inc., Regel Therapeutics
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics, Harvard University, M.S. in Biomechanical Engineering, Stanford University, B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, International MBA, College des Ingenieurs, Paris
- **Known for:** Led AvenCell's $112 million Series B financing in October 2024, led by Novo Holdings with F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures Japan, Piper Heartland Healthcare Capital, NYBC Ventures and founding investor Blackstone Life Sciences, Advanced AvenCell's switchable, universal CAR-T platform into clinical trials, including the first patient dosed with lead candidate AVC-201 for relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia, Oversaw a clinical program reporting a 53% overall response rate in an early AML study

## Career timeline

- **2021** — Became President & CEO of AvenCell Therapeutics (August 2021)
- **2016-2021** — Five years at Intellia Therapeutics in successive leadership roles, culminating as Chief Operating Officer
- **earlier** — Senior Vice President and Global Head of Merck KGaA's Oncology Business across 60+ countries; rebuilt the oncology pipeline and oversaw development of a blood-based biopsy
- **earlier** — Chief Operating Officer of Aura Biosciences, a Cambridge biotech using virus-like particles for therapeutics
- **earlier** — Chairman and CEO of Medicine in Need Corporation (MEND), a Gates Foundation-supported nonprofit
- **earlier** — CEO of Lantibio, Inc., a development-stage biotech with late-stage respiratory and ophthalmology compounds
- **2024** — Led AvenCell's $112M Series B financing (October 2024) led by Novo Holdings
- **recent** — Joined the Board of Directors of Regel Therapeutics

## Achievements

- Led AvenCell's $112 million Series B financing in October 2024, led by Novo Holdings with F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads Ventures Japan, Piper Heartland Healthcare Capital, NYBC Ventures and founding investor Blackstone Life Sciences
- Advanced AvenCell's switchable, universal CAR-T platform into clinical trials, including the first patient dosed with lead candidate AVC-201 for relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia
- Oversaw a clinical program reporting a 53% overall response rate in an early AML study
- As COO at Intellia, helped advance the first systemically administered CRISPR-based therapeutic to demonstrate clinical efficacy
- Rebuilt Merck KGaA's oncology pipeline and oversaw development of a commercialized blood-based biopsy

## Latest updates

- **2024-10** — AvenCell raised $112 million in Series B financing led by Novo Holdings.
- **2024-02** — Schiermeier publicly celebrated AvenCell team progress on clinical CAR-T programs.

## Links

- Website: https://avencell.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-schiermeier-8a22a8
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/andrewschiermei

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