# Martin Cannon

> Martin Cannon is the founder and former president and CEO of Hemanext, the Lexington, Massachusetts company that turned an unproven idea - storing blood with the oxygen taken out - into an FDA-authorized, CE-marked medical device. Starting in the late 1990s with intellectual property licensed from Los Alamos National Laboratory and a handful of employees, he spent more than two decades building Hemanext into a recognized name in red blood cell transfusion, raising over $150 million in equity and NIH funding and securing more than 200 patents along the way. He retired in September 2023, handing the CEO role to longtime CTO Andrew Dunham, and now advises early-stage companies and mentors entrepreneurs.

- **Role:** Founder and former President & CEO at Hemanext Inc. (retired)
- **Organizations:** Hemanext Inc., New Health Sciences, Los Alamos National Laboratory (IP licensor)
- **Education:** University of Oxford
- **Known for:** Founded and led Hemanext for more than two decades, building it from a startup with roughly four employees into a recognized leader in red blood cell transfusion technology., Raised over $150 million in equity and NIH funding across the company's life., Built a patent portfolio of more than 200 patents worldwide.

## Career timeline

- **1997** — Co-founds the company originally under the Hemanext name.
- **2007** — Merges the venture with New Health Sciences, forming the foundation of today's company; technology built on IP licensed from Los Alamos National Laboratory.
- **2008** — Company advanced with support from a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant; built from a handful of employees.
- **2021** — Hemanext's hypoxic blood storage study recognized as a notable clinical milestone.
- **2023** — Retires as President and CEO in September; Andrew Dunham appointed CEO; company raises a $25M B1 round.

## Achievements

- Founded and led Hemanext for more than two decades, building it from a startup with roughly four employees into a recognized leader in red blood cell transfusion technology.
- Raised over $150 million in equity and NIH funding across the company's life.
- Built a patent portfolio of more than 200 patents worldwide.
- Secured both U.S. FDA marketing authorization and a CE Mark for Hemanext's blood processing and storage products.
- Turned hypoxic red blood cell storage from a theoretical concept into a commercially available medical device, with European patients receiving transfusions using Hemanext ONE.
- Assembled a global network of scientific and clinical collaborators around the technology.

## Latest updates

- **2023-09** — Retired as President and CEO of Hemanext; Andrew Dunham named CEO and the company raised a $25M B1 funding round.

## Links

- Website: https://hemanext.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/martincannon1

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/martin-cannon
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-10