# Neil Dhawan

> Neil Dhawan is a scientist and entrepreneur who co-founded Dual Therapeutics while a student and later became Totus Medicines’ founding CEO. He moved to CSO and Head of R&D in December 2023, then announced a transition out of day-to-day operations in 2025 while remaining on the board. His career connects academic research, venture financing and cross-disciplinary company building.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and Board Member at Totus Medicines
- **Organizations:** Totus Medicines, Dual Therapeutics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- **Education:** Bachelor of Arts, Biology - Genetics and Molecular Biology, Northwestern University, Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, PhD in Biomedical Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- **Known for:** Co-founded two companies, including Dual Therapeutics while still a student., Led Totus through its public launch and $40 million Series A., Continued as scientific leader following the $66 million Series B and CEO transition.

## Career timeline

- **2013** — Named among the co-founders of Dual Therapeutics in Mount Sinai’s October launch announcement, while a student.
- **2016** — Defended his PhD dissertation on June 21, with Arvin Dar as mentor.
- **2020** — DCVC dates Totus co-founding with Jason Pontin to 2020; earlier company-building work is separately documented.
- **2021** — Led Totus as founding CEO when it publicly launched and announced a $40 million Series A.
- **2023** — Moved to CSO and Head of R&D when Nassim Usman became President and CEO; Totus announced a $66 million Series B.
- **2024** — Delivered the keynote at Mount Sinai’s Lab Coat Ceremony.
- **2025** — Announced departure from day-to-day operations while continuing on Totus’s board.

## Achievements

- Co-founded two companies, including Dual Therapeutics while still a student.
- Led Totus through its public launch and $40 million Series A.
- Continued as scientific leader following the $66 million Series B and CEO transition.
- Invited back to Mount Sinai as the 2024 Lab Coat Ceremony keynote speaker.

## Latest updates

- **2025-07** — Announced a transition out of his day-to-day operating role while remaining on the Board of Directors.
- **2024-09** — Returned to Mount Sinai to address new doctoral students at its Lab Coat Ceremony.
- **2024-05** — Publicly thanked Lilly collaborators Katie Hewitt and Nisha Nanda following Totus’s collaboration announcement.

## Links

- Website: https://www.totusmedicines.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/neil-dhawan-17715b3b/

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/neil-dhawan
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-11