# Rick Klausner

> Rick Klausner is a cell biologist, former director of the U.S. National Cancer Institute, and co-founder of Altos Labs. Across federal research, philanthropy and biotechnology companies including Juno Therapeutics and GRAIL, he has repeatedly helped assemble teams and institutions around ambitious scientific questions.

- **Role:** Chief Scientific Advisor and Founder, Altos Labs; Board Co-Chair
- **Organizations:** Altos Labs, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Illumina, Juno Therapeutics, GRAIL, Lyell Immunopharma, Sonoma Biotherapeutics, LifeMine Therapeutics
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Undergraduate degree, Yale University, MD, Duke University School of Medicine
- **Known for:** Published more than 300 scientific articles, according to Altos Labs., Elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1993., Served as the eleventh director of the National Cancer Institute.

## Career timeline

- **1979** — Joined the National Institutes of Health as a researcher.
- **1984** — Became chief of the new Cell Biology and Metabolism Branch at NICHD.
- **1993** — Elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
- **1995-2001** — Served as the eleventh director of the U.S. National Cancer Institute.
- **2001** — Left NIH to lead the Case Institute of Health, Science and Technology.
- **2002-2005** — Served as executive director for global health at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
- **2013** — Co-founded Juno Therapeutics.
- **2015** — Co-founded GRAIL.
- **2022** — Publicly launched Altos Labs with co-founders Hans Bishop and Hal Barron.
- **2026** — Listed by Altos Labs as chief scientific advisor, founder and board co-chair, following service as chief scientist.

## Achievements

- Published more than 300 scientific articles, according to Altos Labs.
- Elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1993.
- Served as the eleventh director of the National Cancer Institute.
- Co-founded Juno Therapeutics, GRAIL and Altos Labs.
- Led research on cellular trafficking, gene regulation and T-cell signaling.

## Latest updates

- **2024-06** — Appeared on an Aspen Ideas: Health panel about cellular research.
- **2024-08** — Spoke at the Nucleate Alumni Summit; an attendee quoted his call to think bigger together.
- **2026-09** — Altos Labs lists him as chief scientific advisor, founder and board co-chair.

## Links

- Website: https://www.altoslabs.com/team/rick-klausner
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-klausner-6a643839

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/rick-klausner
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-29