Avi Spier, Ph.D.

Executive Director, Search & Evaluation, Novartis

Dr. Spier has over 19 years of experience at Novartis, having joined the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation as its Head of Business Development in 2004. In 2012, Avi moved into Novartis BD&L where he is now Executive Director and Head of Search and Evaluation activities for a range of therapeutic areas and disciplines.
Having trained as a postdoc at The Scripps Research Institute in California, in 2001, Avi co-founded La Jolla based Allon Therapeutics, Inc. There he led the peptide therapeutic neurodegenerative disease focused company as its President and CEO through two financing rounds and up to its entry onto the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Avi was educated in Biological Sciences at Oxford University and received his Ph.D. in molecular neuroscience from Cambridge University at the MRC-Laboratory of Molecular Biology.