TrialSpark is building a next generation pharma company focused on bringing new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently. Despite the sweeping technological changes transforming biotech, bringing a new drug to market still takes longer than ten years and costs billions of dollars. The time and costs of drug development continue to increase, contributing to rising drug prices, inflated healthcare costs, and, ultimately, decreased access to treatments for patients.
Since its launch in 2016 by CEO Benjamine Liu, a Yale and Oxford-trained computational biologist and COO Linhao Zhang, a veteran of Salesforce and Oscar Health, TrialSpark has built a tech-enabled clinical trial engine that offers enhanced study quality and speed through real-time access to data, innovative trial design, and operational agility.
The company raised $156mm Series C in 2021, and is using those funds to acquire and/or partner on clinical stage pharmaceutical assets to develop through their in-house clinical trial platform, and also to invest in biotech companies with promising drug candidates ready for development.
Gavin Corcoran and James Leslie, who both started their roles at TrialSpark in November 2021, are joining the company at a pivotal moment of growth as it scales its efforts across drug acquisition, strategic partnerships, clinical development, and hiring.
“I am excited to be part of TrialSpark’s mission to bring medicines to patients faster and cheaper,” said Gavin Corcoran. “I am really looking forward to adding my experience in the pharmaceutical industry to the outstanding technology platform that the team has built, so that together we can develop the next steps to achieve this mission.”
Gavin Corcoran will oversee the scientific and medical input to the drug development process, ranging from the business development efforts to identify new products through the medical oversight of clinical trials to the regulatory filings and approval of the products. Prior to joining TrialSpark, he held several senior leadership roles including the CMO at Allergan and Stiefel where he provided oversight of the regulatory approval of many products across a number of therapeutic areas. Gavin’s academic training is in infectious diseases and he was on the faculty of the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio, TX prior to joining the pharmaceutical industry over 20 years ago.
“The team at TrialSpark has built a powerful platform to bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently,” said James Leslie, “and I am tremendously excited to be a part of the company’s next phase of growth.”
James Leslie will oversee all financial operations at TrialSpark, with a specific focus on drug asset acquisition and strategic partnerships. Prior to joining TrialSpark, James spent eleven years as a CFO at PE and VC-backed growth stage companies, including Celmatix, TitleVest, and Flatiron School. Prior to becoming a CFO, he was an investment banker in the Restructuring and Reorganization Advisory at The Blackstone Group. James earned his BA from Vassar College and MBA from Columbia Business School.
“Our ambition to create a new kind of pharma company that can leverage technology and data to fundamentally transform how we bring new treatments to patients will require the best talent from across different industries,” said TrialSpark Co-Founder and CEO Benjamine Liu. “Gavin Corcoran’s experience acquiring, developing, and commercializing drugs will be invaluable as we scale our drug acquisition and development efforts. James Leslie’s leadership across healthcare, technology, and private equity will be vital as we build a portfolio of drug assets and develop structures that create maximal value for each program. I’m excited to share the journey ahead with Gavin and James to build a next generation pharma company.”
About TrialSpark
TrialSpark is a technology-driven pharma company that runs end-to-end clinical trials, focused on bringing new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently. TrialSpark has built a technology platform that optimizes all aspects of a clinical trial, enabling more efficient trial design, faster trial completion, and higher trial data quality. TrialSpark in-licenses and co-develops drug programs through in-house development, joint ventures, and NewCos. TrialSpark is backed by leading investors such as Sam Altman, Lachy Groom, Michael Moritz, Casdin Capital, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, Dragoneer, Section 32, John Doerr, Spark Capital, Felicis Ventures, Sound Ventures, Arrowmark, and previous investors.
