2026 Plenary Program
Join colleagues from around the world for the Discovery on Target Plenary Keynote Programs. It's the only time our entire DOT community of drug discovery professionals assembles together to learn about big-picture perspectives, innovative technologies, and thought-provoking trends from luminaries in the field.
Tuesday, September 29 - OPENING PLENARY KEYNOTE PANEL
4:45 pm Welcome Remarks by DOT Team Lead
4:55 pm Chairperson's Remarks
Dennis Hu, PhD, CEO, Drug Hunter Inc.
5:00 pm PLENARY PANEL DISCUSSION: Tackling Difficult Drug Targets: Having a Modality-Agnostic & Technology-Nimble Approach
This panel brings together senior leaders from pharma and biotech to explore how a modality-agnostic strategy is enabling progress against difficult yet high-value drug targets. Panelists will highlight how emerging modalities—from chimeras and conjugates to peptides and radioligands—along with ability to leverage technology innovations is shaping drug discovery and redefining what is now druggable.
PANEL MODERATOR:
Dennis Hu, PhD, CEO, Drug Hunter Inc.
PANELISTS:
Erin Davis, PhD, Vice President, Research Business Insights & Technology, Bristol Myers Squibb
Ryan Potts, PhD, VP and Head, Induced Proximity Platform, Amgen, Inc.
John Tallarico, PhD, Global Head, Discovery Sciences, Novartis BioMedical Research
Klaus Urbahns, PhD, Head, Therapeutic Modalities, Biogen
Andrea Weston, PhD, Head of Discovery Biology and Pharmacology, Pfizer Inc.
Ian Storer, PhD, VP, Hit Discovery, AstraZeneca
Wednesday, September 30 - PLENARY PANEL DISCUSSION
4:05 pm Refreshment Break in the Exhibit Hall with Poster Viewing (Last Chance to Vote for Best of Show Awards)
Recharge during our refreshment break! Meet the Venture Capitalists who will be presenting as a part of our VC Insights panel, visit booths, view posters, connect with peers, and turn in your Game Cards for a chance to win a raffle prize.
Venture-Capitalist Insights on Trends in Drug Discovery
Panelists representing the investor ecosystem - venture capital, private equity, venture arms of pharmaceutical companies - share their thoughts and experiences working with a vast number of early and late-stage biotech companies and academic labs. They highlight current trends in investments for drug discovery and anticipate changes. This discussion also provides scientists an understanding of how investment strategy works and how they can secure the right funding to bring their ideas from the lab to market. There will be additional time for attendees to meet with the panelists after the session.
PANEL MODERATOR:
Daniel A. Erlanson, PhD, Chief Innovation Officer, Frontier Medicines Corporation
PANELISTS:
Chris De Savi, PhD, CSO Partner, Curie Bio
Neil Kubica, PhD, Therapeutics Division Lead, General Inception
Pengpeng Li, PhD, Principal, Lilly Asia Ventures
Ken Lin, CEO & Founder, ABIES Capital
KT Moortgat, PhD, Managing Partner & Founder, Dalena Capital
Hok Hei Tam, PhD, Co-Founder and CTO, Montai Therapeutics; Science Partner, Flagship Pioneering
CONNECT THE DOTS: START-UPS & FUNDING
Moderators:
Shruthi Bharadwaj, PhD, Executive Director, AI Drug Discovery Analytics, Revolution Medicines
Rhonda Wallen, CEO & Advisor
- Life science market trends and its impact on R&D
- Startup formation: when a discovery becomes a company
- Investor appetite and what makes science "fundable"
- What makes good research get noticed
- Evaluating funding options: private, government, partnerships
6:30 pm Close of Day
Thursday, October 1 | 2:15-3:20 pm
2:15 pm Closing Remarks by DOT Team Lead
2:20 pm Chairperson's Remarks
Armon Sharei, PhD, Founder & CEO, Portal Biotechnologies
2:25 pm PLENARY PANEL DISCUSSION: Starting Up: Translating Lab Ideas into Commercial Impact
This panel discussion brings together scientists from academia and biotech to share their stories on what it takes to translate transformative ideas into meaningful commercial outcomes. Panelists will delve into some of the critical inflection points, challenges encountered, key decisions that had to be made and their outcomes. The session will provide scientists with an understanding of what it takes to bring ideas from lab to market. There will be a dedicated time for attendees to have informal conversations with the panelists before the session begins.
PANEL MODERATOR:
Armon Sharei, PhD, Founder & CEO, Portal Biotechnologies
PANELISTS:
Sangeeta N. Bhatia, Professor, Director Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine, Health Sciences & Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Ivan Cornella Taracido, PhD, CEO, Kiral Medicines
Kris Elverum, MBA, Former President & CEO, AIRNA
Parastoo Khoshakhlagh, PhD, Co-Founder & CEO, GC Therapeutics
William Pao, MD, PhD, CEO, Revelio Therapeutics
Johnny Yu, PhD, CSO & Co-Founder, Tahoe Therapeutics
3:20 pm Transition to Sessions