Brian Atwood

Managing Director
Versant Ventures

Brian Atwood has more than 20 years of operating experience in the biotechnology industry, and in addition over 15 years as both an investor in biotech venture capital as well as a co-founder of a health sciences venture capital firm. Mr. Atwood was most recently President and CEO as well as a co-founder of Cell Design Labs, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing human cell engineering technology from the UC San Francisco lab of Wendell Lim, for the treatment of multiple diseases including cancer. Cell Design Labs was founded in 2015 and under Mr. Atwood’s leadership grew to a staff of 50 scientists and support employees, and signed a collaboration agreement with Kite Pharmaceuticals. In December 2017 the company was acquired by Gilead Sciences.

In 1999, Mr. Atwood co-founded and currently serves as a Managing Director for Versant Ventures, a healthcare-focused venture capital firm. Prior to founding Versant Ventures, Mr. Atwood served as a general partner of Brentwood Associates, a venture capital firm he joined in 1997. Mr. Atwood also serves on the boards of two pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Atreca, Inc., where he is Chairman, and Clovis Oncology (CLVS). Mr. Atwood earlier served on the boards of Five Prime Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FPRX), Cadence Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: CADX) acquired in 2014, Veracyte, Inc, (NASDAQ: VCYT), and Pharmion Corporation (acquired in 2008), and Trius Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSRX) acquired in 2013.

Prior to launching his career in venture capital, Mr. Atwood was Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Glycomed, a publicly traded biotechnology company he started in 1987 and sold to Ligand Pharmaceuticals in 1995.

Mr. Atwood received a BS in Biological Sciences from the University of California, Irvine, a MS in Ecology from the University of California, Davis, and a MBA from Harvard Business School.