Dr. Kenneth Carter is a dynamic biotechnology industry executive and scientific leader with deep experience in early-stage company development. He has been involved in starting and leading several biotechnology and biopharma service companies as a co-founder, advisor, CEO, chairman, and/or board member.
Dr. Carter is currently Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors for Black Canyon Bio and Noble Life Sciences, and serves on the board of several other companies including Iterion Phamaceuticals, NeuImmune, and ATI.
Previously, Dr. Carter was co-founder and CEO of Avalon Pharmaceuticals (now part of AbbVie) and Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of NexImmune. Under his leadership, both companies developed a pipeline of cancer drug candidates based on groundbreaking technology originating and NIH and Johns Hopkins University respectively, and completed IPOs and listings on the NASDAQ Stock Market.
Dr. Carter has also been instrumental in the founding and early-stage development of several biopharma services companies, including Noble Life Sciences, Innoforce, Cytotest, and NeoDiagnostix.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Carter was head of gene mapping at Human Genome Sciences Inc. (now part of GlaxoSmithKline), where he was involved in the discovery of dozens of novel human genes and proteins with therapeutic or diagnostic potential, particularly for the treatment of cancer.
Dr. Carter is engaged in a range of educational and teaching activities, including at Johns Hopkins University, where for several years he taught a course entitled “Creating a Biotechnology Enterprise.” He has served on the boards of several not-for-profit organizations, including BIO, the world’s largest biotechnology industry organization.