Alexander von Gabain
Alexander von Gabain is a microbiologist, academic, founder of several biotech firms and board member of venture capital firms. He has worked at the intersection of the healthcare industry, academia and research throughout his career. He was one of the founding board members of EIT in 2008 and began his involvement in EIT Health in 2015.
Academic Background
von Gabain obtained his PhD in Genetics at the University of Heidelberg and held a post-doctorate position at the Stanford University from 1979 to 1982.
In the 1980s and 1990s, he was Professor at the University of Umeå and at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, as well as an advisor to pharmaceutical and biotech companies. From 1992 to 1998, he was chair of Microbiology of the University of Vienna and engaged in building the public-private partnership known as Vienna Biocenter around the Institute of Molecular Pathology.
He currently holds academic appointments as professor at the Max F. Perutz Laboratories and is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences. In 2017, he retired from work at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, where he served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Innovation and Commercial Outreach.
Intercell and Other Innovation Work
von Gabain co-founded Intercell AG in 1998, led the company until it was successfully floated on the Vienna Stock Exchange in 2005[1] and continued as Chief Scientific Officer in the Executive Board until 2009.[2] In 2011, he was appointed to serve the Company as member of the Supervisory Board. During his executive years, the firm succeeded to globally register and launch a novel vaccine against Japanese encephalitis.[3]
In 2011, he was appointed into the Supervisory Board of the company, where he continues to serve, after Intercell and Vivalis merged into Valneva.
Additionally, he has supported other biotech enterprises in various functions. His entrepreneurial and scientific knowledge in the innovation arena has been highly sought after by organisations fostering entrepreneurial innovation. In 2003, he was invited to join the Board of INiTS, the technology seed fund and incubator of the University of Vienna and the Technical University of Vienna, of which he is currently the Chair.
EIT and EIT Health
in 2008, he joined the Governing Board of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and in 2011 was elected to become its Chairman for a period ending in 2014. In 2015, he joined the Supervisory Board of EIT Health and in 2017 was appointed as its Chairman, a position he currently holds.