Executive Director, Preclinical Development
Yi Zhao, MD, PhD
Dr. Zhao joined AiViva in 2018 as Head of Preclinical Development and brings over 25 years of experience translating drug discovery from the laboratory to first-in-human clinical trials. He leads preclinical development, overseeing in vitro and in vivo pharmacology, pharmacokinetics (PK), and toxicology, and integrates pharmacodynamic, exposure, and safety data into development strategies and IND packages aligned with FDA and global regulatory expectations. A collaborative leader with experience across large pharmaceutical and biotechnology settings, his leadership has been instrumental in advancing multiple IND-enabling programs and successful IND submissions across dermatology, oncology, and ophthalmology.
Prior to AiViva, Dr. Zhao spent 20 years at Allergan and Vitae Pharmaceuticals, where he led disease-relevant pharmacology, mechanism-of-action validation, proof-of-concept studies, and compound selection. He advanced multiple programs into clinical development across endocrinology, dermatology, neurodegeneration, immunology, oncology, ophthalmology, and viral diseases, including P450 RAI, 11β-HSD1, BACE, RORγt, selective LXRβ, and menin inhibitors.
Dr. Zhao earned his M.D. from Shanghai Medical University and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Biozentrum of the University of Basel. He completed postdoctoral training at Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the University of Michigan.