Dr. Benjamin Zeskind, PhD, MBA
Founder and CEO
Dr. Zeskind developed the Immuneering concept, incorporated the Company, and filed key patents. After earning an S.B. in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science at MIT, he went on to earn a Ph.D. in Bioengineering at MIT’s Whitehead Institute in just three years. His Ph.D. research at MIT led to a first author publication in Nature Methods and an issued U.S. Patent with another pending. Most recently, he earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School where he was recognized as a Baker Scholar, the highest award for distinction. Dr. Zeskind has worked at Merck’s Global Marketing Division, IBM, Constant Contact, Bose, and the US Army Natick Labs.
benjamin.j.zeskind@immuneering.comRobert J. Carpenter
Founder and Chairman
Mr. Carpenter has served as a Director of Genzyme since 1994. He is currently the chairman of Hydra Biosciences, a company he helped found in 2001. Mr. Carpenter was chairman of the board, president, and CEO of Integrated Genetics Inc., a biotechnology company that merged with Genzyme in 1989. Following the merger and until 1991, he was executive vice president of Genzyme and CEO and chairman of the board of IG Laboratories Inc. From 1991 until it merged with Genzyme in 2000, Mr. Carpenter was chairman of GelTex Pharmaceuticals Inc., which he co-founded in 1991 and where he served as president and CEO until 1993. He also co-founded VacTex Inc., and served as its president and CEO from 1995 until its acquisition by Aquila Biopharmaceuticals Inc. in 1998.Mara Aspinall
Business Advisor
For the last seven years, Ms. Aspinall served as President of Genzyme Genetics, a leading provider of diagnostic services in the oncology market. She transformed the business into one of the top five laboratories in the US. Since 2001, Genzyme Genetics has grown at 25% per year, achieving record revenue and profits. Previously, Ms. Aspinall was President of Genzyme Pharmaceuticals and led that business’ transformation into an international leader in specialized pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturing. She is currently a member of the Secretary of Health and Human Services’ Advisory Council on Genetics, Chairman of Predictive Biosciences, Vice Chairman of the Personalized Medicine Coalition, and a trustee of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She co-authored a recent article in the Harvard Business Review entitled “Realizing the Promise of Personalized Medicine.”Prof. Doug Lauffenburger
Scientific Advisor
Prof. Lauffenburger is the founder and director of MIT’s Department of Biological Engineering and a pioneer in applying engineering principles to biological research. His expertise spans multiple disciplines including chemical engineering, bioengineering, biotechnology process engineering, biophysics, quantitative cell and structural biology, systems biology, and applied mathematics. He has published over 200 articles, and authored a key textbook on receptor-ligand binding and trafficking dynamics.
