Rice Biotech Launch Pad welcomes David Allison to external advisory board

HOUSTON, April 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rice Biotech Launch Pad, a Houston-based accelerator focused on expediting the translation of Rice University's health and medical technology discoveries into cures, today announced the addition of David Allison to its external advisory board.

Currently serving as a managing director at Westlake BioPartners, Allison brings over 15 years of health care investing, company formation and translational research experience to the Launch Pad. His extensive background in venture capital and biotech innovation aligns with the core values of the Rice Biotech Launch Pad. His expertise in identifying promising health care technologies and guiding their development will provide insights as the accelerator continues to develop real-world health care solutions through medical innovation.

"It is an honor to have someone with Dr. Allison's investment acumen and scientific background join the Launch Pad's external advisory board," said Paul Wotton, executive director and chairman of the Rice Biotech Launch Pad. "His proven track record in recognizing and supporting transformative health care companies will provide critical guidance as we support the next generation of medical technologies. His expertise in these therapeutic areas will be invaluable in directing our innovations and creating a real and lasting impact on patient health."

"Dr. Allison's extensive experience in venture capital and company formation makes him the perfect addition to our already remarkable external advisory board," said Omid Veiseh, professor of bioengineering at Rice and faculty director of the Launch Pad. "His knowledge of investment strategies and commercialization pathways will be instrumental in advancing our mission of translating scientific breakthroughs into clinical applications. We are thrilled to welcome him to the team."

"This initiative is not only accelerating groundbreaking science into real-world treatments but also redefining how academic innovation translates into biotech success," Allison said. "Having spent my career at the intersection of health care investing and company creation, I'm eager to support the Launch Pad's mission to turn bold ideas into life-changing therapies. As a Rice alumnus, it's especially meaningful to contribute to an initiative that is shaping the future of health care from the very place where my own journey began."

Prior to joining Westlake BioPartners, a venture capital firm focused on incubating and building life sciences companies, Allison was a partner at 5AM Ventures in San Francisco. He previously held investment roles at Versant Ventures, Split Rock Partners and PTV Healthcare Capital. Allison received his doctorate in bioengineering from Rice and a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Iowa with honors.

Allison is the 15th member of the Launch Pad's external advisory board. The other members are Jason Bock, founder and CEO of CTMC; Albert Cha, managing partner of Frazier Life Sciences; Rima Chakrabarti, partner at KdT Ventures and adjunct professor of neuroscience at the Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine; John Flavin, founder and CEO of Portal Innovations, co-founder and chairman of Pyxis Oncology and entrepreneurial adviser of Argonne National Laboratory; Pierre Jacquet, managing director and vice chairman of L.E.K.'s health care consulting practice; Robert Langer, professor at the David H. Koch Institute for Integrated Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Dennis Lee, senior program officer, accelerator at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; William McKeon, president and CEO of the Texas Medical Center; Ferran Prat, senior vice president of research administration and industry relations at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Josh Richardson, managing director and senior investor on the life sciences investigating team at Goldman Sachs; Robert Ruffolo, chairman of Aragen Biosciences; David Schull, president of Russo Partners; Kevin Sheridan, managing director and joint global head of health care investment banking at Jefferies; and Lisa Wright, president and CEO of Community Health Choice.

About the Rice Biotech Launch Pad:
The Rice Biotech Launch Pad is a Houston-based accelerator focused on expediting the translation of Rice University's health and medical technology discoveries into cures. This initiative is designed to help advance internally discovered platform technologies from concept to clinical studies and commercialization. The Rice Biotech Launch Pad will identify and support highly differentiated projects while driving the expansion of Houston as a world-class medical innovation ecosystem. The accelerator will bring together local researchers with a network of industry executives. For more information, please visit https://biotechlaunchpad.rice.edu/.

About Rice:
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation's top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of architecture, business, continuing studies, engineering and computing, humanities, music, natural sciences and social sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. Internationally, the university maintains the Rice Global Paris Center, a hub for innovative collaboration, research and inspired teaching located in the heart of Paris. With 4,776 undergraduates and 4,104 graduate students, Rice's undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 7 for best-run colleges by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by the Wall Street Journal and is included on Forbes' exclusive list of "New Ivies."

Media Contacts:
Russo Partners
David Schull or Liz Phillips
(347) 956-7697
david.schull@russopartnersllc.com
elizabeth.phillips@russopartnersllc.com

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SOURCE Rice University