Ayokunmi Ajetunmobi

AJ is an experienced venture builder within the European life sciences sector. He leads the Ventures arm of Pioneer Group which helps founders to create, fund, and scale breakthrough life science startups. His team has helped companies raise over £500m in funding to date, leveraging this track record into strategic partnerships with universities, public funding agencies, and multinational pharmaceutical companies.

AJ is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science, lecturing on biotech entrepreneurship. He has sat on advisory panels for several UK and Ireland grant awarding bodies. These include the Research Ireland Therapeutic ARC Hub Programme, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) i4i Connect programme, the NIHR AI in health award, the Innovate UK Biomedical Catalyst Industry-led R&D award as well as the Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) Healthcare award.

AJ was previously Head of Sequencing Services at Desktop Genetics, a venture-backed startup, enabling the development of novel cell and gene therapies. He contributed to the company's fundraising and product development, as well as publishing multiple papers on CRISPR design and bioinformatics. Desktop Genetics was backed by several investors including Illumina Inc and was acquired in 2018. He holds a PhD in Clinical Medicine from Trinity College Dublin.