Scribe Therapeutics Announces Expansion of San Francisco Bay Area Headquarters, 3 Key Senior Hires
Driven by ongoing growth, CRISPR and molecular engineering company expands East Bay headquarters and bolsters management team with trio of new vice presidents
Scribe Therapeutics Inc., a molecular engineering company creating the most advanced technologies for CRISPR-based genetic medicine, today announced the expansion of its headquarters and addition of three vice presidents to its growing management team.
After opening the company headquarters in 2020 at the Research Park at Marina Village, a waterfront life sciences campus, Scribe is expanding its presence to include the adjacent Shipway 4 building steeped in maritime history. With the addition of the new facility – the second of two shipway buildings occupied by Scribe that originally opened in 1942 as massive construction sites for building and launching eight 23,000-ton troop ships during World War Two before their conversion into a core life science hub by Blue Rise Ventures – Scribe has doubled its existing footprint of built-for-purpose, state-of-the art laboratory space. The company has also added amenities for its robust and dedicated workforce such as new electric car chargers and outdoor space for meetings and recreation.
“When we purchased the Research Park in 2019, we envisioned an ecosystem in which our tenants are more like partners, and Scribe fit that vision perfectly,” said Dan Poritzky, Managing Partner at Blue Rise Ventures. “Having developed an enduring relationship with the founders through several years of close partnership, we are dedicated to ensuring this space will help Scribe’s incredible science and team flourish now and in the future.”
The expansion of Scribe’s headquarters reflects the continued growth of the company, whose platform is enabling best-in-class in vivo genomic-based therapeutics to treat the underlying cause of disease.
“Opening this new facility is an important step for Scribe as we continue to focus on expanding our talented team and, through their contributions, accelerate our efforts to deliver on the promise of CRISPR-based medicine to durably treat disease,” said Benjamin Oakes, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Scribe.
Scribe also continues to expand its team with top talent through the addition of three vice presidents with deep industry experience. The company announced that Hoyin (Sunny) Mok has joined the company as Vice President of Program Management, Shilpa Shroff as Vice President of Process Sciences, and Vera Switek as Vice President of Talent.
Sunny Mok, PhD, MBA, Vice President of Program Management: Sunny Mok joins the company from Gilead Sciences, Inc., where he most recently held the position of Director of Project and Portfolio Management. His prior roles include heading the translational science programs at AstraZeneca and MedImmune. Dr. Mok received his PhD in Bioengineering from Rice University, MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, and BS in Chemical Engineering and Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“We’re thrilled to have Sunny bring his wealth of industry expertise in drug development, program management, and portfolio strategy to Scribe,” said Svetlana Lucas, PhD, Chief Business Officer of Scribe. “At a time of exponential growth for our team and pipeline, program management is critical. Sunny’s organizational and people leadership skills will be a driving force in scaling our research and development processes and rapidly advancing our programs into the clinic.”
Shilpa Shroff, PhD, Vice President of Process Sciences: Shilpa Shroff brings to Scribe nearly two decades of manufacturing science and technology experience at BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., where she previously served as Executive Director of Technology Development in Process Science. Dr. Shroff received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, her MS in Aeronautics and Astronautics at Stanford University, and her BS in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
Vera Switek, Vice President of Talent: Vera Switek joins Scribe from Audentes Therapeutics, where she served as Senior Director of Talent Acquisition. She brings two decades of life sciences talent acquisition leadership from her roles across the biopharmaceutical industry including at Medivation, BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., and various other biotechnology consulting engagements, specializing in recruiting top talent for high-growth organizations. Ms. Switek received her BS in Business Administration from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
“As stellar executives at the forefront of their respective fields, Shilpa and Vera are responsible for driving innovation within our process development and recruitment teams to new heights,” added Dr. Oakes. “We are excited to have all three leaders join us at Scribe. Their impressive track records in drug development, strategy, manufacturing and development, and talent acquisition, respectively, further bolster our industry position and mission to create a new standard of CRISPR-based therapies.”
These key hires come on the heels of Scribe’s expansion of its finance team, which earlier this year was bolstered by the addition of Chief Financial Officer David Parrot and Controller George Manning.
About Scribe Therapeutics
Scribe Therapeutics is a molecular engineering company focused on creating best-in-class in vivo therapies that permanently treat the underlying cause of disease. Founded by CRISPR inventors and leading molecular engineers Benjamin Oakes, Brett Staahl, David Savage, and Jennifer Doudna, Scribe is overcoming the limitations of current genome editing technologies by developing custom engineered enzymes and delivery modalities as part of a proprietary, evergreen platform for CRISPR-based genetic medicine. The company is backed by leading individual and institutional investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Avoro Ventures and Avoro Capital Advisors, OrbiMed Advisors, Perceptive Advisors, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., funds managed by Wellington Management, RA Capital Management, and Menlo Ventures. To learn more about Scribe’s mission to engineer the future of genetic medicine, visit www.scribetx.com.