Thursday, October 1, 2020An Entrepreneur’s Journey – from COVID to Cancer
Remarks by Dr. J. Joseph Kim (Wharton ‘96)
President & CEO, INOVIO Pharmaceuticals
We are very excited to have Dr. Kim, who is the founder and CEO of INOVIO Pharmaceuticals in Plymouth Meeting, PA, join us for a special lunchtime presentation. INOVIO develops DNA-based vaccines and immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases. This is a new type of medicine that encodes DNA instructions to train your body’s immune system to fight disease. Dr. Kim and INOVIO have been in the news recently, because INOVIO is in the race to develop a DNA vaccine against COVID-19 infection. The company received funding from the Gates Foundation, CEPI and the U.S. government. Dr. Kim will discuss his quest to develop a COVID vaccine and answer questions about these efforts and the virus itself.
Dr. Kim will also talk about his journey from Korea to the U.S. as a child; his MIT/Penn education, and his life as an entrepreneur – working 16 hours days for himself so he didn’t have to spend 8 hours working for someone else. He will also discuss how he has relied on fellow Wharton Alumni from Philadelphia and around the word to start and build his company, and take it public.
Date: October 1, 2020
Time: 12:00pm to 1:30pm
Cost:
Wharton Club Members: Free
Non-Members: $20
President, Chief Executive Officer, Director
Dr. J. Joseph Kim has served as president and chief executive of INOVIO since 2009, leading the company’s transformation into a successful late-stage biotech focused on developing breakthrough DNA medicines that treat and protect people from diseases associated with HPV, cancer, and infectious diseases.
An immunologist by training, Dr. Kim has a deep understanding of the complexities of medical science’s greatest unsolved challenges. He is committed to improving the lives of patients, and this passion permeates the company.
Dr. Kim has published more than 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers, holds numerous patents, and sits on several scientific journal editorial boards. Most recently, he was recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and a Health Innovators Fellow at The Aspen Institute. He previously co-founded VGX Pharmaceuticals, an immunotherapeutic company that he led for nine years before merging VGX with INOVIO Biomedical in 2009 to form INOVIO.
Dr. Kim earned two B.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering and Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Ph.D. in Immunology and an M.S. in Engineering from the University Pennsylvania, and an M.B.A. in Finance from the Wharton School.
About INOVIO
INOVIO is a biotechnology company committed to powering a new way forward in DNA medicines to save and protect lives worldwide. The company is focused on rapidly bringing to market precisely designed and delivered DNA medicines to potentially treat and protect people from serious and life-threatening diseases associated with HPV, cancer, and infectious diseases.
With 15 current clinical programs, INOVIO’s DNA medicines have consistently activated safe, robust, and fully functional T cell and antibody responses against targeted pathogens and cancers.
RAPID CREATION OF A NOVEL, INVESTIGATIONAL COVID-19 DNA VACCINE
INOVIO has demonstrated that DNA medicines can be delivered directly into cells in the body via a proprietary smart device to safely produce a robust immune response in clinical trials involving more than 2,000 patients in 7,000 administrations. The advantages of INOVIO’s DNA medicines platform in a pandemic situation like the world is now facing with COVID-19 are how fast DNA medicines can be designed and manufactured; the stability of the products, which do not require frozen storage and transport; and their robust immune response as well as favorable safety and tolerability profile.
INOVIO IS A LEADER IN CORONAVIRUS DNA VACCINE DEVELOPMENT
INOVIO scientists are coronavirus experts. INOVIO was the first to advance its DNA vaccine INO-4700 against MERS CoV, a related coronavirus, into evaluation in humans. INOVIO is currently preparing to initiate a Phase 2 vaccine trial for INO-4700 in the Middle East where most MERS viral outbreaks have occurred.
Click HERE to read more about INOVIO
48 Hours Cancellation Notice Required
