David Berry to Close AAPS PharmSci 360 on Pharma Entrepreneurship

David Berry, MD, PhD, cofounder and managing partner of Averin Capital, will give the closing plenary at the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) PharmSci 360 meeting in New Orleans on Wednesday, October 28, 2026. His talk will look at how entrepreneurial business models built on data-driven thinking could support the pharmaceutical industry's future.¹ Dr Berry is also the founder of 7 companies valued above $1 billion.¹

Anette Mullertz, PhD, FAAPS, vice-chair of the PharmSci 360 Scientific Programming Committee, encouraged attendees to stay for the final session, emphasizing, "His background truly bridges business and science, and he brings a unique perspective to the future of the industry," in an AAPS press release.¹

What will the closing plenary cover?

According to AAPS, Dr Berry also plans to address 3 other themes, including what it takes for an idea to clear committee review, how emerging technologies can shift the competitive landscape, and how infrastructure investment might correct the cost structure of drug development.¹

A speaker profile published by the Milken Institute credits Dr Berry with founding more than 30 companies.² The same profile lists earlier roles as a general partner at Flagship Pioneering and as founder and CEO of Valo Health, where he raised more than $500 million and completed a partnership with Novo Nordisk. Berry holds an MD from Harvard Medical School and a PhD from the biological engineering division of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.²

How does the talk fit the meeting's broader agenda?

PharmSci 360, which runs October 25–28 in New Orleans, saw Julie Louise Gerberding, MD, MPH, president and CEO of the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, give the opening plenary on alternative methods, artificial intelligence (AI), and adaptive trial design in translational medicine.³ Programming committee chair Parag Kolhe, PhD, has argued that the field needs a new development model, not simply faster execution of the current one.³ The 2 plenaries bookend the program. Dr Gerberding’s opener centered on the scientific and regulatory tools reshaping development, and Dr Berry's session turns to the financing and company-building decisions that determine which of those tools reach patients.

What are some themes from PharmSci 360 that have surfaced so far?

Several presenters previewed in BioPharm International®'s conference coverage touch on the cost and decision-making questions Dr Berry is expected to raise. Thomas Luechtefeld, PhD, founder and CEO of Insilica, argued that predictive toxicology models are becoming one part of a larger agentic AI workflow. In his view, confidence in AI-driven safety calls depends on whether each step of the reasoning can be traced.⁴ He added that agentic systems can now map which experiments have and have not been performed on a chemical, then recommend the least costly testing path.⁵

Manufacturing economics also came up. Anurag Rathore, PhD, of the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, described a project aiming for monoclonal antibody drug substance at about $10 per gram, compared with the $50 to $100 per gram typical today. He noted that cell culture media accounts for 30% to 50% of production cost.⁶ On the formulation side, Karunakar Sukuru, RPh, PhD, of Catalent Pharma Solutions, pointed to 3 oral peptide approvals in 2026, compared with roughly 4 across the previous century. He also explained how lipid-filled softgels shield peptides from enzymatic breakdown.⁷

What are the limitations?

The AAPS announcement previews the session but does not provide case studies, financial data, or specific recommendations, and what Dr Berry presents may differ from the announcement's outline. Session times and rooms are subject to change, so attendees should confirm details in the official program. Sessions referenced from early conference coverage reflect presenter previews, not reported conference outcomes.

References

1. American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. AAPS PharmSci 360 closing plenary explores future of entrepreneurship in pharma. Press release. Published October 26, 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://www.aaps.org/aaps/news/media/closing-2026856
2. Milken Institute. David Berry. Asia Summit 2025 speaker profile. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://milkeninstitute.org/events/asia-summit-2025/speakers/david-berry
3. American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. AAPS PharmSci 360 opening session explores how to build a more efficient pipeline. Press release. Published October 22, 2026. Accessed October 23, 2026. https://www.aaps.org/aaps/news/media/opening-session-2026
4. Mirasol F, Luechtefeld T. Insilica's Dr Luechtefeld discusses moving computational toxicology beyond predictive models. BioPharm International. Published October 21, 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://www.biopharminternational.com/view/insilica-luechtefeld-computational-toxicology-beyond-predictive-models
5. Mirasol F, Luechtefeld T. How agentic AI identifies toxicology data gaps and testing options. BioPharm International. Published October 23, 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://www.biopharminternational.com/view/agentic-ai-identifies-toxicology-data-gaps-testing-options
6. Schoenthaler E, Rathore A. Cell culture media is the biggest target in the push for $10-per-gram antibodies, says IIT Delhi's Anurag Rathore. BioPharm International. Published October 26, 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://www.biopharminternational.com/view/cell-culture-media-is-the-biggest-target-in-the-push-for-10-per-gram-antibodies-says-iit-delhi-s-anurag-rathore
7. Mirasol F, Sukuru K. How lipid-based softgels protect oral peptides from degradation. BioPharm International. Published October 26, 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026. https://www.biopharminternational.com/view/lipid-based-softgels-protect-oral-peptides-degradation