CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, Strand Therapeutics, a privately held developer of next-generation, programmable mRNA therapeutics for cancer immunotherapy and other diseases, announced Jake Becraft, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Strand, has been named to MIT Technology Review’s prestigious annual list of Innovators Under 35. Every year, the world-renowned media company has recognized a list of exceptionally talented technologists whose work has great potential to transform the world.
In 2017, Jake co-founded Strand Therapeutics with the goal of improving the efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of treatments for untreatable and deadly diseases. He has been a strong advocate for increasing access to groundbreaking therapeutics by improving manufacturing and distribution capabilities worldwide, and has worked with several low-income nations to understand the bottlenecks to drug accessibility. He has received several scientific and entrepreneurial awards including the Goldwater Scholarship, a Viterbi Fellowship, an Amgen fellowship, and is a 2021 Termeer Foundation Fellow. Jake is a contributing writer to Forbes and serves on the Executive Board of Public Health United. He received his PhD in Biological Engineering and Synthetic Biology from MIT in 2019 and his BS in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2013, graduating Magna cum Laude with distinction.
Tim Maher, Managing Editor of MIT Technology Review, said: “We get more than 500 nominations for the list every year, and getting that list down to 35—a task not only for the editors at MIT Technology Review but also for our 30+ judges—is one of the hardest things we do each year. We love the way the final list always shows what a wide variety of people there are, all around the world, working on creative solutions to some of humanity’s hardest problems.”
Learn more about this year’s honorees on the MIT Technology Review website here and in the July/August issue, which goes live online June 30. The honorees are also featured at the upcoming EmTech MIT conference, MIT Technology Review’s annual flagship event that offers a carefully curated perspective on the most significant developments of the year, with a focus on understanding their potential business and societal impact. EmTech MIT will be held online September 28-30, 2021. Click here to learn more about the event.
About Strand Therapeutics
Strand Therapeutics is an emerging biopharmaceutical company poised at the forefront of mRNA therapeutics and synthetic biology. The company has created the first platform for programmable, long-acting mRNA therapeutics for cancer and other diseases that are poorly addressed by traditional approaches. Bioengineered for high efficacy and low toxicity, Strand’s next-generation mRNA therapies deliver multi-functional treatments for deadly diseases. The company’s initial focus is the development of mRNA therapies that act through multiple mechanisms to deliver potentially curative treatments for solid tumors. Strand is also developing programmable mRNA for the generation of cell therapies capable of greatly expanding patient access to the technology in a cost-effective, re-doseable, off-the-shelf form. Strand Therapeutics was founded in 2017 by world leading mRNA researchers from the MIT Synthetic Biology Center, creators of the field of mRNA-based synthetic biology. The company is based in Cambridge, MA. For more information, visit our website at www.strandtx.com.
About MIT Technology Review
Founded in 1899, MIT Technology Review is a world-renowned, independent media company whose insight, analysis, and interviews explain the newest technologies and their commercial, social, and political impacts. MIT Technology Review derives its authority from its relationship to the world’s foremost technology institution and from its editors’ deep technical knowledge, capacity to see technologies in their broadest context, and unequaled access to leading innovators and researchers. MIT Technology Review’s mission is to bring about better-informed and more conscious decisions about technology through authoritative, influential, and trustworthy journalism. Subscribe. Listen. Follow: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram.
About the EmTech event series
MIT Technology Review’s EmTech series examines emerging technologies that will drive the new global economy. From mainstage keynotes to Q&As and small discussions, these events provide a curated view of the year’s most important developments. EmTech gives attendees the opportunity to discover future trends and learn from the most innovative people and companies in the world. Established more than 20 years ago, EmTech events have become a must-attend for entrepreneurs, business leaders, innovators, policy influencers, media, and more. This year’s EmTech events in the United States include EmTech Digital, March 23-25; EmTech Next, June 8-10; and EmTech MIT, September 28-30. Learn more.
