Speaker

Leo Shi is based in Shanghai, joined Warburg Pincus in 2019 and focuses on investments in the healthcare sector in Asia. Prior to joining Warburg Pincus, he has been working as Senior Director at Temasek China focusing on healthcare and consumer investing since 2015. Prior to Temasek China, he was a VP at Warburg Pincus for three years and has also worked in the investment banking and consulting industry. Mr. Shi currently serves on the boards of HTDK, Insilico Medicine, Haihe Biopharma and Zhenshiming Pharmaceutical. He received a B.A. of Finance from Fudan University.

Dr. Yi Shi currently works as a principal investigator and full-time professor in the Guangzhou National Laboratory, China. He has graduated from Zhejiang University in 2006, and then moved to the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) to continue his PhD training under the supervision of Prof. George Fu Gao. He has obtained his PhD degree in 2011, and then he worked as assistant professor and associate professor in different institutions of CAS. Since 2016, he started to work independently as principal investigator and full-time professor in the Institute of Microbiology, CAS, and from March 2025, he moved to the Guangzhou National Laboratory. His expertise mainly focuses on the molecular mechanisms of emerging virus infection and regulation by the host, especially how the virus breakthrough the host barrier to infect humans, and the development of broad-spectrum antivirals and vaccines against different emerging viruses. He has made remarkable progress on a range of important human pathogens including influenza virus, Ebola virus, ZIKV, arenaviruses, coronaviruses and mpox virus. He has published more than 100 refereed papers in the international academic journals including Cell, Nature, and Science.

Shi Yuanyuan holds dual academic credentials: a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and postdoctoral research experience at Harvard Medical School’s Department of Pathology. As Chairman and General Manager of Shenzhen Cell Valley Biomedicine Co., Ltd., he also serves as Distinguished Professor, doctoral supervisor, and postdoctoral mentor at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. His professional journey began with mentorship under Academicians Zou Chenglu and Wang Zhizhen of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Bert L. Vallee of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. His research focuses on modifying CAR molecules to enhance antigen recognition specificity, improve cytotoxicity efficiency, and achieve precision in CAR-T therapy. Currently leading the CAR-NK project under Shenzhen’s Overseas High-Level Talent Team (Peacock Team), he continues to pioneer innovative approaches in immunotherapy.

Director of GHM Institute of CNS Regeneration at Jinan University, Guangzhou, China; Emeritus Professor, The University of Hong Kong. Editor-in-Chief of Neural Regeneration Research. Received PhD degree from MIT. He is one of the pioneers in the field of axonal regeneration in the visual system. In 1995, obtained the Natural Science Award of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. 1999, was elected a Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. 2015 was elected FNAI, US National Academy of Inventors, Fellow.  In 2017, elected a member of DABI (Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, www.dana.org ), 2019 was elected Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Medical Science, and in 2021, elected member of the College of Fellows, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE FELLOW). 2021 – 2023  is listed as one of the world’s top 2% neuroscientists. “The World’s Top Neuroscientists (2023)” – Top Ten in China, Cited more than 28,075 times, H-index 88 (GOOGLE SCHOLAR). He is the author and co-author of over 500+ published SCI papers; co-inventor of 46 patents.

Pandy Song joined Northern Light Venture Capital (NLVC) in 2016 and brought with him a profound understanding of China’s pharmaceutical industry. he was extensive experience in corporate strategic planning and implementation, along with a background in clinical trial applications, business development, team building, and marketing management. His primary areas of focus at NLVC are biotech and biopharmaceuticals, with notable investments including SHIP, Zelgene, Belief Biomed, Genfleet, Sanegenebio and NGGT

Prior to NLVC, Pandy worked in the Department of Strategic Research at Staidson Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd., where he handled business development work surrounding global licensing and strategic alliance management, including joint ventures, partnerships, and value-add collaborations, Additionally, he led market marketplace assessments of China’s pharmaceutical industry, including policy work and trend identification, before ultimately helping develop the company’s long-term strategy and dynamic modeling processes.

Pandy holds a PhD in Biophysics from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, a PhD in Philosophy from Peking Union Medical College, and DBA (doctor business administration) degree from Hong Kong University and Peking University

Dr. Song Yunlong is the Chief Executive Officer of InnovStone Therapeutocs Co., Ltd. Expert in small molecule innovative drug design, he has led his team in developing a series of innovative results and accumulated extensive experience in new drug development. He has received four CDE Breakthrough Therapy Designations, three innovative drug projects have entered Phase II clinical trials in China and the United States, and over ten clinical trial approvals have been obtained in both China and the United States. The global rights to the small molecule LPa inhibitor he led in development were transferred to AstraZeneca, with the contract value ranking in the top 10 of the annual global rankings. These R&D achievements have led to a strategic R&D collaboration between CSPC Pharmaceutical Group and AstraZeneca, with a total contract value of US$5.33 billion.

Graeme Spencer is HDR’s Education & Science Principal and a recognised leader in designing future-focused campuses and biomedical precincts across Australia. With over 25 years of cross-disciplinary experience, he brings bold ideas and deep expertise to projects that integrate education, health, science, and data infrastructure.

Graeme has led the design of high-impact projects including the Sydney Biomedical Accelerator, Western Sydney University’s Bankstown City Campus, and CSIRO’s high-containment research facilities. He’s a champion of “connectivity by design,” creating open, flexible labs and collaborative precincts that accelerate discovery from bench to bedside.

He also spearheads HDR’s data-driven design tools, helping institutions visualise and optimise campus assets in real time. Graeme continues to shape the future of education and research through design that is human-centred, rigorous, and strategically impactful.

Uli Stilz is Corporate Vice President, R&ED External Innovation Partners, External & Exploratory Innovation (E2I) at Novo Nordisk.
In this global leadership role anchored in Boston, he leads a cross-functional R&D team developing creative partnership models with biotech, venture capital, academia, and research hospitals to co-create next-generation therapeutics to provide life-changing treatments.
Based on the foundational success of the former Bio Innovation Hub, Uli and the E2I team drive an externally-anchored portfolio of novel partnerships within key therapy areas, including cardiometabolic and rare diseases, stimulating global innovation ecosystems to advance Novo Nordisk’s global pipeline.
Uli Stilz graduated with a Master’s degree in Organic Chemistry from ETH Zurich and received his Ph.D. from the Max-Planck-Institute of Biochemistry in Martinsried in 1990. After postdoctoral studies at the California Institute of Technology, he joined Hoechst AG, where he held various positions before he was appointed Associate VP of the newly established Innovation unit within the Diabetes Division at Sanofi in 2010. Over a period of 20 years, he contributed to more than 60 preclinical and clinical drug candidates across cardiometabolic, immunology, and oncology therapy areas. Between 2012 and 2014 he was President of the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry.

In 2014, Uli joined Novo Nordisk A/S in Copenhagen and in 2019 relocated to Boston to create the Bio Innovation Hub.

Uli Stilz was appointed adjunct professor at the University of Frankfurt in 2012 and serves on Editorial Boards for international peer-reviewed journals. He is a member of several Scientific Adivisory Boards in North America and Europe, and has represented Novo Nordisk A/S at trade organizations (EFPIA). He is currently a Board member at the Kendall Square Association and Gensaic, and is a Venture Advisor for aMoon Fund.

Richard Stone is the senior international correspondent for the weekly journal Science. He also serves as Special Advisor, Science Diplomacy and Engagement, for the international Human Frontier Science Program organization in Strasbourg, France. His overseas experience includes stints as a Fulbright Scholar at Rostov State University in Rostov-on-Don, Russia in 1995- 96 and at Kazakh National University in Almaty, Kazakhstan in 2004-05. Stone opened the Beijing bureau of Science in 2007, and spent 5 years in China. Among many highlights, he and Bruce Alberts, President Emeritus of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, interviewed former Premier Wen Jiabao for Science in 2008. He is the author of the nonfiction book Mammoth: The Resurrection of an Ice Age Giant.

With over 15 years of extensive experience in the Innovation and Technology sector, Dr. Sun has a diverse background spanning academia, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology companies. Prior to her role at InvestHK, she held a medical affairs position, where she assisted in the launch of blockbuster pipelines at leading pharmaceutical companies. In the biotech industry, she successfully led the commercialization of the company’s leading in vitro diagnostics (IVD) for cancer interception. Dr. Sun graduated from the University of Manchester in the UK, earning a degree in Clinical Biochemistry and a Master’s Degree in Immunology and Immunogenetics from the same institution. She holds a PhD in Cancer Biology from The University of Hong Kong, where she also completed her postdoctoral training. In addition to her academic qualification, Dr. Sun has obtained several patents and served as an investigator on various research grants. She has also contributed to significant publications throughout her career.