Hikaru Saito
Director/Board Member at United Immunity Co. Ltd.
Profile
Hikaru Saito is a partner located in Tokyo, Japan where he is responsible for a variety of duties related to Japan strategy for Saisei Ventures including deal opportunity sourcing, transacting, building a team in Japan, integration into the local ecosystem by connecting with potential partners, investors and government initiatives.
Previous to Saisei, he was a senior investment manager at Astellas Venture Management, the corporate venture capital arm of Astellas Pharma, based in San Francisco Bay Area, CA USA where he was responsible for the end-to-end deal process on opportunities globally in RNA, cell and gene therapy, performing due diligence, transacting deals, and providing investee companies with input from the pharma perspective as a board observer.
Additionally, he led making strategic partnerships with US and EU-based venture capital funds, accelerators, and institutions.
He started his career as a research scientist at Astellas Pharma Pharmaceutical Research and Technology laboratories after completing his Ph.D.
work.
He developed formulations of both small molecules and engineered biologics for investigational and commercial use.
He was also involved in process development and validation of aseptic biological products for GMP manufacturing.
After a 6-year tenure as a scientist, he pivoted his scientific career into a global business professional.
Following an internal competition, he was selected to join an entrepreneurial business development division which was newly established at Astellas, called as Astellas Innovation Management (“AIM”).
Prior to joining Astellas, he served as a visiting scientist at The Institute Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, and as a research fellow in Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.
He has co-authored more than 10 peer-reviewed articles related to multidrug resistance against anti-tumor agents, on which were cited so far for over 650 publications and several granted patents.
Hikaru Saito active positions
| Companies | Position | Start |
|---|---|---|
Saisei Ventures LLC
 Saisei Ventures LLC Investment ManagersFinance Saisei Ventures LLC (Saisei Ventures) is a venture capital firm founded by Jonathan Yeh in 2020. The firm is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. | Private Equity Investor | 31/12/2022 |
United Immunity Co. Ltd.
 United Immunity Co. Ltd. Pharmaceuticals: MajorHealth Technology United Immunity Co. Ltd. is a Japanese company that specializes in pipeline nano technology and immunity fusion technology, specifically in the field of cancer immunotherapy. The company is based in Tsu, Japan and was founded in 2017 by Naozumi Harada, who has been the CEO since then. The company's diverse products, including "nano immunotherapy," have shown promising clinical results and research in the treatment of sex cancer. The company is currently recruiting a researcher in the cancer immunotherapy field to analyze the action mechanism of nanotechnology applied cancer evaluation and drug evaluation using immunological methods. The company's focus is on the development of treatment for the cause of cold tumor type cancer through the understanding of tumor-associated macrophages. | Director/Board Member | 31/07/2023 |
Former positions of Hikaru Saito
| Companies | Position | End |
|---|---|---|
| ASTELLAS PHARMA INC. | Corporate Officer/Principal | 30/12/2022 |
Astellas Venture Management LLC
 Astellas Venture Management LLC Investment ManagersFinance Astellas Venture Management LLC (Astellas Venture Management) is a venture capital subsidiary of Astellas Phrama Inc founded in 2000. The firm is headquartered in Brisbane, California. | Private Equity Investor | 30/03/2022 |
Catamaran Bio, Inc.
 Catamaran Bio, Inc. Financial ConglomeratesFinance Catamaran Bio, Inc. provides investment services. The company is headquartered in Delaware. | Director/Board Member | 29/03/2022 |
Redona Therapeutics, Inc.
 Redona Therapeutics, Inc. BiotechnologyHealth Technology Redona Therapeutics, Inc.operates as a biotechnology company focused on the modulation of non- RNA (ncRNA) function to treat cancer and other human diseases. It uses small molecules to modulate expression levels of oncogenes and other proteins of significance in disease. The company was founded by George Daley, Richard Gregory, Frank Slack, and Piotr Sliz and is headquartered in Watertown, MA. | Director/Board Member | 29/03/2022 |
Cleave Therapeutics, Inc.
 Cleave Therapeutics, Inc. BiotechnologyHealth Technology Cleave Biosciences, Inc. engages in the development of cancer drug products. The company was founded by Raymond J. Deshaies, Seth Cohen, Francesco Parlati, Peter A. Thompson and Laura K. Shawver in 2010 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. | Director/Board Member | 30/12/2021 |
Training of Hikaru Saito
| Tokyo Institute of Technology | Doctorate Degree |
Experiences
Positions held
Connections
1st degree connections
1st degree companies
Male
Female
Members of the board
Executives
Linked companies
| Listed companies | 2 |
|---|---|
| ASTELLAS PHARMA INC. | Health Technology |
| TSCAN THERAPEUTICS, INC. | Health Technology |
| Private companies | 7 |
|---|---|
Astellas Venture Management LLC
Astellas Venture Management LLC Investment ManagersFinance Astellas Venture Management LLC (Astellas Venture Management) is a venture capital subsidiary of Astellas Phrama Inc founded in 2000. The firm is headquartered in Brisbane, California. | Finance |
Cleave Therapeutics, Inc.
Cleave Therapeutics, Inc. BiotechnologyHealth Technology Cleave Biosciences, Inc. engages in the development of cancer drug products. The company was founded by Raymond J. Deshaies, Seth Cohen, Francesco Parlati, Peter A. Thompson and Laura K. Shawver in 2010 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. | Health Technology |
Redona Therapeutics, Inc.
Redona Therapeutics, Inc. BiotechnologyHealth Technology Redona Therapeutics, Inc.operates as a biotechnology company focused on the modulation of non- RNA (ncRNA) function to treat cancer and other human diseases. It uses small molecules to modulate expression levels of oncogenes and other proteins of significance in disease. The company was founded by George Daley, Richard Gregory, Frank Slack, and Piotr Sliz and is headquartered in Watertown, MA. | Health Technology |
Pykus Therapeutics, Inc.
 Pykus Therapeutics, Inc. Miscellaneous Commercial ServicesCommercial Services Pykus Therapeutics, Inc. engages in the development of a dissolvable intraocular surgical device. It offers novel polymer that provides retinal tamponade. The company was founded by James Stefater and Tomasz Stryjewski and is headquartered in Boston, MA. | Commercial Services |
United Immunity Co. Ltd.
United Immunity Co. Ltd. Pharmaceuticals: MajorHealth Technology United Immunity Co. Ltd. is a Japanese company that specializes in pipeline nano technology and immunity fusion technology, specifically in the field of cancer immunotherapy. The company is based in Tsu, Japan and was founded in 2017 by Naozumi Harada, who has been the CEO since then. The company's diverse products, including "nano immunotherapy," have shown promising clinical results and research in the treatment of sex cancer. The company is currently recruiting a researcher in the cancer immunotherapy field to analyze the action mechanism of nanotechnology applied cancer evaluation and drug evaluation using immunological methods. The company's focus is on the development of treatment for the cause of cold tumor type cancer through the understanding of tumor-associated macrophages. | Health Technology |
Catamaran Bio, Inc.
Catamaran Bio, Inc. Financial ConglomeratesFinance Catamaran Bio, Inc. provides investment services. The company is headquartered in Delaware. | Finance |
Saisei Ventures LLC
Saisei Ventures LLC Investment ManagersFinance Saisei Ventures LLC (Saisei Ventures) is a venture capital firm founded by Jonathan Yeh in 2020. The firm is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. | Finance |
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