Noubar Afeyan

“What keeps you from innovating is being comfortable. If you’re an immigrant, then you’re used to being out of your comfort zone,” Noubar Afeyan told “Forbes” in 2016. Afeyan is founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, a science-based venture capital firm focused on early stage biotech companies. Since its founding in 2000, Flagship has fostered the development of more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in $20 billion in total value and over 500 patents. Afeyan, a visiting lecturer at Harvard University, has co-founded and developed 38 start-up organizations during his career. He has been widely recognized for his contributions, earning the Technology Pioneer award from the World Economic Forum and the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, which recognizes outstanding American citizens. He is the member of several organizations' boards, including those of MIT, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the UWC Dilijan College in Armenia, the AGBU and the IDeA Foundation. His philanthropic works includes his recent co-founding of The 100 Lives initiative, which celebrates the heroic actions of those who saved thousands of Armenian lives during the Genocide and supports humanitarian projects around the world. Updated 2018