Age of Tech x Biopharma: Fireside Chat & Networking Event
AI and emerging technologies are reshaping biopharma and redefining how science is built, scaled, and valued. As the landscape shifts, the industry must confront critical questions about leadership, capital strategy, and what innovation really looks like in the years ahead.
Join us to hear inside perspectives from senior leaders across biopharma and tech on:
What’s driving momentum at the intersection of tech and science
Where unsolved challenges are creating the next wave of opportunity
This event is designed for tech and life sciences leaders, investors, and stakeholders who want to learn from peers, identify emerging opportunities, and understand how data and AI will shape the next phase of biopharma.
Featured Speaker
Welcome remarks will be delivered by former Mayor of San Francisco, London Breed.
Panelists:
Gerren Wilson, Pharm.D, Lifecycle Leader, Global Product Strategy, Roche
Tashica Williams Amirgholizadeh, J.D., Ph.D., Senior Associate General Counsel, IP, Gilead Sciences
Sanna Gaspard, PhD, CEO & Founder, Rubitection Inc.
Farron Rucker, CTO & Co-Founder, Syntex
Moderator:
Michelle Meow, The Commonwealth Club and Host of the Michelle Meow Show
Event Schedule:
5:30 - 6pm: Cocktail arrivals
6–7pm: Fireside chat
7 - 8pm: Cocktail and open networking
Dress Code (Suggested): Elevated business attire or cocktail wear. In celebration of Black History Month, wear skin tone inspired shades to reflect the beauty and diversity of all complexions.
Hosted by MelanInScience and WeAre.
https://www.commonwealthclub.org/events/2026-02-25/age-tech-x-biopharma
Event Hosts
MelanInScience is reimagining the future of science by creating industry-aligned pathways for underrepresented talent into biotech & biopharma. We bridge academic training and real-world opportunity through industry-backed programming and strategic partnerships with leading biotech and biopharma organizations.
Since our founding in 2024, we’ve reached thousands of students and professionals across 15 U.S. states and 20 countries. Our work is grounded in a simple but powerful belief: investing in people is investing in the future.
We’re building an ecosystem where diverse professionals don’t just participate in STEM, but lead, innovate, and shape the future of discovery.
WeAre is the only free members-only professional network alliance connecting and empowering people with African, African diaspora, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander (API), Indigenous, Middle Eastern, and South Asian identities to build wealth in the industries of Technology and Sustainability. Join free.
With the sound of a gavel striking three times, another Commonwealth Club program begins, bringing together audiences with fascinating, intriguing and entertaining individuals.
Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. Every year, we present hundreds of forums on topics ranging across politics, culture, society, artificial intelligence and the economy.
Since its founding in 1903, Commonwealth Club World Affairs has played host to a diverse and distinctive array of speakers, from Teddy Roosevelt to George W. Bush, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Governor Jerry Brown, political activist Alicia Garza, political commentator George Will and environmental advocate Jane Goodall. Martin Luther King Jr., Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Bill Gates have all given landmark speeches at the Club.
Michelle Meow, Radio & TV talk show host
I've always dreamed big. As a little peculiar kid who grew up in Stockton, CA, I had an imagination that was too big for my little brain. I fantasized about a lot of things but as young as I can remember, I fantasized about being loved and accepted. The first time I tried to make friends with kids around my neighborhood, I was told to go "back to my country." Born here in California, I didn't know what they meant until the fights in the neighborhood became violent. The hatred you face from childhood to adulthood is dangerous and damaging. I hope one day we can change this for all of us. Why can't we learn to love and accept one another for our differences and our similarities? That is the journey or quest I am on and the reason behind the "Michelle Meow Show."
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