MBA Courses
Second Year Special Topic Seminar: Transactions and Deal-Making in the Life Sciences
Biography
Robert Capon is the co-founder and former CEO of Charlottesville-based Adenosine Therapeutics, one of the world’s leaders in adenosine drug discovery and development with a program in phase III clinical development, where Capon negotiated collaborations with Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, the University of Virginia, the University of Massachusetts and NIH. Adenosine Therapeutics was acquired in August 2008 by Clinical Data, Inc., where Rob served as a Senior Vice President until May 2010 and where he was the architect of transactions with Santen Pharmaceuticals, CombinatoRx and Epix Pharmaceuticals.
Capon is a seasoned entrepreneur and CEO, having been at the helm of four companies. He was a co-founder of ViroLogic, a pioneer in antiviral drug resistance testing that went public as a NASDAQ firm in May 2000. He also co-founded HJC Software, the makers of Virex, the first commercial antivirus software for the Macintosh personal computer. Most recently, Rob co-founded his fifth company, ADial Pharmaceuticals, LLC, where he serves as Vice Chairman of the Board.
Capon served on Virginia Governor Mark Warner's Biotechnology Commission and the Virginia Research and Technology Advisory Commission. He currently chairs the University of Virginia’s McCormick Observatory Advisory Board and is the immediate past president of the University of Virginia Hillel Foundation. He also serves on the boards of the Virginia Biotech Association and the Piedmont Virginia Educational Foundation. Capon received an MBA with honors from Harvard Business School and a BS in mechanical engineering with highest distinction from the University of Virginia.