William Byrne, Ph.D.

William is an Associate at Illumina Ventures, based in Ireland. Previously, he was Head of Biotechnology at NEOM, a greenfield city under construction in Saudi Arabia. During his time at NEOM, William determined the scientific focus areas and advanced the core enablers (regulations, infrastructure, funding and talent) necessary to stand up the biotech industry. William also defined NEOM’s offering in the multi-omics space.

Prior to joining NEOM, William worked in strategy consulting in the Middle East and Europe, where he advised a broad range of clients in the healthcare and life science industries. For these clients, William delivered investment, research, go-to-market and product launch strategies. William also worked at a biotech start-up seeking to commercialize bacterial gene therapy.

William earned a Ph.D. in cancer immunology and a B. Pharm. from University College Cork, Ireland. William also holds an M.B.A. from INSEAD, France.