Brad Merrill, Ph.D. is Co-Founder and Head of Innovation at Syntax Bio, a Chicago-based synthetic biology company programming the next generation of cell therapies using its proprietary CRISPR-based Cellgorithm platform.

Brad earned his Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego in 1999 and completed postdoctoral training at the University of Chicago and Rockefeller University, before joining UIC as a Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics where he spent two decades studying pluripotent stem cell biology.

Brad's lab pioneered CRISPR-based lineage tracing tools that introduced temporally controlled genetic perturbation, culminating in the proGuide system published in Molecular Cell and Science Advances. He was awarded the iBio iCON Innovator Award in recognition of his scientific contributions to regenerative medicine.

Brad co-founded Syntax Bio alongside former PhD student Ryan Clarke, translating over two decades of academic stem cell research into a venture-backed biotech company that has filed 7 patents and attracted investors including Astellas Venture Management, Illumina Ventures, DCVC Bio, and Draper Associates.

Syntax Bio has raised over $25 million in total funding, established collaborations with Mayo Clinic and Breakthrough T1D, and is advancing pancreatic beta cell therapies that could eliminate the need for insulin injections in type 1 diabetes patients.