Talus
reveals it

Alex Federation, Ph.D. is the co-founder and CEO of Talus Bio. Dr. Federation invented the MARMOT platform during his postdoctoral fellowship at the Altius Institute for Biomedical Research in Seattle where he trained in computational epigenomics and cancer biology with John Stamatoyannopoulos and Fyodor Urnov. Prior to that, Dr. Federation received his Ph.D in chemical biology from Harvard, training with Jay Bradner in drug development for genome regulators.

Christopher Joyce, MBA, PharBE, is the Vice President of Business Development at Talus Bio, where he spearheads the company’s strategic partnerships and business development initiatives. With over 15 years of experience in biotechnology and commercialization, he plays a pivotal role in advancing Talus Bio’s platform and growing pipeline toward clinical applications. Before joining Talus Bio, he held key business development roles at Absci, Adaptive Biotechnologies, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, contributing to innovation and growth across the biotech landscape. Mr. Joyce earned both his Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Master of Pharmaceutical Bioengineering (PharBE) from the University of Washington.

Gaelle Mercenne, Ph.D., is the Head of Biology at Talus Bio, where she leads drug discovery efforts targeting transcriptional complexes with small molecules, from early discovery through translational development. Previously, she was one of the first scientists at Recursion, where she led the Discovery team in validating AI-derived drug candidates and targets, and also directed discovery programs at Tolero/Sumitomo Pharma America. With over a decade of experience at the intersection of cell biology, chemical biology, and AI-enabled drug discovery, Dr. Mercenne brings deep expertise in discovery and translational research. She earned her Ph.D. in Molecular and Cell Biology and completed her postdoctoral training at the University of Utah in Wes Sundquist’s lab.

Lindsay Pino, Ph.D., is the co-founder and CTO of Talus Bio. Dr. Pino leads the development of Talus’s screening platform, guiding and coordinating scientific efforts across automated proteomics sample preparation and high-throughput mass spectrometry data acquisition and analysis. She has built and leads a team of multi-disciplinary scientists encompassing the breadth of scientific work at Talus, including chemical biologists, protein chemists, and computational biologists. Dr. Pino received training from the Broad Institute, Penn, and the University of Washington.

Michelle Briscoe is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Talus Bio. Ms. Briscoe oversees all business operations, finance, HR, legal, IT, facilities, and company administration. Ms. Briscoe has over 25 years of experience leading scientific organizations in the Seattle area, including M&A experience. She is passionate about creating exceptional workplaces where employees are engaged, self-motivated towards achievement, and feel valued. Prior to joining Talus Bio, Ms. Briscoe served as the President/CEO of Brooks Applied Labs for 8 years, exiting following the successful sale of the company in 2020. Ms. Briscoe holds a BS in Chemistry and Physics from Western Oregon University.

Will Fondrie, Ph.D., is the Head of Data Science and Engineering at Talus Bio. He leads the development of Talus Bio’s AI platform and the computational infrastructure that turns data into discoveries. Dr. Fondrie leads a talented, multidisciplinary team in the development of models, software, and statistical methods to maximize the effectiveness of Talus Bio’s MARMOT platform. Prior to joining Talus, he developed AI methods for proteomics data during his postdoctoral fellowship with Bill Noble at the University of Washington. Dr. Fondrie received his Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine from the University of Maryland, Baltimore, training with Dudley Strickland and David Goodlett.