George D. Yancopoulos, MD, PhD

Regeneron Founding

In 1989, George left academia to become co-founder and chief scientific officer of Regeneron, alongside Leonard S. Schleifer, the company’s president and chief executive officer. Under their leadership, Regeneron has become one of the world’s premier biotech companies – largely based on his unprecedented record of creating game-changing biotechnologies that have already delivered many important new medicines, all the way from discovery to patients.

Scientific Innovation

George has been named among the ten most highly cited scientists in the world, making many significant discoveries – from defining underlying principles of antibody gene development, to identifying multiple new families of growth factors, to elucidating the fundamental principles of cytokine and interleukin receptor activation.

He, along with key members of his team, is the principal inventor and developer of many of Regeneron’s 14 medicines and important foundational technologies. For example, he is principal inventor and developer of two of the world’s leading medicines, which have collectively helped millions fight blindness and diseases like asthma, atopic dermatitis and eosinophilic esophagitis. In terms of enabling technologies that have delivered these medicines, George’s inventions include Trap (“Soluble Receptor”) technology, VelociGene^® (high-throughput and mega-base-scale genetic-humanization technology) and VelocImmune^® – a genetically-humanized mouse that efficiently delivers fully-human antibodies and bispecifics, including the first antibody cocktail treatments for Ebola and COVID-19. In addition, George’s team at the Regeneron Genetics Center^® is emerging as world leaders in human sequencing, genetics-based target discovery and genetic medicines.

Corporate Responsibility

Inspired by becoming a winner of the Westinghouse Science Talent Search as a high school student, George spearheads many of Regeneron’s STEM efforts to similarly engage the next generation of scientists – leading Regeneron to commit over $100 million to support the world’s leading high school science competitions, including the Regeneron Science Talent Search (formerly Westinghouse and Intel) and the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (formerly the Intel ISEF). Remarkably, more than half the students in these competitions come from immigrant families, just as George did, contributing to America’s long history of uplifting immigrants like Einstein, Tesla, and Larmarr. Regeneron’s focus on STEM is part of its overall Corporate Responsibility strategy, which uses its unique knowledge and expertise for the benefit of society, the economy and the environment.

Awards & Recognition

George has received numerous honors, including induction into the National Academy of Sciences and the Biotech Hall of Fame, and being named E&Y’s Entrepreneur of the Year.