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Team

The people bringing modern medicine to pets.

We're scientists, drug developers and veterinary specialists who have spent our careers bringing new medicines to patients. Now we're bringing that experience to the dogs and cats who share our lives.

A white and tan dog giving a person a high five in a grassy field.

Built by operators who've done this before.

We're Elizabeth and Dan, and we've been building things together for a long time. We spent more than a decade building Science Exchange, the R&D outsourcing platform that became core infrastructure for the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, through to its acquisition in 2024. Along the way, we saw drug development from the inside: what moves it forward, what holds it back, and where technology can make a difference.

We started Familiar because we believe the dogs and cats who share our lives deserve the same rate of medical progress that humans have earned. We're bringing our experience in biotech and technology to a problem we care about personally, and building the company we wish had existed when our own pets needed it.

Elizabeth Iorns and Dan Knox standing side by side.

Elizabeth Iorns and Dan Knox, co-founders.

Our team

We bring decades of experience in animal health, drug development, software and AI, and we work as one team across every step of bringing a medicine to pets.

Portrait of Elizabeth Iorns.

Elizabeth Iorns, PhD

Co-founder & CEO

Leads strategy, R&D, and clinical development.

LinkedIn

Elizabeth is a translational scientist with deep oncology credentials: PhD in Cancer Biology from the Institute of Cancer Research, London; postdoctoral and Assistant Professor positions at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine focused on breast cancer; 60+ publications in leading journals.

Elizabeth co-founded and led Science Exchange as CEO from 2011 through its acquisition in 2024, building the R&D orchestration platform used by BMS, AbbVie, Gilead, Astellas, and other top pharmaceutical companies. She has been recognized by Goldman Sachs (100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs), Nature (Ten People That Mattered in 2012), Wired (50 Women Who Are Changing The World), and as a Scrip Awards Finalist for Executive of the Year.

Portrait of Dan Knox.

Dan Knox, MBA

Co-founder & COO

Leads operations, finance, and business development.

LinkedIn

Dan is an operations and finance leader with deep experience in technology, finance, biotech, and startups. He holds an MBA from MIT Sloan, an MSc in Economics from the University of London, and a BCom (Hons) in Economics and an LLB in Law from the University of Otago.

Dan co-founded Science Exchange with Elizabeth and built the operating model that grew it into the outsourced R&D infrastructure used by the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, through its acquisition in 2024.

Portrait of Stacy Ross.

Stacy Ross, PhD

Head of CMC and Regulatory

Leads manufacturing and regulatory work across the pipeline.

LinkedIn

Stacy is a chemistry, manufacturing and controls leader with deep expertise across animal health and biotech. She was previously VP of CMC at Loyal, with earlier roles at Zoetis, Bayer Animal Health, Elanco and Sage Therapeutics. She has contributed to 12 FDA approvals and seven commercial products. She holds a PhD in Pharmaceutics from the University of Iowa.

Portrait of Karen Greenwood.

Karen Greenwood

Regulatory Affairs

Advises on regulatory strategy and submissions to the FDA CVM.

LinkedIn

Karen has worked in the Animal Health industry for 38 years, with > 25 years at Pfizer Animal Health & Zoetis, followed by leadership roles at Parnell, Kindred Biosciences and Loyal. She has broad experience including project and portfolio strategy and delivery and FDA CVM regulatory strategy and submissions. She was involved in development of multiple products including Apoquel, Cytopoint, the Canine Parvovirus Monoclonal Antibody and Solensia. After developing the regulatory path to market for Loyal she moved into a consulting role focused on helping start-up companies gain FDA CVM approval for veterinary products.

Portrait of Mark Steele.

Mark Steele

CMC Regulatory Affairs

Guides the manufacturing sections of our FDA submissions.

LinkedIn

Mark has 20+ years of experience at large animal health pharmaceutical companies, including Zoetis, Novartis Animal Health and Pfizer Animal Health.

He has 28 years in regulatory affairs, including new product submissions, post-approval maintenance, and global registration support. His work spans a variety of product types, including sterile and non-sterile formulations. He also has 11 years of experience in manufacturing operations and 9 years in formulation R&D.

Portrait of Tiffany Prentice.

Tiffany Prentice, PhD

Analytical Chemistry

Advises on analytical method review across our programs.

LinkedIn

Tiffany has a decade of experience in analytical chemistry, with earlier roles at Merck. She is skilled in developing analytical methods and specifications for animal health products. Her expertise spans both physical and chemical methods, including HPLC/GC and MS, with a focus on impurity analysis and quality control. She also has extensive experience in CDMO troubleshooting and oversight.

Portrait of James McGraw.

James McGraw, JD

Corporate & Transactions Counsel

Advises on commercial transactions and contracts.

LinkedIn

James is a partner at DLA Piper and a life sciences corporate and transactions attorney with extensive experience counseling biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies on licensing, collaboration, R&D, manufacturing and supply, commercialization, and other strategic commercial arrangements. He holds a JD from Temple University School of Law.

James advises Familiar Therapeutics on its IP and commercial transactions that support the company's portfolio of products.

Portrait of Pierre De Oliveira.

Pierre De Oliveira, JD, PhD

Intellectual Property Counsel

Advises on intellectual property strategy.

LinkedIn

Pierre is a partner in DLA Piper's Philadelphia office and a registered patent attorney focused on life sciences. He advises on patent strategy, preparation and prosecution, due diligence and licensing, and has served as IP counsel on two biotech IPOs. He holds a PhD in pharmacology from the University of Pittsburgh and a JD from Duquesne University.

Scientific Advisory Board

A scientific advisory board built for translation.

Familiar's scientific advisory board brings together leading veterinary specialists and translational scientists, the clinicians and researchers who shape our decisions on program selection, trial design, and indication prioritization.

Portrait of Peter J. Dickinson.

Peter J. Dickinson

PhD, DACVIM Neurology and Neurosurgery

Professor, VM: Surgery & Radiology Science, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine

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Portrait of Timothy M. Fan.

Timothy M. Fan

DVM, PhD, DACVIM SAIM & Oncology

Professor of Veterinary Clinical Medicine, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; Associate Director for Translational Research and Development, Cancer Center at Illinois

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Portrait of Heidi Phillips.

Heidi Phillips

VMD, DACVS-SA

Professor of Small Animal Surgery, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, College of Veterinary Medicine

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Portrait of Philip J. Bergman.

Philip J. Bergman

DVM, MS, PhD, DACVIM Oncology

Former Global Director of Clinical Studies, VCA Animal Hospitals / Mars Veterinary Health

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Portrait of Adrienne Wright.

Adrienne Wright

MBA, PhD

Vice President, Science & Commercialization; Site Leader, Ardent Animal Health

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Portrait of Christopher Dupuis.

Christopher Dupuis

DVM, CCRP

Veterinarian, Wheatland Animal Hospital; President, University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Alumni Association

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Portrait of Jessica M. Quimby.

Jessica M. Quimby

DVM, PhD, DACVIM SAIM

Professor and Vice Chair of Research, Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine

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Portrait of Chris Welch.

Chris Welch

DVM

Practicing Veterinarian, Geneva Lakes Animal Hospital

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Portrait of Rachel Admire.

Rachel Admire

DVM

Veterinarian, Lakeview Veterinary Hospital

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Portrait of Colin Dawson.

Colin Dawson

BVSc, MBA

Professional director and former veterinarian; boards include SPCA New Zealand

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Portrait of Nicholas D. Jeffery.

Nicholas D. Jeffery

BVSc, PhD

University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine

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Portrait of Robert Swinger.

Robert Swinger

DVM, DACVO

Medical Director, Elite Veterinary Specialists; President, Florida Veterinary Medical Association

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Backed by

Familiar is backed by Pioneer Fund, Icehouse Ventures and BreakTHRU, a syndicate of animal-health industry leaders and veterinarians, with additional participation from family offices and angel investors.

  • Pioneer Fund
  • Icehouse Ventures
  • BreakTHRU

Work with us.

Whether you're a veterinarian, a drug developer or a pet owner, we'd love to hear from you.