Tim Hirst

Biography

Professor Tim Hirst is an entrepreneurial academic with wide-ranging experience in establishing new venture-backed companies. Prior to forming Gamma Vaccines in July 2009 he was the CEO of ANU Connect Ventures - a $30M pre-seed investment fund established by the Australian National University and MTAA Super. Tim was a Non-Executive Director of all of the companies established and funded by ANU Connect Ventures, including Cryptopharma Pty Ltd, Dosimetry & Imaging Pty Ltd, Savine Therapeutics Pty Ltd and Warm Contact Pty Ltd as well as both Director and Chairman of Mylexa Pty Ltd and Synergetic Services Pty Ltd. Prior to joining ANU Connect Ventures, Tim acted as an advisor in the establishment of respiratory- vaccine developer Hunter Immunology Ltd, and became a non-executive director of the company in 2004 and Executive Chairman from 2006 to 2007. Before migrating to Australia Tim was also a Director of Hunter-Fleming Ltd from 2001 - 2004, a UK drug discovery company developing immunotherapeutic products based on Tim’s research at the University of Bristol. Hunter-Fleming was acquired in 2008 by the Italian-based company Newron (SIX:NWRN). Prior to the Newron transaction Tim’s proprietary immunotherapeutic technology was spun-out of Hunter-Fleming into a special purpose vehicle, Trident Pharmaceuticals Inc., based in Boston, MA. Trident has received US$20m of investment from Advent Venture Partners. Tim has also held Senior Executive positions in universities in the United Kingdom and Australia. From 2003 to 2006 he was Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation) at the University of Sydney, with overall responsibility for research and innovation strategy. Prior to migrating to Australia in 2003 he was the Professor of Microbiology at the University of Bristol for 7 years and Lecturer/Snr Lecturer/Reader in Molecular Microbiology at University of Kent at Canterbury. In addition to his current role in Gamma Vaccines, Tim is the Non-Executive Chairman of OzStar Therapeutics Pty Ltd.  He is also an Honorary Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Adelaide, Australia and in the School of Life Sciences and Technology at the Institute of Technology, Bandung, Indonesia. 

Research Interest

Microbiology