The Alliance to End Biological Threats brings together top scientists, policy experts, technologists, and business and nonprofit leaders who share a common vision: that future disease outbreaks can be detected and responded to so rapidly and effectively that they never again reach pandemic scale.
Our Mission: The Alliance will help envision, promote, and create a system of preparedness and rapid response that stops biological threats as soon as they emerge. This must account simultaneously for natural, accidental, and intentional biological threats—and it will require significant public-private coordination and collaboration. The good news is that many of the technologies that will serve as the foundation for such a system already exist, and in many cases are already being deployed. Yet achieving the Alliance’s vision will require key actors to unite to expand on these successes and overcome hurdles along the way.
Founders
Lovisa Afzelius – Flagship Pioneering
Patrick Ayscue – Chan Zuckerberg (CZ) Biohub
Vik Bajaj – Foresite Capital Management
George Church – Harvard, MIT, The Wyss Institute
Joe DeRisi – Chan Zuckerberg (CZ) Biohub
John Ellithorpe – DNAnexus
Emiko Higashi – Tohmon Capital Partners LLC
Ethan Jackson – Microsoft Healthcare
Jason Kelly – Ginkgo Bioworks
Mickey Kertesz – Karius
Akhila Kosaraju – Phare Bio
Vanessa Moeder – Illumina
Robert Palay – Council on Strategic Risks
Pardis Sabeti – Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT
Damien Saghoian – Foresite Capital Management
Robert Schlaberg – IDbyDNA
Andrew Snyder-Beattie – Open Philanthropy
Rajeev Surati – Council on Strategic Risks
Stan Wang – Council on Strategic Risks
Andy Weber – Council on Strategic Risks
Steve Wolfe – Alliance for AI in Health
Partners in the Alliance
Full list of partners coming soon. Apply here to join the Alliance.
Vision in Practice: An Enduring System to Prevent, Eliminate, and Deter Biological Threats
Once the COVID-19 pandemic is brought under control, it is imperative that the attention and investments that will arise are directed toward systemic, ambitious progress. This will involve creating a steady state of persistent pathogen early warning, strong civil defense, an ecosystem of capabilities to quickly develop and deploy diagnostics and countermeasures tailored to specific new disease threats, and more. Just as important, national and international capacities that normally support private sector needs but that can pivot to support rapid biological threat responses must be mapped and ready to surge in times of need.
Resources
Pathogen Detection, Mapping and Early Warning: Opportunities & Obstacles on the Path Toward Preventing Future Pandemics,
By, Christine Parthemore September, 2020
Pandemics and Bioweapons: A Path for the Biden Administration,
By, Christine Parthemore and Andy Weber, LA Times, Nov 12, 2020