Elliot Hershberg

Partner (Biotech), Amplify Partners at amplify-partners

Reviewed Updated Jul 27, 2026

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Location San Francisco, CA
Check Size unknown
Last Verified Investment Infinitopes (Seed (extension co-led)) — Jan 21, 2026
Stage Focus

Background

Elliot Hershberg is a Partner at Amplify Partners, where he leads the firm’s biotech and digital-biology practice via the new Amplify Bio fund 12. He holds a PhD from Stanford University (computational/molecular biology track), a BS in Computer Science from Oregon State University, and a BA in Biology from Southwestern University 1. Early in his career he conducted research at the Cancer Vaccine Institute at the University of Washington, studying molecular biology and cancer vaccines 1.

Before joining Amplify Partners, Hershberg was a Biotech Partner and Research Analyst at Not Boring Capital, where his notable deals included Unnatural Products, Atomic AI, and Digital Biology 23. He also writes the “Century of Biology” newsletter, which analyzes how computational biology is reshaping medicine 24.

Hershberg was appointed to Amplify Partners as a Partner in mid-2025, coinciding with the firm’s announcement of Amplify Bio, a USD 200M fund dedicated to digital biology 25. Amplify Bio was launched alongside Fund 6 (USD 400M core early-stage fund) and Fund 6 Select (USD 300M for existing portfolio companies), for a combined USD 900M raise 5.

Stated Thesis

Hershberg has stated: “My mission is to partner with leading engineers and researchers who are doing their life’s work.” 1 He emphasizes that investors should understand the underlying science and help founders identify market opportunities where their technical background provides competitive advantages 1. Amplify Bio’s stated thesis, which Hershberg leads, is that “as the costs of reading and writing DNA have fallen dramatically, tech and AI are starting to take over” the biotech stack, and that the fund targets founders combining biology expertise with programming and AI capabilities 5.

Inferred Thesis

Based on 4 verified investments (3 prior Not Boring deals + 1 Amplify Bio deal), the sample is too small for reliable percentages, but qualitative patterns are clear:

  • Computational + biology intersection: Every documented investment sits at the intersection of computational tools and life sciences — Unnatural Products (computational chemistry for drug discovery), Atomic AI (AI for RNA drug discovery), Digital Biology (AI-native drug discovery infrastructure), and Infinitopes (AI-powered immunomics for cancer vaccines) 236.
  • Seed-stage bias: Amplify Bio positions itself as seed and Series A 57, and Hershberg’s most recent lead investment (Infinitopes, January 2026) was a seed extension 6.
  • Technical-founder preference: Hershberg has publicly stated that his mission is to “partner with leading engineers and researchers who are doing their life’s work” 1 — consistent with his own PhD-and-CS-degree background.
  • Cancer & precision medicine focus visible: Two of the four disclosed investments (Atomic AI’s RNA drug discovery, Infinitopes’ cancer vaccines) target cancer/precision-medicine indications directly 36.
  • Aligned with Amplify Bio’s broader roster: Adjacent Amplify Bio portfolio companies backed since 2016 include Recursion (RXRX), Chai Discovery, Axiom, Achira, Bexorg, and Tahoe Therapeutics — providing significant deal-flow overlap for Hershberg’s future investments 5.
  • Sample size caveat: Only 4 investments are publicly attributed to Hershberg specifically. Percentages would be misleading with this denominator; the pattern is directional only.

Portfolio

Company Year Stage Source
Infinitopes 2026-01-21 Seed extension (co-led by Amplify Bio + Octopus Ventures; total round USD 15.4M in second close, bringing total seed to USD 35.1M) 6
Unnatural Products pre-2025 Undisclosed (Hershberg deal while at Not Boring Capital) 25
Atomic AI pre-2025 Undisclosed (Hershberg deal while at Not Boring Capital) 25
Digital Biology pre-2025 Undisclosed (Hershberg deal while at Not Boring Capital) 25

Note: Only 4 investments are publicly attributed to Hershberg specifically. Amplify Bio’s broader biotech portfolio (Recursion, Chai Discovery, Axiom, Achira, Bexorg, Tahoe Therapeutics) predates Hershberg’s arrival 5 and is not included here to avoid inflating attribution.

In Their Own Words

“My mission is to partner with leading engineers and researchers who are doing their life’s work.”

— Elliot Hershberg, Amplify Partners team page 1.

“Recent clinical evidence has made it abundantly clear that the time for cancer vaccines is now. After years of searching, Infinitopes has clearly distinguished itself as the company positioned to drive this progress forward.”

— Elliot Hershberg, on Amplify Bio’s co-lead investment in Infinitopes’ USD 35.1M seed round, January 21, 2026 6.

What Founders Say

No independently sourced founder testimonials naming Elliot Hershberg specifically found at this time.

Sources


  1. Amplify Partners team page, “Elliot Hershberg.” Accessed July 2026. https://www.amplifypartners.com/team/elliot-hershberg

  2. DeepNewz VC, “Amplify Partners Raises $200 Million Biotech Fund, Appoints Elliot Hershberg, Announces $900 Million Total Raise and Digital Biology Fund.” Accessed July 2026. https://deepnewz.com/vc/amplify-partners-raises-200-million-biotech-fund-appoints-elliot-hershberg-900-582d0ddb

  3. getprog.ai, “Elliot Hershberg - Partner at Amplify Partners” (profile aggregator citing his prior investment record at Not Boring). Accessed July 2026. https://www.getprog.ai/profile/1929518

  4. LinkedIn profile, “Elliot Hershberg - Partner at Amplify | Author of Century of Bio.” Accessed July 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/elliot-hershberg/

  5. Amplify Partners, “Announcing $900M in new capital, our first digital biology fund, and our new look.” Accessed July 2026. https://www.amplifypartners.com/blog-posts/fund-6-announcement

  6. PR Newswire, “Infinitopes Expands Seed Financing to $35 Million to Accelerate Clinical Development of Precision Cancer Vaccine,” January 21, 2026. Accessed July 2026. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/infinitopes-expands-seed-financing-to-35-million-to-accelerate-clinical-development-of-precision-cancer-vaccine-302665634.html

  7. Amplify Partners, “Amplify Bio” fund page. Accessed July 2026. https://www.amplifypartners.com/amplify-bio