Meredith Fisher
Partner at mass-general-brigham-ventures
Reviewed Updated Jul 6, 2026This profile is AI-generated. If you spot an error, please help us fix it by sharing a URL to the correct information.
Background
Meredith Fisher, PhD, is a Partner at Mass General Brigham Ventures (MGBV), the venture arm of Mass General Brigham and formerly known as Partners HealthCare Innovation. MGBV was founded in 2008 and invests in early-stage life science companies emerging from Mass General Brigham’s research base 12. The firm has more than $450M in assets under management, has backed 55 companies since inception, and has produced 20 exits (12 acquisitions and 8 IPOs) 2.
Fisher focuses on early-stage investments and company creation, and has co-founded multiple MGBV portfolio companies — three as founding CEO 34. Before joining MGBV, she was Director of Private Investments at Bracebridge Capital, where she led investments in early-stage life science companies; before that she led business development at Ginkgo Bioworks, was Senior Director of Technology and Business Development at PureTech’s Enlight Biosciences, and worked as a scientist in anti-viral drug discovery at Idenix Pharmaceuticals and Anadys Pharmaceuticals 13.
She holds a PhD in Molecular Microbiology from Harvard University, an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management, and an undergraduate degree from Mount Holyoke College 13. She co-founded Harvard Graduate Women in Science and Engineering (HGWISE) while at Harvard 1.
Stated Thesis
MGBV publicly describes its focus as “advancing new life science technologies emerging from Mass General Brigham” across drugs, devices, diagnostics, and digital health, with initial investments at the seed and Series A stages 2. The firm emphasizes working with strong co-investor syndicates rather than leading alone in every round 2.
Fisher’s individual focus, as recorded on Signal by NFX, is biotech at seed and Series A in Boston/New England, with checks of $100K-$5M and a $1.5M sweet spot 5. On the therapeutic areas she cares about, she has said publicly, referring to Violet Therapeutics: “Synaptic loss is the strongest predictor of cognitive decline for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, yet we have very few programs that address this key pathophysiology.” 6
Inferred Thesis
Fisher’s activity is unusual for a VC in that a substantial portion of her deals are company-creation efforts spun out of Mass General Brigham research, not external investments. Analysis based on her disclosed board and observer seats plus MGBV’s active portfolio:
- Therapeutics-heavy: of the 17 active MGBV portfolio companies published, 12 are therapeutics-focused (small molecules, antibodies, AAV gene therapy, cellular therapies) — including her board seats at Mediar Therapeutics (fibrosis antibodies), Nocion Therapeutics (small molecule sodium channel blockers), ClarisBio (front-of-eye therapeutics), FireCyte (neurodegenerative eye disease), and Violet (synaptic preservation) 23.
- CNS/neuroscience concentration: Violet, FireCyte, Spur Therapeutics, and QurAlis in the MGBV portfolio all target CNS or neurodegenerative disease — a theme mirrored in Fisher’s direct company-creation work at Violet 26.
- Boston/New England only: MGBV explicitly focuses on companies emerging from Mass General Brigham, so geographic concentration is near-total 25.
- Syndicate-partner style: rather than leading rounds, MGBV typically participates alongside dedicated healthcare investors — Nocion’s Series B extension syndicate included Arkin Bio Capital, Monograph, Canaan Partners, F-Prime, Lumira, Morningside, and Osage University Partners 7. Violet’s 2026 seed extension was led by Lifespan Vision Ventures with MGBV alongside Dementia Discovery Fund, UTEC, and Ono Venture Investment 6.
- Realized exits: portfolio successes include Amolyt Pharma (acquired by AstraZeneca in March 2024 for $800M upfront + up to $250M milestones) and Scorpion Therapeutics (acquired by Eli Lilly in 2025) 48.
Sample size for personal attribution beyond board seats is small; the pattern is best described qualitatively as an operator-scientist co-founding MGB-originated biotech companies, with a bias toward CNS and immunology therapeutics.
Portfolio
Companies where Fisher has a board seat or board observer role, or where she is a named MGBV portfolio participant:
| Company | Year | Stage | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violet Therapeutics | 2026 | Seed extension ($4.75M, MGBV participation; Fisher founding CEO) | 6 |
| Mediar Therapeutics | 2024 | Series B ($76M, co-led ICG + Amplitude; Fisher board) | 93 |
| Nocion Therapeutics | 2024 | Series B extension (to $93M total; Fisher board) | 73 |
| Amolyt Pharma | 2024 | Exit — acquired by AstraZeneca (Fisher board observer) | 84 |
| Scorpion Therapeutics | 2025 | Exit — acquired by Eli Lilly (Fisher board observer) | 4 |
| ZielBio | ~2019 | Series A ($25.1M; Fisher board) | 310 |
| ClarisBio | ~2020 | MGBV portfolio (Fisher board) | 23 |
| FireCyte Therapeutics | ~2021 | MGBV portfolio (Fisher board) | 23 |
| BraveBio | ~2021 | MGBV portfolio (Fisher board) | 3 |
Exact founding-round dates for several MGBV company-creation efforts are not publicly disclosed; entries above use approximate years based on public disclosures and are labeled accordingly.
In Their Own Words
On synaptic preservation and Violet’s mission:
“Synaptic loss is the strongest predictor of cognitive decline for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, yet we have very few programs that address this key pathophysiology. Violet is positioned to be a leader in developing therapies to prevent synapse loss and restore synaptic function.” 6
What Founders Say
No independently sourced founder testimonials found. Because Fisher personally co-founded and served as founding CEO of several MGBV portfolio companies (Violet Therapeutics among them), the founder/investor line at these companies is not a normal arm’s-length relationship.
Connections
- Founding CEO, Violet Therapeutics — co-founded with researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital 6
- Board member: Mediar Therapeutics, Nocion Therapeutics, ClarisBio, FireCyte Therapeutics, BraveBio, ZielBio 3
- Board observer: Scorpion Therapeutics (acquired by Eli Lilly, 2025), Amolyt Pharma (acquired by AstraZeneca, 2024) 4
- Prior employer, Ginkgo Bioworks — Business Development 13
- Prior employer, PureTech/Enlight Biosciences — Senior Director of Technology and Business Development 13
- Prior employer, Bracebridge Capital — Director of Private Investments in the private/family office 13
- Prior employer, Idenix Pharmaceuticals and Anadys Pharmaceuticals — anti-viral drug discovery scientist 13
- Co-founder, Harvard Graduate Women in Science and Engineering (HGWISE) 1
Sources
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Meredith Fisher team page, Mass General Brigham Ventures, accessed July 2026. https://www.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/research-and-innovation/innovation/ventures/team/meredith-fisher↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩
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“About” and “Investment Portfolio” pages, Mass General Brigham Ventures, accessed July 2026. https://www.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/research-and-innovation/innovation/ventures/portfolio↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩
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Meredith Fisher, LinkedIn profile, accessed July 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithcfisher/↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩
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Violet Therapeutics team page (includes Fisher bio with portfolio exit history), accessed July 2026. https://www.violettx.com/team/↩↩↩↩↩
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Meredith Fisher investing profile, Signal by NFX, accessed July 2026. https://signal.nfx.com/investors/meredith-fisher↩↩
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“Violet Therapeutics Raises $4.75M Seed Extension to Advance Novel Therapeutic for Synaptic Preservation and Repair,” SV Health Investors news, May 13, 2026, accessed July 2026. https://svhealthinvestors.com/news/violet-therapeutics-raises-4-75m-seed-extension-to-advance-novel-therapeutic-for-synaptic-preservation-and-repair↩↩↩↩↩↩
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“Nocion Therapeutics Extends Series B Financing to $93 Million to Support Late-Stage Development of Taplucainium in Chronic Cough,” BusinessWire, January 7, 2026, accessed July 2026. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260107149715/en/Nocion-Therapeutics-Extends-Series-B-Financing-to-$93-Million-to-Support-Late-Stage-Development-of-Taplucainium-in-Chronic-Cough↩↩
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“Amolyt Pharma Enters into Definitive Agreement to be Acquired by AstraZeneca,” GlobeNewswire, March 14, 2024, accessed July 2026. https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/03/14/2845997/0/en/Amolyt-Pharma-Enters-into-Definitive-Agreement-to-be-Acquired-by-AstraZeneca.html↩↩
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“Mediar raises $76m Series B for fibrosis drugs,” BioXconomy, accessed July 2026. https://www.bioxconomy.com/investment/mediar-closes-76m-series-b-to-developed-anti-fibrotic-therapies↩
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“ZielBio Closes $25.1 Million Series A Financing,” referenced via Meredith Fisher LinkedIn activity, accessed July 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/meredithcfisher_zielbio-closes-251-million-series-a-financing-activity-6582996176994476032-U1o4↩