Isabelle Rivière is a visionary leader in cell therapy and biomedical innovation with more than 25 years of experience advancing translational research, clinical development, and global partnerships across academia and industry. She has a proven track record of translating novel cell and gene therapies from concept to clinic, leading cross functional teams, and shaping strategic scientific and manufacturing initiatives. She is widely recognized for pioneering contributions to CAR T cell therapies and for building end to end capabilities spanning CMC/GMP manufacturing, regulatory submissions, and technology transfer. Dr. Rivière holds a Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Paris, with training at the Institut Curie, the Whitehead Institute, and NYU. She joined Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in 1999, where she developed genetic and manufacturing approaches for multiple cell types including T lymphocytes, blood stem cells and dopaminergic neurons-derived from embryonic stem cells for the treatment of cancer, genetic blood disorders and Parkinson disease respectively. She oversaw the production of more than 500 CAR T cell products, enabling FDA Breakthrough and Orphan Drug designations for CD19 CAR T therapy in acute lymphoblastic leukemia. She is currently Vice President and Head of Cell Therapy Sciences at Takeda. A Scientific Co founder of Juno Therapeutics, she has served on the boards of ASGCT, ARM, and the NSF CMaT ERC, and is a recipient of the Jerry Mendell Award (2023) and the Richard N. Merkin Prize (2025).