Compass Therapeutics

Compass Therapeutics

Thomas J. Schuetz, a medical oncologist and genetics PhD from Harvard, co-founded Compass Therapeutics in 2014 while serving as a venture partner at OrbiMed. The firm was built on the premise that unbiased empirical screening of immune targets could yield better combination therapies than rational design alone. Compass drugs the immune synapse through two proprietary platforms: StitchMabs, which generates tailored bispecific antibodies, and a common light chain system that simplifies manufacturing. The firm has drugged over 40 immune targets to date and its pipeline spans both innate and adaptive immune mechanisms. Therapeutic candidates are being developed for oncology — including colorectal, gastroesophageal, gynecologic, and melanoma indications — and autoimmune diseases. The firm operates out of Boston and New York, with a clinical advisory board that includes published leaders like NCI trial veteran Richard Goldberg and Yale experimental therapeutics chief Patricia LoRusso. The leadership team includes CFO Barry Shin, a former Trevena and investment banking executive; CCO Arjun Prasad, who led Servier’s US commercial organization; and CMO Cynthia Sirard, previously CMO at Leap Therapeutics. The board includes OrbiMed managing partner Carl Gordon, Enavate Sciences CEO James Boylan, and Kymera Therapeutics chief legal officer Ellen Chiniara. In 2024, Compass appointed Arjun Prasad as its first Chief Commercial Officer and appointed James Kranz as VP of Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls. Compass operates as a venture-backed clinical-stage biotechnology company, not as a conventional venture capital firm. Its investing syndicate includes Borealis Ventures (Phil Ferneau) and OrbiMed — both investors who sit on the board alongside independent directors. The firm’s architecture combines an internal drug discovery engine with external clinical development partnerships, distinct from both pure-play CROs and royalty-financing vehicles.