Safi Bahcall

Safi Bahcall is a second-generation physicist, a biotech entrepreneur, and former public-company CEO. After working as a consultant for McKinsey, he co-founded Synta Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology company focusing on developing new drugs to treat cancer. Bahcall led Synta's IPO and served as its CEO for 13 years. He has been influential in the biotech field, particularly in cancer treatment innovations.

Bahcall advises CEOs and leadership teams on strategy and innovation. He has delivered keynote presentations at industry conferences, investor events, leadership retreats, medical meetings, and leading academic institutions around the world. His speaking engagements often cover topics like strategy in times of crisis and nurturing innovative ideas. In 2008, he was named E&Y New England Biotechnology Entrepreneur of the Year. In 2011, he worked with President Obama’s council of science advisors (PCAST) on the future of national research.

"Loonshots," Bahcall’s first book, has been translated into 21 languages and recommended by notable figures such as Bill Gates, Daniel Kahneman, Malcolm Gladwell, and Tim Ferriss. It was selected as a best business book of the year by multiple prestigious publications, including Amazon, Bloomberg, Financial Times, Forbes, Inc., Newsweek, Strategy + Business, Tech Crunch, and the Washington Post. It was also the #1 most recommended book of the year in Bloomberg’s annual survey of CEOs and entrepreneurs. Bahcall received his BA summa cum laude from Harvard and his PhD in physics from Stanford, where he studied with Lenny Susskind in particle physics and the Nobel laureate Bob Laughlin in condensed matter physics. He was a Miller Fellow in physics at UC Berkeley. He resides in Cambridge, MA, with his family.