Stephen Pitt

Stephen Pitt, Ph.D., is a senior pharmaceutical R&D leader and innovation strategist currently serving as Global Head of External Innovation, Interventional Oncology at Johnson & Johnson (J&J). He previously led JLABS @ US North East (2019–2022), overseeing incubators in New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia, where he incubated over 100 healthcare startups and facilitated more than 10 partnerships with J&J.134 His work at JLABS focused on fostering collaborations between startups, academia, and J&J’s internal teams to accelerate drug development and medical device innovation.25

Key Roles and Achievements:

• External Innovation Leadership: Pitt has built external innovation strategies across therapeutic areas, including interventional oncology, leveraging partnerships with startups, biotechs, and academic institutions. His team has delivered over 15 deals focused on intratumoral therapies for lung and head & neck cancers.4
• JLABS Leadership: During his tenure as Head of JLABS US North East, he expanded J&J’s startup ecosystem, enabling access to mentorship, funding, and expertise. The incubators under his oversight supported companies like Envisagenics, which uses AI for drug target prioritization.24
• Cross-Functional Expertise: With over two decades in R&D roles at J&J, GSK, Pfizer, and Palatin Technologies, Pitt has expertise in drug discovery, pharmaceutical development, and alliance management. He pioneered computational/AI-based molecular dynamics approaches during his Ph.D. research at Cornell University and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.34

Education and Background:
Pitt holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Pharmacology from Cornell University and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he developed AI-driven methods to study RNA and drug targets.34 His career reflects a blend of scientific rigor and entrepreneurial collaboration, aligning with J&J’s mission to integrate external innovation with internal R&D.5