Veteran biotechnology executive with more than 20 years of leadership experience spanning research, clinical development, commercialization and company building
Proven track record advancing multiple therapeutics from discovery through FDA approval and commercialization, including PREZISTA and INTELENCE
SAN DIEGO, May 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Artiva Biotherapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARTV) (Artiva), a clinical-stage biotechnology company whose mission is to develop effective, safe and accessible cell therapies for patients with debilitating autoimmune diseases, today announced the appointment of Diego Miralles, M.D., as President and Head of Research and Development. Dr. Miralles brings more than two decades of senior leadership and drug development experience, with a track record of advancing therapies from discovery through approval and commercialization, to support Artiva as it advances AlloNK in autoimmune diseases and prepares for registrational development in refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
"I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Diego again, as we did at Vividion, and to welcome him into this leadership role at such an important time for Artiva," said Fred Aslan, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Artiva. "Diego combines strategic, scientific and clinical judgement with a proven ability to build organizations and advance innovative therapies. These qualities will be critical as we advance AlloNK toward registrational development in refractory RA, while continuing to build a company capable of bringing a potentially transformative therapy to patients. With recent FDA alignment on a potential registrational path, Diego's experience and leadership will be instrumental as we prepare for and execute our Phase 3 trial in refractory RA, advance AlloNK across multiple autoimmune diseases and file our first successful BLA for AlloNK in 2029."
"Having served on Artiva's Board of Directors for the past two years, I have seen firsthand the promise of AlloNK and the dedication of the team advancing it," said Dr. Miralles. "Artiva is at a pivotal moment, with a therapeutic approach that has the potential to meaningfully change how autoimmune diseases are treated. AlloNK's potential to deliver deep B-cell depletion in a consistent, scalable and outpatient-ready format is exactly the kind of innovation that could expand access for patients who need better options. I'm excited to rejoin Fred and partner with the Artiva team to advance AlloNK in refractory RA and other autoimmune diseases, execute the next phase of clinical development and help shape the company's long-term research and development strategy."
Dr. Miralles brings more than 20 years of global leadership experience spanning research, clinical development, commercialization and company building across biotechnology and large pharmaceutical companies. He served as chief executive officer of Laronde Inc., a Flagship Pioneering company developing a programmable RNA platform to produce therapeutic proteins. Prior to Laronde, Dr. Miralles served as chief executive officer of Vividion Therapeutics, where he built the company from inception into a leading chemical biology platform for the discovery of small molecule therapies against previously undruggable targets. Prior to Vividion, Dr. Miralles served as president of Adaptive Therapeutics, a division of Adaptive Biotechnologies, and as global head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, where he founded the Johnson & Johnson Innovation Centers and JLABS. Earlier in his career at Johnson & Johnson, he led the Janssen Research and Early Development unit in La Jolla, California and served as vice president of clinical development at Tibotec, where he was involved in the development, approval and commercialization of several antiviral medicines, including PREZISTA and INTELENCE. Dr. Miralles has served on Artiva's Board of Directors since May 2024 and currently serves on the boards of directors of Contineum Therapeutics, ArrePath Therapeutics and Rady Children's Hospital of San Diego. Dr. Miralles received his M.D. from the Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina, completed his internal medicine residency at the Mayo Clinic and was a fellow in infectious diseases at Cornell University-New York Hospital.
Inducement Grant
In connection with the appointment of Dr. Miralles as Artiva's President and Head of Research and Development, Artiva's Board of Directors approved a new employment inducement grant to Dr. Miralles of options to purchase 232,500 shares of Artiva's common stock (the "Options") and 77,500 restricted stock units (the "RSUs" and, together with the Options, the "Inducement Grant").
The Inducement Grant will be granted pursuant to Artiva's 2025 Inducement Plan (the "Inducement Plan"), with the grant effective May 18, 2026. The Options will vest over four years, with 25% vesting on May 15, 2027, and 1/36th of the remaining Options vesting monthly thereafter, subject to Dr. Miralles's continued employment on each such date. The RSUs will vest over four years, with 25% vesting on May 15, 2027, and 1/12th of the remaining RSUs vesting quarterly thereafter, subject to Dr. Miralles's continued employment on each such date. The Inducement Grant is subject to the terms and conditions of the Inducement Plan and the terms and conditions of the applicable stock option notice and agreement and restricted stock unit notice and agreement covering the grant.
Artiva will grant the Inducement Grant as an inducement material to Dr. Miralles's employment with Artiva in accordance with Nasdaq listing Rule 5635(c)(4).
About Artiva Biotherapeutics
Artiva is a clinical-stage biotechnology company whose mission is to develop effective, safe and accessible cell therapies for patients with debilitating autoimmune diseases. Artiva's lead program, AlloNK (also known as AB-101), is an allogeneic, off-the-shelf, non-genetically modified, cryopreserved NK cell therapy candidate designed to enhance the antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity effect of monoclonal antibodies to drive B-cell depletion. AlloNK is currently being evaluated in three ongoing clinical trials for the treatment of B-cell driven autoimmune diseases, including a company-sponsored basket trial across autoimmune diseases that includes rheumatoid arthritis and Sjögren's disease and an investigator-initiated basket trial in B-cell driven autoimmune diseases. Artiva plans to initiate a Phase 3 registrational trial evaluating AlloNK in refractory RA in 2026. Artiva was founded in 2019 as a spin out of GC Cell, formerly GC Lab Cell Corporation, a leading healthcare company in the Republic of Korea, pursuant to a strategic partnership granting Artiva exclusive worldwide rights (excluding Asia, Australia and New Zealand) to GC Cell's NK cell manufacturing technology and programs.
Artiva is headquartered in San Diego, California. For more information, please visit www.artivabio.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this press release that are not statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the appointment of Diego Miralles, M.D., as President, Head of Research and Development of Artiva Biotherapeutics, Inc. (the "Company") and the Company's mission, product candidates (including AlloNK's potential for continued development, future BLA submission, commercialization, meaningful change in how autoimmune diseases are treated, and transformative treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune conditions), positioning for sustained growth, clinical trials, pipeline, and strategic partnerships. These forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of the management of the Company as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company. Such statements reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. In light of these risks and uncertainties, the events or circumstances referred to in the forward-looking statements may not occur. These and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results to differ from current expectations are discussed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including the section titled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date this press release is given. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contacts:
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NBL LifeSci Advisory LLC
ir@artivabio.com
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Little Dog Communications Inc.
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