Moderna's COVID-19 Vaccine Shows Promise. Now What?

The coronavirus has pharmaceutical and biotech companies racing to find a vaccine. Moderna is the first company to test its vaccine in people and, this week, Moderna announced those early tests appear to be a success. On this episode of Leadership Next, Alan Murray speaks with the co-founder and chairman of Moderna, Noubar Afeyan.  Moderna is a portfolio company in Afeyan’s biotech incubator, Flagship Pioneering. He founded Flagship in 2000 with the goal of financing companies that use innovative technologies to solve problems. Moderna certainly fits that description: its approach to the coronavirus vaccine is unlike any other. Afeyan explains why. He touches on the challenges of scaling production of the vaccine, and answer’s Alan’s blunt question: Is Moderna going to make any money off of this? The two also discuss how Flagship Pioneering differs from a venture capital firm, and how Afeyan’s immigrant roots have impacted his approach to business. 

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Something big is happening in the world of business. CEOs increasingly say their jobs have become less about giving orders, more about inspiring, motivating, setting a north star. They are taking the lead on big issues like climate change, worker retraining, and diversity and inclusion. They are under pressure from employees, customers and investors not just to turn a profit, but to prove they are doing good in the world. And in the process, they are fundamentally redefining the relationship between business and society. Join Fortune CEO Alan Murray and Editor-at-Large Michal Lev-Ram as they probe the best of these leaders for insight into what they're doing, why they're doing it, and what impact it is having.