Everything seemed to be falling into place for Lieza Danan.  

Her career had always been one of innovation and ambition. From selling pastillas and yema at a young age in the Philippines (her first startup), with her Lola’s recipes, to carving out a niche for herself in the complex world of biopharma, Lieza’s path had always been driven by a desire to make an impact. After completing a degree in Chemistry with an emphasis in Analytical Chemistry at Ateneo de Manila University, she earned her doctorate in Biological Chemistry and Mass Spectrometry at UC Davis. Her journey through the sciences took her from environmental and pharmaceutical companies in both the Philippines and the U.S., to leading mass spectrometry at Stemcentrx, a startup that would later be acquired by AbbVie for over $6 billion.  

"The culture of entrepreneurship was so strong at Stemcentrx," Lieza recalls. "It taught us all how to be self-sustaining and how to think like entrepreneurs, no matter our title. Each of us heads of function run our own startup within a startup. Since its acquisition in 2016, the original first 140 employees founded at least 15 startups. Three were recently acquired as unicorns."  

Her time there laid the foundation for her next venture: InterVenn Biosciences. As a co-founder, Lieza was instrumental in raising a $9.4 million Series A round. But, after differences in leadership style, she left InterVenn in 2019. That decision, she says, led to what she humorously calls her "Eat, Pray, Love" year. She traveled the world, reconnected with family, friends, and old colleagues, and gave herself the space to reflect on what came next.  

She shared that this sabbatical wasn’t just about exploring the world. It was about reconnecting with herself and finding the clarity she needed to move forward. The break allowed her to reflect on her years of hard work, the 80-hour work weeks spent developing solutions for drug companies, and the immense pressure that came with it.  

"The biopharma space moves fast, and early insights in the drug development process can save both time and money. I realized there had to be a better way to streamline that process."

As she came out of this year of self-reflection, Lieza began plotting her next move. The result was LiVeritas Biosciences, founded in February 2020 with a team that included three of her former college and graduate school classmates backed by her former Stemcentrx colleagues as angel investors. Their combined experience of over 100 years in biopharma drug development and mass spectrometry would form the backbone of a proprietary platform that could bring faster, smarter, and more accessible scientific tools to smaller companies in biopharma.  

LiVeritas uses mass spectrometry, a technology Lieza has championed throughout her 25 year career, along with the power of AI to revolutionize the process of scientific analysis. In a field where mass spectrometers can cost upwards of $500,000 each and talent scarcity so rampant that it takes over 12 months to fill up job openings, LiVeritas offers a digital laboratory that enables scientists to work faster and more efficiently—turning what once took months into a matter of weeks. Their next goal? To bring that expert analysis time down to just days, without compromising quality.  

"At LiVeritas, we want to democratize the playing field," Lieza says. "We’re giving small- and mid-sized companies tools that were once only accessible to big pharma."  

While the company has been steadily growing since its inception, there are few details Lieza can share about the clients they’re working with. Confidentiality agreements prevent her from naming names, but one thing is clear: LiVeritas is making an impact.  

In addition to serving its existing clients, LiVeritas is now in the process of raising a $6 million Series A fund to launch Lilii, an all-in-one platform designed to consolidate the company’s scientific tools. LiLii will act as a kind of Swiss Army knife for biopharma companies, providing them with everything they need to operate like the very best in the industry. "The LiLii Digital Lab Platform is turning mass spectrometrists into superhumans," Lieza says. "This is exactly the tool I wished I had when I was the Head of Mass Spectrometry at Stemcentrx. It’s a platform that would have let me do the work of at least ten people in one go and still be able to have enough sleep."  

Despite the hurdles she’s faced along the way, Lieza’s vision remains unwavering. LiVeritas’ ability to streamline drug development and make cutting-edge technology available to smaller companies is reshaping how the biopharma world works.  

"For me, it’s always been about making science more accessible, more affordable, and ultimately more impactful. At LiVeritas, we’re doing just that."

Lieza’s favorite books-

Positive Intelligence, Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours by Shirzad Chamine

“This book really accelerated my growth as a leader.”

The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra

“I keep going back to this, cover to cover.”

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