Gunnar Esiason is the Head of Patient Engagement and Patient-Centered Innovation at Raven (RA Ventures), RA Capital Management's Healthcare Incubator, where he is leading innovative efforts to transform how the biotech industry works with patients.

A passionate patient advocate, Gunnar is a cystic fibrosis (CF) and rare disease patient leader. He plays a vital role in helping portfolio companies design and execute clinical trials alongside RA’s Blackbird team, ensuring the patient voice is integral to cutting-edge initiatives. He also leads key advocacy efforts across the RA ecosystem.

Gunnar has been the face of fundraising efforts for the Boomer Esiason Foundation, which has yielded nearly $200 million for the fight against CF since he was diagnosed with the condition in 1993. Before joining Raven, Gunnar led patient operations at a health tech startup and co-hosted the widely acclaimed Breathe In: A Cystic Fibrosis Podcast, which ranked among the top 200 health podcasts on iTunes in 2018. In addition to his blog, which has garnered nearly 1 million page views since 2015, Gunnar’s health policy perspectives have been featured in respected outlets including the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Hill, and STAT News.

Gunnar holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, an MPH from the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice, and a BA from Boston College. Outside of his work at RA, he was a founding board member of No Patient Left Behind.