About Omair Khan

Omair Khan was born and raised in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans to Vaseem and Rubina Khan, immigrants from India who came to the United States in pursuit of greater educational opportunity for their family. Growing up in one of America's most underserved communities, Omair was shaped by his parents' unwavering belief that resilience and hard work were the foundations of any meaningful life — a conviction that would be tested early and often.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, displacing Omair's family for months before they resettled in Chicago. Shortly after, his father received a life-changing brain tumor diagnosis. Rather than being derailed by these hardships, Omair channeled them into purpose, developing a deep commitment to medicine and the drive to pursue it at the highest level.

Omair earned a full-ride scholarship to the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA), a nationally recognized boarding school for exceptional students in science and mathematics. There, he conducted original research in the laboratory of Professor Mashkoor Choudhry at Loyola University Chicago's Stritch School of Medicine, resulting in three peer-reviewed publications in PLOS ONE and Shock.

At Yale University, where he studied molecular, cellular, and developmental biology and global health, Omair spent four years conducting research in the laboratory of Professor Richard Flavell, focusing on T-cell metabolism and mucosal immunology. That work produced co-authorship on two papers published in Nature. Beyond the lab, Omair gained experience across sectors that would define his broader vision of healthcare — interning at a biotechnology startup in Silicon Valley, serving as a healthcare policy intern in the United States Senate, and conducting global health fieldwork in one of the world's largest refugee camps in Bangladesh. These experiences reinforced his belief that solving the world's hardest health challenges requires fluency across science, policy, industry, and humanitarian action.

Omair is obtaining his MD/PhD at Stanford University, pursuing a PhD in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine under the mentorship of Professor Irving Weissman. He is also a Partner at ARTIS Ventures, a venture capital firm based in San Francisco, and is the inaugural Jim Valentine TechBio Fellow at the Institute for Education (IFE), a non-profit dedicated to harnessing data, innovation, and soft diplomacy to advance global health and education.