February 20, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited (TSE: 4568) has announced the appointment of John Tsai, MD, as the new Global Head of R&D, effective April 1, 2026. Tsai succeeds Ken Takeshita, MD, who is stepping down from the role.
According to Daiichi Sankyo, Dr. Tsai brings over 25 years of leadership experience driving innovation, and his goal will be to expand the company’s pipeline and accelerate the development of new medicines for patients.
Before joining Daiichi Sankyo, Dr. Tsai was an Executive Partner at Syncona Investment Management, a venture capital firm. There, he was responsible for launching new biotech companies focused on oncology, cardiovascular, and kidney diseases.
Prior to Syncona, Dr. Tsai served as President and Head of Global Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer of Novartis AG. During his time at Novartis, he oversaw the development of 160 new projects and 500 clinical trials, resulting in 15 new medicines, including gene therapy and radioligand therapy approvals. He has also served as Chief Medical Officer at Amgen and Head of Late Phase Development at Bristol Myers Squibb.
Dr. Tsai holds a medical degree from the University of Louisville School of Medicine and a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Washington University in St. Louis.
Hiroyuki Okuzawa, President and CEO of Daiichi Sankyo, said that Dr. Tsai’s expertise will be a valuable asset to the company as it executes its next five-year business plan. Okuzawa also thanked Ken Takeshita for his leadership in transforming the company’s R&D function.
Dr. Tsai expressed his enthusiasm for joining Daiichi Sankyo at this pivotal time. He said that he looks forward to building on the company’s legacy of scientific innovation.
Daiichi Sankyo is a global healthcare company focused on discovering, developing, and delivering new standards of care. The company leverages its scientific capabilities to create innovative medicines for people with cancer, cardiovascular, and other diseases with high unmet medical needs.
Source: Daiichi Sankyo
