James Peyer

THE FORMATIVE MOMENT. At just 15 years old, James Peyer experienced a pivotal moment that would shape the rest of his life. His grandfather, “a towering figure of what it means to live a good life,” James recalls, succumbed to thyroid cancer in his mid-eighties. His grandfather’s remarkable journey—from serving in the Navy during World War II and becoming one of the first radar operators to rising in the business world, learning Russian in his seventies, and engaging in high-frequency stock trading in his eighties— was abruptly halted by the aggressive disease.

Watching his grandfather deteriorate so rapidly left a profound impact on James. “In just a year and a half, he went from walking six miles each day to dying... Seeing this person, who was the example of a life well-lived, being destroyed by disease and pain—it was something I couldn’t reconcile with.”

This experience not only shaped James’ philosophical outlook but also set him on a path of relentless pursuit. “If this is our destiny, the best possible future that any of us can achieve, then the only worthwhile thing I could do in my life is to try to prevent this kind of suffering for as many people as possible,” he decided. Since that formative moment, James has been dedicated to understanding and combating the biological changes associated with aging.

THE MISSION. Driven by his early experiences, James founded Cambrian Bio, a clinical-stage company at the forefront of developing therapeutics targeting the biological drivers of aging. The company partners with exceptional scientists to understand the mechanisms that change with age, with the goal of bringing a new class of medicines to patients—ones that treat and ultimately prevent some of today’s most debilitating chronic diseases.

Growing up in the Midwest and born in Wisconsin, James credits his stable upbringing with giving him the privilege to think beyond his immediate circumstances. However, his path to success wasn’t straightforward. He faced many detractors but persevered thanks to several excellent mentors. “The skills they taught me about how to evaluate and think about science were invaluable,” he says. This enabled him to persevere, leading him into the business world as a consultant for pharmaceutical companies.

RECOGNIZING CHANGE AND EMBRACING AUTHENTICITY. James credits his LGBTQIA+ identity for his continued success and resilience in his complex and demanding work at Cambrian Bio. Growing up as a straight white male, he found that his relationships, though good, often failed due to his intense dedication to science. For the past eight years, James has thrived in a throuple, living with his girlfriend and boyfriend, both of whom are entrepreneurs.

“Having two people to lean on creates a council of state within my family unit that feels much stronger and more stable than anything I could have possibly imagined,” he says. This supportive structure allows James to fully invest in his work and relationships without the fear of resentment. “Both partners understand when I need to make decisions for Cambrian, which has actually allowed me to be much more present and wholehearted.”

James admits he is both “excited and horrified” by the current excitement surrounding aging biology and longevity—“Nothing is more prone to a snake-oil kind of salesmanship than ‘Fountain of Youth’ stories”—but acknowledges he feels both lucky and grateful to be thriving in his career during such transformative times for the LGBTQIA+ community. For founders embarking on their own journeys, James’s advice is simple but powerful: “Do not shut up. Scream whatever that thing is, from the rooftops, all the time. The universe has a way of ricocheting things around and having it come back at you.”