Overview
- Sanofi announced that Paulo Fontoura will join its Executive Committee in Paris and assume the role of Executive Vice President, Global Head of R&D Pharma effective 1 September 2026 and will report to CEO Belén Garijo.
- Fontoura succeeds Houman Ashrafian, who is leaving Sanofi to pursue an opportunity outside the company.
- Fontoura brings more than 25 years of experience, including over 15 years at Roche in senior clinical development roles and a recent stint as chief medical officer at AI-native Xaira Therapeutics.
- At Roche, teams under Fontoura contributed to the development of more than 60 new molecular entities and to over 20 FDA and EMA first approvals or line extensions, highlighting his record in advancing late-stage programs to regulatory milestones.
- Sanofi says he will lead end-to-end R&D — research, translational medicine, clinical development and regulatory affairs — a move that could accelerate the company’s immunology and high-unmet-need programs and speed patient access to new medicines.