Aura Biosciences names Jeremy Bender to board of directors

Aura Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: AURA) announced on July 8, 2026 that Jeremy Bender, Ph.D., M.B.A., has joined its Board of Directors. According to the company's 8-K, the Board on July 3, 2026 expanded from six to seven directors and unanimously named Bender a Class II director, with his appointment taking effect July 7, 2026, to fill the new seat.¹ His term runs until the company's 2029 annual meeting of stockholders.¹ He will also sit on the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee starting on his effective date.¹ Aura's board determined that Bender meets the independence standards under SEC rules and Nasdaq listing requirements.¹

Bender previously ran Day One Biopharmaceuticals, where, as the company described it, he served as Chief Executive Officer, President and a board member and guided the company's transition into a commercial-stage oncology firm, including the approval and launch of "OJEMDA" for pediatric low-grade glioma and its roughly $2.5 billion acquisition by Servier in 2026.¹ Earlier in his career, he was Vice President of Corporate Development at Gilead Sciences, held executive roles at Tizona Therapeutics, Sutro Biopharma and Allos Therapeutics, and began his career at Boston Consulting Group.¹ He currently serves on the board of Mereo BioPharma Group plc and previously served on the board of Fusion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.¹

For his board service, Bender received an initial one-time stock option to purchase 60,000 shares and a restricted stock unit award covering 30,000 shares, both vesting in equal annual installments over three years.¹

Aura's lead program remains bel-sar (AU-011). The drug is in late-stage development for early choroidal melanoma and earlier-stage development for other ocular oncology indications and bladder cancer.¹