Hartford Business Journal

10 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | OCTOBER 19, 2026 Startups, Technology & Innovation Growth Bets COVID-19 drugmaker Invivyd expands in New Haven as new CEO pursues broader drug market Invivyd Chairman and CEO Marc Elia at the company's new headquarters at 205 Church St. in New Haven. The COVID-19 drugmaker more than doubled its office space as it prepares for potential growth. HBJ Photos | Steve Laschever By David Krechevsky davidk@hartfordbusiness.com B iopharmaceutical company Invivyd Inc. only recently settled into its new, larger New Haven headquarters, but Chairman and CEO Marc Elia is already thinking about how to fill it. The company moved from about 13,600 square feet at 209 Church St. into 33,000 square feet at 205 Church St., more than doubling its space. The relocation comes as Invivyd develops a new COVID-19 prevention drug that it hopes will reach a broader market than its existing product. The company is also developing antibody drugs to prevent other infectious diseases. "Anticipated scale" drove the move, Elia said during a recent interview in the new headquarters. Invivyd has about 180 employees companywide, including those in Massachusetts and a national sales force. Elia said roughly 30 to 50 employees gather in New Haven on a given day. If Invivyd's drug-development programs succeed, Elia said, he can envision the company growing to several times its current size over the next two to four years. But that growth depends on bringing new medicines to market as the company faces mounting losses and the June 2027 expiration of the emer- gency use authorization for its existing COVID-19 drug, Pemgarda. Invivyd develops drugs called monoclonal antibodies — laborato- ry-made proteins that help the body fight specific threats, such as viruses. Vaccines prompt the immune system to make antibodies; these drugs supply them directly. The company hopes its experi- mental COVID-19 prevention drug, VYD2311, will offer a broader alter- native or complement to vaccination. It recently reported favorable results from a late-stage study examining the drug's safety and how it works along- side a COVID-19 vaccine. Additional study results are expected to support its application for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Elia, 50, added the CEO role in August after serving about four years as chairman. He became the compa- ny's first permanent CEO since David Hering's departure in April 2024. Elia said his transition to chief exec- utive reflects his belief that Invivyd is approaching a turning point. "We're on the precipice of really moving to … achievement," he said. "I'm incredibly passionate about what it is we do, how we do it, what good looks like and what sort of standards we need to enforce day to day." Investor to CEO Much of Elia's career has been spent as a healthcare investor, including as founder and chief investment officer of Stamford-based M28 Capital Management. Elia said that experience prepared him to lead Invivyd. His investment work focused largely on new medi- cines, requiring him to understand how diseases work and assess the science behind potential drugs. "I think of myself as a technologist first," he said. Elia was involved with Invivyd from near its beginning and was already an investor in the company when he became ill with COVID-19. He later developed long COVID, a chronic condition that can occur after a COVID-19 infection and last at least three months. The experience did not initially draw him to Invivyd but strengthened his determination to advance new preven- tive options, he said. "For everything it has perhaps taken from me, it has added a measure of will," he said. The company's central premise is that its antibody drugs could be periodically updated to protect against new versions of viruses, much as vaccines are updated. "I think what we're doing is we are creating a new category," Elia said. Larger market potential Invivyd's existing drug, Pemgarda, is authorized for emergency use to prevent COVID-19 in certain people with moderately to severely weakened immune systems. In June, however, the federal govern- ment announced that emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 drugs and biological products, including Pemgarda, will end June 29, 2027. Once the authorization ends, Invivyd will no longer be able to sell the drug unless it obtains FDA approval. Elia said Invivyd is working with regulators to avoid leaving patients without a preventive option. The issue also has significant finan- cial implications for Invivyd. Pemgarda sales account for $50 million to $60 million in annual revenue, Elia said. The approaching authorization deadline creates a risk of a financial "cliff" if Invivyd cannot maintain sales of Pemgarda or bring its successor to market, he acknowledged. Invivyd hopes its experimental COVID-19 prevention drug, VYD2311, will serve a broader range of patients than Pemgarda. Elia estimated that 160 million to 170 million Americans are at increased risk of severe COVID-19, including people with obesity, diabetes or asthma. AT A GLANCE Invivyd Inc. Industry: Bioscience Founded: June 2020 Top Executive: Marc Elia, Chairman & CEO HQ: 205 Church St., New Haven Revenue: $14.29M (2Q 2026) Employees: About 180 MARC ELIA Chairman & CEO Invivyd Inc. Age: 50 Education: Bachelor's degree, economics, Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota

• Cover