Guadalupe Hayes-Mota
Guadalupe Hayes-Mota is director of the Bioethics Program at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, where he leads work at the intersection of artificial intelligence, biotechnology, health equity, and health care ethics. He teaches applied health care ethics through the Center’s Health Care Ethics Internship.
His work is rooted in lived experience. Diagnosed with a rare disease as a child in Mexico and unable to access the medicine he needed, Hayes-Mota moved to the United States in search of care. That early experience shaped a career devoted to expanding access to medicines and building more ethical health systems.
Hayes-Mota founded and led Healr Solutions, an AI company focused on optimizing global drug distribution and manufacturing across 43 countries before its acquisition. Before Healr, he held senior supply chain and operations roles at Biogen, Amgen, and GSK, including Chief Supply Chain Officer positions, where he helped oversee systems delivering life-saving medicines across 113 countries and territories. Earlier in his career, he helped lead one of the largest free health care systems in the United States at UCLA Health.
He serves on the NIH Cures Acceleration Network Review Board, appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, and previously contributed to Affordable Care Act policy research at the RAND Corporation. He has also advised global initiatives on health, biotechnology, and artificial intelligence, at the European Commission, OpenAI, and the World Economic Forum.
As a Senior Lecturer and Practitioner-in-Residence at MIT, Hayes-Mota designed and taught courses on the ethics of biopharmaceuticals, drug development, patient access, and responsible leadership in biotechnology. His writing and commentary have appeared in Forbes, Fast Company, STAT, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, NPR, MIT Technology Review, and The Bridge, the journal of the National Academy of Engineering.
Business Insider named him one of six powerful LGBTQ+ executives to know for corporate board service, and PharmaVoice recognized him among the 100 most influential people in the life sciences.
Read more about Guadalupe Hayes-Mota in a January 2026 feature interview.
Education
- Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Literature, MIT
- Master of Science in AI Engineering Systems, MIT
- Master of Business Administration, MIT
- Master in Public Administration, Harvard University
- Doctor of Engineering in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, George Washington University, current
Courses
ELSJ 198: Applied Ethics Internship in Health Care
Selected Publications
“AI and Drug Development Decisions: A Framework for Accountability.” Forbes. May 12, 2026.
“Using the CARES Framework to Build Ethical Biotech Startups.” Forbes. November 19, 2025.
“How to Transform Scientific Discoveries Into Better Treatments.” Fast Company. October 15, 2024.
“AI’s Role in Revolutionizing Drug Development.” Forbes. September 26, 2024.
“Transforming Pharmaceutical Supply Chains: A Connected Approach for Enhanced Drug Delivery.” The Bridge, 53(4), 27–31. National Academy of Engineering. Winter 2023.
“Shaping a Responsible AI-Powered Future in Life Science.” Forbes. July 10, 2023.
“21 States Give Rare Disease Patients a Seat at the Table. The Other 29 Need to Follow Suit.” STAT. July 26, 2021.