Who We Are - Apprentice

Our story

Despite incredible therapeutic innovations, the process for manufacturing these life-changing drugs lagged behind.

Because of the largely paper-based processes involved in pharma manufacturing, millions of dollars were lost in drug batches due to quality deviations. These legacy processes just weren’t going to hold up to the demands of new therapies – biologics, cell, and gene.

We created Apprentice to bring the pharma industry up to speed with the transformative potential of technology.

Our co-founders, Angelo Stracquatanio, Gary Pignata and Alexandra Buttke come from the worlds of tech and pharma. Together, they've established an international team of experts, a rapidly-expanding customer base, and a growing list of high-caliber partners all dedicated to developing expeditious ways to create medicines that will forever make life better for the people who need them most – patients.

January 2014

Co-founders met and identified how modern technology could solve the inefficiencies in the drug production process.

December 2017

First customers successfully used our web portal and wearable headset to connect remote colleagues to the manufacturing suite and we raised a $2.5 million seed round.

December 2018

Raised an $8 million Series A round to meet the demands of a growing, global customer base and expand product capabilities.

March to November 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic hit and we helped our customers keep drug production going, leading to a $24 million Series B round to keep pace with exploding customer demand.

January 2022

Raised a $100 million Series C round and launched our vision for one platform to turn molecules into medicine.

March 2023

Raised an additional $65 million in funding led by ICONIQ Growth, and launched the Connected Manufacturing Network.

Our guiding principles

Our mission: to create a lasting impact from COVID to cancer. So how do we get there? By letting our vision guide our goals. Read our 5 guiding principles to see how — and why — we're putting our beliefs into action.

We predict. We discuss. We solve.

We do not wait to see it in the results. We panic early, communicate often, and we constantly plan and pivot to ensure we call our shot and make our shot.

We win because we have to.

We work like the future of healthcare depends on it. We view time as a competitor. We are adaptable and embrace change that drives results. We persevere, and we win together.

We serve.

We earn the trust of our customers by taking 10,000 steps in their shoes. We fanatically empower our customers in support of their customers. Quality is paramount and excellence is baseline.

We think like business owners.

We’re obsessive about our OKRs. We spend as much time working “on” the business as “in.” We trust our gut when it’s full of data, and we make the right decisions for Team Apprentice.

We stay humble.

We’re fearless, mission-oriented can-doers. We’re authentic, positive, and curious learners. We give credit generously, and we define success collectively.

Our awards & recognition

We're proud of the ways our products, solutions, services — but above all, our people — are being seen and celebrated in the world of life science.

Forbes

Apprentice is selected as one of Forbes' list of 25 Next Billion-Dollar Startups 2023.

Gartner®

We're proud to be recognized as a Visionary in the 2023 Magic Quadrant™ for MES.

The Tech Tribune

Apprentice is #1 on The Tech Tribune's list of Best Tech Startups in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Inc. Regionals

We’re proud to have been ranked No. 52 on the 2023 Inc. Regionals: Northeast list of the fastest-growing private companies in America!

Deloitte Fast 500

We are proud to announce our placement as 71st within the Software Industry on the 2022 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 list!

Inc. 5000

Apprentice has made the top 10% of the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in America.

Our leaders

We’re building a company for the future led by innovators from high-growth tech and pharma.

Angelo Stracquatanio

CEO & Founder

Gary Pignata

Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer

TC Fleming

Chief Financial Officer

Jennifer Kettner

General Counsel

Ali Farrell

Chief People Officer

Jean Barmash

Chief Technology Officer

Russell Hirschorn

Chief Customer Officer

Marie Forshaw

VP of Marketing

Anastasia Wengrowski

VP of Strategy

Liz Hall

Chief of Staff

Our superstars

Here at Apprentice, we celebrate all wins large and small. It truly takes a village, and we've got an army of superstars. Get to know this hardworking bunch of Apprentice Spotlights and learn how they make the magic happen.