Career Timeline of Vivek Ramaswamy: Major Achievements and Milestones

How Vivek Ramaswamy built a successful career. Explore key moments that defined the journey.

Vivek Ganapathy Ramaswamy is an American entrepreneur and politician known for founding Roivant Sciences, a biotech company. He gained national attention as a presidential candidate in the 2024 Republican primaries, ultimately withdrawing and endorsing Donald Trump. Subsequently, he launched a campaign for the 2026 Ohio governor's election, securing endorsements from both Donald Trump and the Ohio Republican Party.

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Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements

2007: Worked at QVT Financial

From 2007, Ramaswamy worked at the hedge fund QVT Financial.

2007: Co-founded Campus Venture Network

In 2007, Ramaswamy and Travis May co-founded Campus Venture Network, a social networking website for university students interested in launching businesses.

2009: Campus Venture Network sold

In 2009, Campus Venture Network was sold to the nonprofit Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

December 2014: Axovant purchased Intepirdine patent

In December 2014, Axovant purchased the patent for intepirdine from GlaxoSmithKline for $5 million after the drug had failed four previous clinical trials.

2014: Founded Roivant Sciences

In 2014, Ramaswamy founded Roivant Sciences after working as an investment partner at a hedge fund.

2014: Left QVT Financial

In 2014, Ramaswamy left QVT Financial, where he was a partner and co-managed the firm's biotech portfolio.

March 2015: Chairman of Tekmira Pharmaceuticals

In March 2015, Ramaswamy was chairman of OnCore Biopharma, a position he maintained at Tekmira Pharmaceuticals when the two companies merged.

2015: Axovant IPO and market value soars

In 2015, Ramaswamy raised $360 million for Axovant Sciences, a Roivant subsidiary, and engineered the company's IPO. The company's market value initially soared to almost $3 billion. Ramaswamy also took a payout of more than $37 million in capital gains in 2015. He claimed his company would be the "Berkshire Hathaway of drug development" and touted the drug as a "tremendous" opportunity that "could help millions" of patients.

September 2017: Intepirdine fails clinical trial

In September 2017, Axovant announced that intepirdine had failed in its large clinical trial, causing the company's value to plunge by 75% in one day.

2017: Partnership with CITIC Private Equity and SoftBank investment

In 2017, Roivant partnered with CITIC Private Equity and Ramaswamy struck a deal with Masayoshi Son in which SoftBank invested $1.1 billion in Roivant.

2018: Ramaswamy defends Axovant

In 2018, Ramaswamy said he had no regrets about how Axovant handled intepirdine; in subsequent years, he expressed annoyance at criticism of the company.

2018: Created Roivant Foundation

In 2018, an earlier iteration of RSV, the Roivant Foundation, was created.

2019: Roivant sold stakes in subsidiaries

In 2019, Roivant sold its stake in five subsidiaries to Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma, resulting in $175 million in capital gains for Ramaswamy.

2020: Co-founded Chapter Medicare

In 2020, Ramaswamy co-founded Chapter Medicare, a Medicare navigation platform. He also served on the Ohio COVID-19 Response Team.

2020: Established Roivant Social Ventures

In 2020, Roivant Sciences, under Ramaswamy's leadership as CEO, established Roivant Social Ventures (RSV), a nonprofit social-impact arm.

January 2021: Ramaswamy stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences

In January 2021, Ramaswamy stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences and assumed the role of executive chairman.

August 2021: Publication of "Woke, Inc."

In August 2021, Vivek Ramaswamy published his book, "Woke Inc,", a New York Times bestseller, which described his view of the "modern woke-industrial complex."

2021: Authored "Woke, Inc."

In 2021, Ramaswamy wrote his first book, "Woke, Inc." and began appearing on cable networks to argue against leftist "woke" policies. He also became an active donor to the Republican Party.

2021: Stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences

In 2021, Vivek Ramaswamy stepped down as CEO of Roivant Sciences.

September 2022: Published "Nation of Victims"

In September 2022, Ramaswamy published a second book, "Nation of Victims: Identity Politics, the Death of Merit, and the Path Back to Excellence", a few months before announcing his presidential candidacy.

Nation of Victims: Identity Politics, the Death of Merit, and the Path Back to Excellence

Check it on Amazon

October 2022: Meetings with South Carolina Lawmakers

In October 2022, Ramaswamy held closed-door meetings with South Carolina lawmakers to pitch Strive to manage South Carolina pension funds.

2022: Considered running for U.S. Senate in Ohio

In 2022, Ramaswamy briefly considered running in the U.S. Senate election in Ohio.

2022: Co-founded Strive Asset Management

In 2022, Ramaswamy co-founded Strive Asset Management, an investment firm.

2022: Launched DRLL fund

In 2022, Strive's flagship fund, the exchange-traded fund DRLL, launched as an "anti-woke" energy sector index fund.

February 2023: Resigned as executive chairman of Strive

In February 2023, Ramaswamy resigned as Strive's executive chairman to focus on his presidential campaign.

February 2023: Ramaswamy resigned as chair of Roivant

In February 2023, Ramaswamy stepped down as chair of Roivant to focus on his presidential campaign.

February 21, 2023: Ramaswamy Announces Presidential Candidacy

On February 21, 2023, Vivek Ramaswamy announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president of the United States in 2024. He made the announcement on Tucker Carlson Tonight and released 20 years of his individual income tax returns, challenging his rivals to do the same.

June 2023: Criticism of Meetings with South Carolina Lawmakers

In June 2023, after The Post and Courier reported on the October 2022 meetings, the sessions were criticized as a form of unregistered lobbying; Ramaswamy's campaign manager denied any impropriety.

July 2023: Campaign Fundraising Update

In July 2023, it was reported that Vivek Ramaswamy had loaned his campaign more than $15 million from February to July 2023, with approximately $9 million in cash on hand at the end of the second quarter. Although his fundraising lagged behind Trump and DeSantis, it exceeded most other Republican primary candidates.

2023: Axovant dissolved

In 2023, Axovant dissolved after attempting to reinvent itself as a gene therapy company.

2023: Support for Trump Amidst Indictment

In 2023, after Donald Trump was indicted on federal criminal charges, Vivek Ramaswamy immediately rallied behind him, promising to pardon Trump if elected president.

2023: Ramaswamy called Shkreli brilliant and a pathological liar.

In a 2023 speech and in his book Woke Inc., Ramaswamy called Martin Shkreli, both "brilliant" and a pathological liar. He criticized the U.S. Department of Justice for prosecuting Shkreli, calling his fraud a victimless crime.

May 2024: Acquired Stake in BuzzFeed

In May 2024, Ramaswamy acquired a 7.7% stake in BuzzFeed, later increased to 8.4%, becoming the second-largest Class A shareholder. He suggested hiring conservative pundits and "high-profile directors".

2024: Involvement in the Proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

A week after the 2024 election, President-elect Donald Trump announced that Ramaswamy and Elon Musk had been tasked to lead the newly proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

2024: Presidential bid and endorsement of Donald Trump

In 2024, Vivek Ramaswamy entered national politics as the youngest presidential candidate in the Republican primaries. He later withdrew his bid and endorsed Donald Trump for the 2024 presidential election.

2024: Campaign Ends, Trump Endorsement

In January 2024, after finishing fourth in the Iowa caucuses, Vivek Ramaswamy ended his campaign and endorsed Donald Trump. For the remainder of the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Ramaswamy served the Trump campaign as a political surrogate.

2024: Vocal Support for Trump

Throughout the 2024 Republican nomination race, Vivek Ramaswamy vocally supported Donald Trump, despite running against him.

February 15, 2025: Ramaswamy Files for Ohio Gubernatorial Election

On February 15, 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy filed to enter the 2026 Ohio gubernatorial election and officially announced his run on February 24.

May 9, 2025: Official Endorsement from the Ohio Republican Party

On May 9, 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy received the official endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party's State Central Committee, marking the earliest the state Republican Party has ever endorsed a non-incumbent gubernatorial candidate.

2025: Launched campaign for Ohio governor

In 2025, Vivek Ramaswamy launched his campaign for the 2026 Ohio governor's election and was endorsed by President Trump.

2026: Focus on Ohio Gubernatorial Campaign

In 2024, Vivek Ramaswamy dropped out of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to focus on a potential 2026 Ohio gubernatorial campaign. The departure was reportedly due to friction between Ramaswamy and other DOGE leadership and staff.