Saying he wanted to “make some swift decisions here,” new Gilead Sciences Inc. CEO Daniel O’Day told the company’s first quarter 2019 earnings call on 2 May that Kite Pharma Inc. will become a separate business unit of the company with its own CEO, for whom a search effort is under way.
O’Day joined Gilead from Roche and took over as CEO on 1 March, succeeding John Milligan, who along with predecessor John Martin had overseen the company’s direction since 1996. (Also see "Gilead Lures Roche Pharma CEO O'Day As CEO; Genentech's CEO Will Replace Him " - Scrip, 10 December, 2018.) As Gilead has worked gradually to diversify its focus from virology, its $11.9bn purchase of CAR-T specialist Kite in August 2017 was seen as primary in shaping the firm’s future direction