Sensorion recruits a gene therapy pioneer as Chief Medical Officer to advance deaf gene therapy
The Montpellier-based biotech announced on October 19, 2026 the arrival, effective November 2, 2026, of a physician who led the clinical development of gene therapy targeting otoferlin, the first therapy approved by the FDA for genetic deafness. This recruitment comes as SENS-601, its lead gene therapy program, advances in clinical trials.
A veteran of Decibel, Regeneron and Cochlear takes the helm of medical affairs
Otologist and neurotologist Peter Weber, MD, MBA, will assume his duties as Chief Medical Officer of Sensorion on November 2, 2026. According to the company, he has more than twenty years of clinical and industrial experience in the field of hearing loss. As Chief Medical Officer of Decibel Therapeutics, then senior medical consultant at Regeneron, he led several monogenic gene therapy programs for the inner ear, including the one targeting otoferlin. At Decibel, he also led a small molecule program aimed at preventing hearing loss induced by cisplatin chemotherapy. More recently Chief Medical Officer of Auregen BioTherapeutics, he led a Phase I/II trial as part of an IND (Investigational New Drug) application authorized by the FDA, involving a 3D-printed autologous cartilage implant designed to repair microtia in children. He was also Chief Medical Officer of Frequency Therapeutics, as well as Global Chief Medical Officer and Vice President, Reimbursement, of Cochlear Limited. In parallel, he is a Professor and Chief of the Department of Otology, Neurotology and Skull Base Surgery at Boston University Medical Center. He has been Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of Otolaryngology since 2002 and is the author of more than 125 publications.
SENS-601, flagship program of the new medical agenda
SENS-601 (GJB2-GT) targets hearing loss related to mutations in the GJB2 gene and is being developed in collaboration with the Pasteur Institute. Peter Weber stated that this program "targets one of the most frequent genetic causes of hearing loss and therefore has the potential to reach a much larger patient population". Frédéric Chereau, Chief Executive Officer of Sensorion, emphasized that "few people have taken an inner ear gene therapy from the clinic through to approval". He indicated that Peter Weber's regulatory experience, covering drugs, biologics and devices, will support the development of the company's clinical and medical capabilities. This appointment is the second to the executive team in October: on October 7, 2026, Sensorion appointed Louis "Lou" J. Arcudi III as Chief Financial Officer, replacing Laurene Danon.
