Founder Profile
Kenneth Murray
Last reviewed: October 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Who is Kenneth Murray?
Kenneth Murray is a founder of Biogen Inc., which was founded in 1978 with Phillip Sharp, Walter Gilbert, Charles Weissmann and Heinz Schaller.
- Company founded
- Biogen Inc.
- Founded
- 1978
- Co-founders
- Phillip Sharp, Walter Gilbert, Charles Weissmann and Heinz Schaller
Background
Sir Kenneth Murray (1930-2013) was a professor of molecular biology at the University of Edinburgh and one of the early developers of recombinant DNA methods in Britain.
Founding Story
Murray co-founded Biogen in 1978. In Edinburgh he and his colleagues used genetic engineering to produce hepatitis B virus antigens in bacteria, work that led to one of the first recombinant vaccines and to diagnostic tests. Royalties from the hepatitis B technology helped sustain Biogen through the 1980s, and Murray used his own share to set up the Darwin Trust of Edinburgh, which funds young scientists. He was knighted in 1993 and died in April 2013.
Education: University of Birmingham. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).