Yaw Bediako is a Ghanaian immunologist and biotech entrepreneur. He holds a PhD from Northwestern University (Chicago, IL) and completed post-doctoral fellowships in Kenya and the UK.In 2020, Yaw founded Yemaachi Biotech with the goal of increasing the representation of African data in oncology drug discovery. He is a 2021 Calestous Juma Science Leadership Fellow (Gates Foundation), a fellow of the Ghana Young Academy, and an affiliate member of the African Academy of Sciences.

Recent recognitions include being named one of the top 40 under 40 business people in Ghana (2022), one of the 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine (January 2023), and a Bloomberg New Economy Catalyst for 2025. Additionally, Jeune Afrique magazine recognized Bediako and Yemaachi Biotech as one of the 20 Future Champions in African Tech in March 2025.

Yaw is committed to the development of a sustainable R&D ecosystem across Africa—encompassing academic centers of excellence, private industry, and national and regional institutions—believing that biotechnology will be crucial to the continent’s economic transformation. Yaw serves as Dean of Research and Innovation at Ashesi simultaneously with his role as CEO of Yemaachi.