EXCLUSIVE: Blockchain, Biotech, Bad Guys — Canurta Therapeutics CEO Is On A Mission To Heal, And He's Just Getting Started

Toronto might be known for the CN Tower and the Raptors, but during Consensus 2025, it was Canurta Therapeutics’ CEO Akeem Gardner who stole the show – not just for repping his hometown, but for blending biotech, blockchain, and bold storytelling.

In an exclusive sit-down with Benzinga's Dan Leach, Gardner laid out Canurta's mission: mining nature's rarest molecules to treat complex diseases, starting with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). But his vision goes far beyond the lab. He's fusing the power of Web3 with the high-stakes world of drug development – and gamifying it in the process.

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The Healing Project – Marvel Mets Moderna

Enter The Healing Project, a decentralized NFT community where members don digital personas and join forces against villains modeled after diseases like cancer, arthritis, and ALS. Gardner likens it to a superhero universe where "everyone gets their own superpowers." It's Marvel-meets-Moderna, with a blockchain twist.

Backing this universe is a real-world strategy. Canurta is launching the Satoshi Trials, a novel funding model that leverages Bitcoin BTC/USD as a treasury reserve asset to power clinical trials. Their first target: an ALS treatment, inspired in part by early Bitcoin pioneer Hal Finney, who passed away from the disease in 2014.

"We're extremely excited that we can use the Satoshi Trials first to get our clinical trial for ALS," Gardner said.

For Gardner, blockchain isn't just tech—it's a force for onboarding real people into real healing. By linking digital economies with tangible outcomes, he hopes to empower communities who've been overlooked by traditional medicine.

Next on deck: adaptive medicines powered by plant compounds and AI, rooted in nature's own intelligence. As Gardner sees it, "Nature has the answers to everything."

Biotech. Bitcoin. Bad guys. If Gardner's world sounds like science fiction, that's only because no one else thought to write the script. Now he's bringing it to life—and he's just getting started.

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