Nicole is focused on the interface of chemistry and biology, with a particular emphasis on harnessing the principles of organic chemistry to enable the creation of precision genetic medicines. She is currently an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) at Google Ventures (GV), focusing on new company formation and investments in the life sciences. Driven by the belief that meaningful longevity requires co-dependent of the quality of life, she advances gene editing technologies to reverse genetic disease that enable fundamentally healthier lives. As a postdoctoral fellow in Prof. David R. Liu’s lab at Harvard and the Broad Institute, Nicole expanded CRISPR’s capabilities by inventing the first adenine base editor (ABE). Using directed evolution, she engineered this tool to precisely correct the single-letter genetic mutations that cause a large fraction of human disease.

The life-saving potential of her invention was most recently globally recognized in 2025 with the landmark treatment of baby KJ. Born with a fatal metabolic disorder (CPS1 deficiency), KJ became the first patient to successfully receive a personalized, in vivo CRISPR therapy. The custom ABE treatment corrected his genetic mutation, marking a historic leap in translating precision n-of-1 genetic medicine from the lab to a living patient. Today, her base editing technology has been widely licensed for human therapeutic use by companies such as Beam Therapeutics and Verve Therapeutics, and is utilized in labs and pharmaceutical companies across the globe. There are multiple clinical trials underway that utilize ABE for the treatment of serious, debilitating genetic diseases including sickle cell disease (SCD) and alpha-1 antitrypsin disease (A1ATD).

Nicole is an inventor on numerous base editing patents and was the VP of gene editing at Beam Tx for many years, where her team advanced and engineered precision gene editing tools. Her work enabled new and expanded pipeline development within the Beam enterprise. She also served as the program leader for Beam's non-genotoxic conditioning program, working to create next-generation autologous cell therapy opportunities for patients with sickle cell disease.