Robert Charles Wright (born April 23, 1943) is an American lawyer, businessman, and author. He is a former NBC executive, having served as president and CEO from 1986 to 2001, and chairman and CEO from 2001 until he retired in 2007. He has been credited with overseeing the broadcast network's expansion into a media conglomerate and leading the company to record earnings in the 1990s. Prior to NBC, he held several posts at General Electric in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. He served as President and CEO of GE Capital, GE Financial Services 1983 to 1986 and served as GE's vice chairman until he retired from that role in 2008.In 2005, Wright and his late wife, Suzanne Wright, founded Autism Speaks. Wright is currently leading a national health policy initiative to establish HARPA, a Health Advanced Research Projects Agency. HARPA is a proposal developed by the Suzanne Wright Foundation, which Bob Wright established after his wife, Suzanne, died from pancreatic cancer in July 2016. HARPA would exist within HHS and leverage federal research assets and private sector tools to drive medical breakthroughs for diseases, like pancreatic cancer, that have not benefited from the current system. The Agency would work within an innovation ecosystem that includes: the commercial market; biotech and healthcare companies; venture capital and philanthropy; academic institutions; and other government and regulatory agencies. HARPA is modeled after the DoD's DARPA, the gold-standard for innovation, accountability and results.