Bio

I am an entrepreneur, scientist and innovator passionate about advanced technologies, sustainability, space exploration and applications of physics and machine learning tools for building a sustainable and exciting future for humanity. I got my Ph.D. in astrophysics from Caltech working with Chris Hirata on the physics of early Universe. I hold a M.Sc. in physics from Carleton University, where I studied particle physics. I am a graduate of the Singularity University and an alumnus of an executive program at MIT Sloan. My research in physics and astrophysics included work at Harvard University and the Space Telescope Science Institute. After completing my Ph.D. at Caltech I became the CEO & CTO of Escape Dynamics - a startup focused on the development of a microwave-powered space launch system. Escape Dynamics operated from 2011 to 2016 and was focused on a moonshot vision of enabling the world's first single-stage-to-orbit space plane. In 2015 we successfully demonstrated an engine operating with efficiency above the limits of chemical rockets. After Escape Dynamics I joined SRI International in a dual role of a director at Advanced Technologies and System Division and an Entrepreneur in Residence at SRI Ventures. After a year at SRI I spun out Passio Inc - Passio is a machine learning company specializing in on-device machine learning and real-time user insights. Our first product is a platform enabling companies to provide nutrition tracking and real-time insights to their users. Our goal at Passio is to use cutting-edge machine learning and computer vision tools to address a major gap in healthcare and wellness: lack of adequate tools for collection, analysis and activation of nutrition data.