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QuantumSphere has assembled one of the strongest business and scientific teams to manufacture and sell high-quality nano metals and alloys for applications in renewable energy, electronics, aerospace, defense and other markets demanding advanced materials. The Company’s seasoned industry veterans have consistently demonstrated an unparalleled ability to rapidly execute, build and scale viable businesses. The Company's diverse, world-class technology team has established a solid, proven foundation to manufacture leading nanometals and alloys.




Mr. Maloney's seasoned investment, managerial, sales and marketing experience has significantly contributed to QuantumSphere's global exposure and rapid business growth over the last six years. Prior to co-founding QuantumSphere, Mr. Maloney was vice president of institutional sales and marketing at First American Corp.'s (NYSE: FAF) Capital Management and Trust Division. Previously, Mr. Maloney served as a compliance officer and registered principal at Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO), an institutional investment advisory firm with over $800 billion in assets under management that services endowment funds, foundations and pension plans. He has raised funds for numerous private equity placements and held NASD Series 7, 26, 63 and 65 securities licenses. Mr. Maloney is a frequent panelist at various industry conferences and is a member of the NanoBusiness Alliance and American Chemical Society (ACS). He is also an active board member for the Orange County YMCA. Mr. Maloney has been awarded two U.S. patents and earned his B.A. from the University of California, Irvine and an M.B.A. from Pepperdine University.




Mr. Deane has extensive hands-on experience working in public, pre-IPO, and established technology firms. His strong operations and financial leadership are evidenced in his over 12 years of senior executive experience. Mr. Deane has established a reputation not only as a dynamic team builder, but also as an implementer of processes that revolutionize organizational effectiveness. Prior to joining the team at QuantumSphere, Mr. Deane was VP of Finance, and later VP of Operations, of the number two Internet content distribution firm, VitalStream Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSTH). He also served as Controller of ITB, a Beneventure Capitol Portfolio Company. Mr. Deane holds a bachelor's degree in business from California State University at Fullerton and an M.B.A. from Pepperdine University.




For the past 14 years, Mr. Hrncir has served as securities and corporate counsel for a broad range of private and publicly traded companies, principally focusing on emerging growth technology companies. Mr. Hrncir has significant experience regarding IPOs, M&A transactions, structuring companies and transactions, joint ventures, strategic partnerships, 34' Act public company reporting and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. Mr. Hrncir currently serves on the Board of Directors of PayScan America, Inc., a privately held company. Mr. Hrncir received a Bachelor of Science from Arizona State University and a Juris Doctor degree from Whittier Law School. Mr. Hrncir is a member of the Arizona and California State Bars and numerous philanthropic and industry   associations.

Mr. Canuso recently joined QuantumSphere from Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear (KMOB), where he has been practicing as an IP lawyer since 1990 and partner from 1995 to 2008. While his practice has historically focused primarily on IP litigation and IP prosecution matters, Mr. Canuso more recently spent a great deal of his time assisting start up companies in IP strategy. During his career, he has handled numerous IP litigation matters dealing primarily with the enforcement and defense of patent infringement and trademark infringement issues. The technology involved in those litigation matters has included consumer electronics, semiconductor processing equipment, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telephony, motorized watercraft, controllers, and circuit board devices. He has litigated cases before district courts throughout the United States and before the ITC, as well as appeals to the Federal Circuit. His patent prosecution docket has focused primarily on clean technology, including electrochemical applications, and medical devices for numerous life science applications in the cardiovascular and pulmonary fields. Mr. Canuso's clients have ranged from international conglomerates with huge IP portfolios, to small domestic companies looking to build upon emerging technology.

Mr. Canuso received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Diego. He earned a master's of science degree in Environmental Health Engineering from the University of Notre Dame and a bachelors of science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Villanova University.

Mr. Gillings has over twenty years experience in management positions, primarily with publicly traded companies. Prior to joining QuantumSphere, Mr. Gillings was with I/OMagic Corporation, a public company which distributes computer peripherals. Mr. Gillings was with I/OMagic Corporation for over eight years serving in the capacity of Controller, Vice-President Finance, and ultimately as Chief Financial Officer for over three years. While with I/OMagic, Mr. Gillings was known as a hands-on leader, responsible for the implementation of a new accounting software package, obtaining an asset-based line of credit, preparation of quarterly reviews and annual audits, and the preparation of the SEC 10-Q and 10-K reports. Mr. Gillings earned a B.S. degree with an emphasis in accounting from the University of California, Berkeley and an MBA in finance from California State University at Fullerton.




Chris Winn serves as Vice President and General Partner of Sales & Service, Inc. (SSI) a firm specializing in business development, technical marketing, product development with market implementation and consulting to the top semiconductor and electronics manufacturers in the United States and abroad. SSI serves as an agent to QuantumSphere in the incorporation of QSI nanomaterials in various clean energy, automotive, and electronics applications. Sales & Service, Inc. is recognized by many of the top Asian and European semiconductor companies as the conduit for building strong business relationships with the United States based semiconductor industry. SSI is one of the most successful and longstanding firms in the industry with approximately $135 million in annual sales. Mr. Winn is a critical component of the SSI team that serves a client base extending from Silicon Valley to Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Korea and Taiwan.  His background includes 14 years at SSI building strong value and equity for its principals and partners.  He is an active member of SEMI, IMAPS, California Hydrogen Business Council, IEEE, and founder and member of the board for a Federal PAC.  Mr. Winn brings a balanced background of marketing, technical proficiency, and project management as well as a solid track record for winning sales in his work with QSI.




Mr. Iyer joined QuantumSphere upon the recent acquisition of Energetics Incorporated, where he served as Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer since its inception in 2001. Mr. Iyer has over 30 years of experience in metallurgy, hydrogen, fuel cells, batteries, and renewable-energy technologies, as well as corrosion sciences and seawater desalination. Mr. Iyer founded Energetics to focus on alternative energy issues, principally hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. Mr. Iyer has extensive experience in research and development, process engineering, and project management, and has principally been associated with the creation of new technologies for alkaline polymeric membrane fuel cells, regenerative fuel cells, high-temperature fuel cell membranes for reformed hydrocarbons, mini-channel membrane reformers for high-purity hydrogen production, seawater desalination, bio-fuels and their synthesis from renewable feed-stock, hydrogen storage in complex clathrates, poly-crystalline silicon for solar cells, and high capacity next-generation rechargeable lithium ion batteries. To date, Mr. Iyer has secured nearly $2.0 million in grant funding from the NSF, DOD, and U.S. Navy to support his various projects.

Prior to founding Energetics, Mr. Iyer served for 13 years as Team Manager, Metallurgy, Corrosion and Non-Destructive Testing at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWDSC), where he was instrumental in detecting and classifying a new fracture mode in extremely high tensile steel wires (280-360ksi), as well as detecting the same before catastrophic failure. This innovation resulted in a patent, and the atlas of fractographs created in the research study, in collaboration with California State University, Northridge, is viewed as an industry-wide reference document. In addition, Mr. Iyer was the main corrosion expert at the MWDSC, and solved numerous failure and metallurgical issues in the water industry, including stress corrosion, welding, acoustic emission analysis, cavitation, material selection, and alloy engineering of new materials. Prior to his tenure at the MWDSC, Mr. Iyer was a metallurgist at G.E. Aircraft Engines focusing on failure analysis and detection, particularly for gas turbine engine components. Mr. Iyer held certifications in all non-destructive evaluation methods, including acoustic emission as well as power plant licenses for General Electric and Pratt & Whitney gas turbine engines.

Mr. Iyer came to the U.S. from India in 1988. While in India, Mr. Iyer held senior positions in steel production, quality control, technical services, and research and development in various organizations. Mr. Iyer has developed a novel process for production of poly-crystalline silicon from the plasmothermic synthesis of silane and its subsequent purification and deposition as solar-cell grade material. He holds a patent on early-stage, non-destructive detection of hydrogen embrittlement in pre-stressed steel wires as well as two patents on fuel cell technologies. Mr. Iyer received a Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Metallurgical Engineering from Rajasthan University, India and a Master of Financial Management from Bombay University, India. Mr. Iyer is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of California in metallurgical engineering and corrosion engineering, has consulted to the aerospace industry, and is a member of the American Society of Metals, the Society of Automotive Engineers, and the Materials Research Society.

Dr. Carpenter is co-founder and inventor of QuantumSphere’s patented manufacturing process. His background includes over 30 years of senior technology and business leadership positions servicing military, industry and government research institutions. Previously, Dr. Carpenter served as the chief scientist of Technanogy, a nanomaterials manufacturing company focused on the production of nanoaluminum particles. Prior to Technanogy, Dr. Carpenter served as staff scientist at Hercules Aerospace Company and as staff scientist at Aerojet, a world-recognized aerospace and defense leader serving the missile, space propulsion, defense and armaments markets. Previously, Dr. Carpenter held a faculty position at University of the Pacific, CA and he was a member of staff at the Facility for Advanced Instrumentation at the University of California, Davis. Dr. Carpenter earned an M.S. in organic chemistry from University of the Pacific and a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from the University of California-Davis where he concentrated on fracture testing and fabrication of functionally graded titanium/titanium-monoboride materials. Dr Carpenter holds several patents and has authored numerous publications in the area of material science.

Mr. Rambach is a recognized leader in the advanced energy research sector since 1974.  Motivated by the need for energy independence, security, and clean energy systems, his research has included diesel combustion systems, laser fusion, hydrogen production and storage, fuel cell system designs and integrated renewable energy systems using storage.  Mr. Rambach has developed optimization methods for design and operation of intermittent renewable energy systems where energy storage provides on-demand power, and his 5-kW wind-solar-hydrogen-fuel cell facility still operates at the University of Nevada, DRI in Reno.  In addition, Mr. Rambach developed a strategy for market entry opportunities for fuel cell power systems. Mr. Rambach has worked as a research engineer at Stanford University and spent 20 years at the Livermore and Sandia National Labs.  Previously, Mr. Rambach served as Director of Engineering at Texaco Ovonic Fuel Cells, Director of New Technology at Tenneco Automotive, and fuel cell system advisor to the US Army Tank Automotive Command. Most recently, Mr. Rambach completed R&D contracts supporting a nuclear company and a defense contractor in the areas of hydrogen economics, very large scale hydrogen production and transport, and synthetic hydrocarbon fuels.

Early in his career he led experimental research in the fundamentals of combustion at Stanford and the Sandia Combustion Research facility which included the use of laser-based diagnostics in turbulent diffusion flames, spray combustion, and a transparent-piston diesel engine. Mr. Rambach has written numerous papers and given presentations on technical, policy and strategy issues for advanced energy devices, systems and marketing.  He has two solid oxide fuel cell patents, is the inventor of a high-pressure cryogenic hydrogen fuel tank and is a co-developer of the first x-ray laser. Mr. Rambach received his BS in Aerospace Engineering from Cal Poly University and his MS in Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University (Thesis on Fundamentals of Emulsified Diesel Fuels).

Fabrizio C. Rinaldi, Ph.D.
Director of Automotive Applications

Dr. Rinaldi recently joined QuantumSphere from Tenneco Inc, North America., where he held the position of Chief Engineer Emission Technologies for five years. His main tasks were the discovery and development of new emission technologies, tracking of emission regulatory and related drivers, as well as aiding Tenneco in catalysis issues both at a R&D and manufacturing level.  He also represented Tenneco to MECA (Manufacturers of Emission Controls Association) both as a director and an officer. Prior to Tenneco, Dr. Rinaldi held various roles at Engelhard Corporation for over six years, both at the ETG (Environmental Technologies Group) divisions in Italy and in South Africa. The roles held were: Process Engineering Manager (SA), Director of Manufacturing (SA), Technical and Quality Director (Italy). Experience gained during these years ranged from the introduction of new catalyst technologies, wash-coat formulations, designing and developing and commissioning process machinery to directing manufacturing and quality operations.

During his tenure at Engelhard, Dr. Rinaldi headed the engineering and manufacturing that produced over 20 million units of catalyst-coated monoliths with a wide range of applicability, from gasoline three-way catalyst, diesel emission controls, to hydrogen recombination, and other specialty markets. Prior to the automotive emission world, Dr. Rinaldi was a senior research chemist for Karbochem, South Africa for more than four years. His primary duty was the R&D of specialty chemicals, from laboratory scale to pilot plant level. Chemicals investigated were: fuel additives, pharmaceutical intermediates, herbicides and pesticides.  Dr. Rinaldi received a PhD in Organic Chemistry from UPE (University of Port Elizabeth), in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, under the subject: "Cyclizations of γ-Arylalkanols via Alkoxyl Radicals and Aryl Radical Cation Intermediates." He currently holds two patents and has authored eight publications. Recognized as a leading authority in the emission control sector of the automotive industry, Dr. Rinaldi’s work has been presented at several industry conferences/seminars around the world.

Dr. McGrath has over eight years experience in renewable energy technologies, with emphasis on the design of catalytic materials for fuel cells, batteries, electrolyzers, and other electrochemical systems. With a strong background in polymer chemistry, Dr. McGrath worked with the University of Southern California and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to develop and characterize robust new low-crossover proton exchange membranes for portable direct methanol fuel cells. In addition, she worked to develop new catalyst systems to improve the air-breathing fuel cell electrode, and in 2004 was invited by the Journal of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry to write an extensive treatise on Direct Methanol Fuel Cells with renowned fluorine chemist G.K. Surya Prakash and Nobel Laureate George A. Olah.

Over the past few years, Dr. McGrath's research at QSI has focused on improving the efficiency of alkaline water electrolysis using non-noble metal high surface area catalysts, and studying emerging markets for clean hydrogen production technologies. Other activities include integration of new catalysts into rechargeable battery systems as well as electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide to fuel products. Dr. McGrath received her B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Santa Cruz, a Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Southern California, and is currently completing an Executive MBA program at University of California, Irvine. She is an active member of the Electrochemical Society, Fuels Division of the American Chemical Society, and is also engaged in marketing projects related to valuation, introduction and adoption of emerging technologies.

Selected publications:

McGrath, K.; Prakash, G.K.S.; Olah, G.A., "Direct Methanol Fuel Cells," J. Ind. Eng. Chem., 2004, 10(7), 1063-1080.

Prakash, G.K.S.; Smart, M.C.; Wang, Q-J.; Atti, A.; Pleynet, V.; Yang, B.; McGrath, K.; Olah, G.A.; Narayanan, S.R.; Chun, W.; Valdez, T.; Surampudi, S., "High Efficiency Direct Methanol Fuel Cell Based on Poly(styrenesulfonic) Acid (PSSA)-Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) Composite Membranes," J. Fluorine Chemistry, 2004,125, 1217.

Munichandraiah, N.; McGrath, K.; Prakash, G.K.S.; Aniszfeld, R.; Olah, G.A., "A Potentiomentric Method of Monitoring Methanol Crossover Through Polymer Electrolyte Membranes of Direct Methanol Fuel Cells," J. Power Sources, 2003, 117, 98.

Mr. McKenney has been working in the field of material science for two decades.  His expertise in pyrotechnics and materials safety has been practiced in 20 countries and 49 of the 50 United States.  He toured for Pyro Spectaculars as lead PT (Pyrotechnician) on Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance, Bon Jovi World Tour, WWE, the 2002 Winter Olympics, and numerous Super Bowl Halftime Shows. Mr. McKenney’s accomplishments include being nominated as Pyrotechnician of the Year by Performance Magazine, and led to a management position in custom production of significant pyrotechnic exhibitions. His responsibilities included staging, choreography, music selection, venue specific custom devices, and logistics. He managed over 100 events a year and his responsibilities of negotiating contracts, managing projects, customer service, overseeing safety, working with government authorities, and acting as the liaison with customers and regulators, are a natural fit for his position at QuantumSphere. 

His expertise in energetic materials and their behavior, safe handling techniques, manufacturing and integration to end product are vital. As Director of Operations at QuantumSphere he designed, built and implemented a CRM database which incorporates production with the business activities as well as inventory management.  He is the author of QuantumSphere’s Quality Systems Manual and was also responsible for leading the work with NIOSH field representatives in a volunteer EH&S program which included a comprehensive study of QuantumSphere’s nanomaterials and manufacturing capabilities during two onsite facility reviews.  The results of the 2007 NIOSH study provided positive feedback on the Company’s safe handling of materials and best practice policies.  In addition to EH&S management, his other responsibilities at QuantumSphere include manufacturing scale-up, automation optimization, quality control, inventory control, customer satisfaction, and order fulfillment. Mr. McKenney attended UC Irvine and has been a guest speaker for the City of Hope.

Mark Fullerton

R&D Scientist

Mr. Fullerton brings to QuantumSphere over twenty-five years of industrial experience in product development, analytical research and technical support for manufacturing and customers. Mr. Fullerton's previous work included the formulation and process development of dry-film photoresists, operations experience with scanning electron microscopy, x-ray spectroscopy, IR and NMR spectroscopy. Mr. Fullerton held a variety of positions at Dynachem Corp., a Rohm and Haas (NYSE: ROH) specialty chemical company, where he served as: Senior Technician; Associate Chemist; Chemist; Senior Chemist; Project Leader; Associate Scientist; Scientist; and Senior Scientist. In his past position, Mr. Fullerton's previous interested included: investigating the causes of variation in buried resistors for a Passives Materials group where he developed a statistical template for the measurement of process capability; and the invention of a non-destructive small-defect detection system for use in the high-speed web-coating process used to manufacture photoresist. Mr. Fullerton received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of California, Irvine.

Board of Directors

Francis C. Poli, Esq.

Director

Mr. Poli is general counsel, executive vice president and member of the executive committee of Cohen and Steers, Inc. (NYSE: CNS), a diversified financial services firm with approximately $30 billion in assets under management. He is responsible for the firm’s legal and compliance matters including investment advisory activities in Europe and Asia and an investment banking unit. Before joining Cohen & Steers in February 2007, Mr. Poli spent nine years with Allianz Global Investors, one of the world’s largest asset managers, as chief legal officer and director of compliance. He was chairman of AGI’s Compliance Committee and a member of their Risk, Oversight and Controls Committee. Previously, Mr. Poli was an associate general counsel at J.P. Morgan and a securities attorney for Kelley Drye and Warren. He began his securities career in the sales and trading department of a boutique municipal bond-dealer and later performed fixed-income portfolio management and equity investing for a regional asset management firm. Prior to making his way to Wall Street, Mr. Poli worked for IBM in the company’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center and he founded and operated a sports recreation company. Mr. Poli earned his undergraduate degree at Boston College and his law degree at Pace University. He is a member of the New York and Connecticut Bars and maintains a supervisory license with the National Association of Securities Dealers.

Marc H. Goroff, Ph.D.

Director

Dr. Goroff has 22 years of groundbreaking experience in business, technology and academia. Upon completing his Ph.D., Dr. Goroff remained at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) to perform advanced research in the application of super computers to theoretical physics.

Dr. Goroff left academia to co-found his first company, Parasoft, which developed tools for parallel computing. Among his other roles, Dr. Goroff has served as the Director of Software Development at Sandpiper Networks, Exodus, and Cable and Wireless and was Vice President of Engineering at Reliable Distributed Information Corporation where he developed infrastructure software for supercomputers. Dr. Goroff is currently the CTO and cofounder of Quorum Technologies where he leads the development of automated management software for virtual computing environments. Prior to this, Dr. Goroff was the Chief Technical Officer for Themis Computer, a manufacturer of computer systems for the military & aerospace markets.

Dr. Goroff earned his Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics from California Institute of Technology.

Robert S. Venable, CFA

Director

Mr. Venable provides a unique combination of business development, financial, and engineering experience. As Chief Investment Officer for First American Capital Management, an investment advisor providing services to institutional, endowments, foundations and high net worth clientele, Mr. Venable led all investment decision-making activities as well as the investment operations, securities trading, and compliance efforts of the firm. Prior to joining First American, Mr. Venable served as Vice President in charge of Global Asset Allocation at PIMCO Advisors, L.P. He also held the position of Vice President, Equity Portfolio Manager at Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO). Prior to returning to graduate school to obtain his M.B.A., Mr. Venable was a Manufacturing Development Engineer for Hewlett-Packard (HP). At HP, Mr. Venable coordinated the manufacturing of Personal Computer products at divisions throughout the world. He was the manufacturing team leader on several new product introductions, including one that, due to its time-to-market success, became the feature story of a trade magazine.

Mr. Venable received his M.B.A. in Finance, graduating with Distinction, from the Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania and earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences from the University of California, Berkeley, graduating with High Honors. He has held a number of securities licenses including the Series 6 and 66. Mr. Venable is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a member of the Los Angeles Society of Financial Analysts. He is also a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

Creighton K. (Kim) Early, CPA

Director

Mr. Early has 30 years experience in senior level financial and operating positions in technology and engineering enterprises. He has extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, having led the negotiation and integration of more than 25 such transactions. Starting as the CFO, and later the President of the Global Water Management Division of Earth Tech, Inc., Mr. Early was instrumental in growing Earth Tech from $35 million in revenues to a world wide leader in engineering services with more than $1.3 billion in revenue spread across 14 countries around the world. He has completed more than $500 million in financing transactions for asset management projects and acquisitions. Most recently, Mr. Early served as the CEO of DPAC Technologies Corp, a provider of wireless communication technology for industrial applications and is currently engaged as a Consulting Principal for the Environmental Financial Consulting Group in New York.

Mr. Early is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of DPAC Technologies Corp, and is also a director of Ecovation, Inc., a leader in anaerobic water treatment technology. He earned his CPA Certificate from the State of Ohio and holds a BS in Finance from Ohio State University and an MBA with Distinction from the University of Michigan.

Scientific Advisory Team

Professor George Olah, Ph.D.

Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry (1994); currently Director of the University of Southern California's Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute and Distinguished Professor in Organic Chemistry

Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry (1994); currently Director of the University of Southern California's Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute and Distinguished Professor in Organic Chemistry

One of the world's preeminent scholars of hydrocarbon chemistry, Professor George Olah received the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for groundbreaking work on superacids and his observations of carbocations, a fleeting chemical species long theorized to exist but never confirmed. Olah devised a way to "freeze" the chemical process in time, enabling chemists to study their properties. What he found has revolutionized organic chemistry, leading to new discoveries, new fields of research and countless applications. Olah has made significant research contributions to the practical development of improved lead-free gasoline, cleaner high-octane gas and other promising nonpolluting fuels, as well as many chemical processes now used in pharmaceutical and industrial chemistry.

Focus on Fuel Cells - Fuel Cells have long been a research interest of Dr. Olah. His discoveries have led to the development of a new kind of fuel cell, called the direct liquid methanol fuel cell, that is a highly efficient and convenient source of electricity. His most recent research centers on the conversion of two greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide and methane, into useful fuels and products, investigations driven by his long-standing interest in energy and environmental issues. To find new solutions to these pressing issues, Olah is working to develop new, cleaner and renewable energy technologies, based on methanol, to replace diminishing oil reserves while reducing levels of greenhouse gases.

Dr. Olah is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a member of foreign academies and societies. He has published some 1300 scientific papers, 15 books and has been issued some 120 patents. In 2003, he was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun of Japan for his continued work promoting chemistry in Japan. In addition he was awarded the Priestly Medal in 2005 from the American Chemical Society.

John Faiz Kayyem, Ph.D.

Dr. Kayyem is currently a Partner of Efficacy Capital LTD, which manages a biotech public equities fund with $70 million in assets under management.

Dr. Kayyem was born in Los Angeles and attended local schools, graduating from Harvard (now Harvard-Westlake) School in 1981.  He then attended Yale University and received his combined Master and Bachelor of Sciences in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry in 1985.  He went on to graduate school at The California Institute of Technology and received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology in 1991.  He remained at Caltech as a Senior Research Fellow for several years before launching his own venture.

Throughout his education, Dr. Kayyem’s research in molecular and cellular biology, genetics and DNA analysis has been focused on the development of powerful tools for the emerging genomics field.  While at the California Institute of Technology, Dr. Kayyem received several research awards including the Beckman Institute Research Fellow in Biology, the Helen G. and Arthur McCallum Fellow and the Office of Naval Research Predoctoral Fellowship.

Dr. Kayyem is a distinguished scientist with many research publications to his credit in such respected journals as the Journal of Organic Chemistry, Journal of American Chemical Society, Journal of Cell Biology, European Journal of Biochemistry, and Chemistry and Biology.  Most of these publications address issues of electron flow in organic molecules.  His other works have involved the development of new MRI contrast agents and studies of DNA using a novel chemical force microscopy system.

In 1995, Dr. Kayyem founded Clinical Micro Sensors—now an operating subsidiary of Osmetech plc—to commercialize technical innovations he developed while at Caltech.  Clinical Micro Sensors uses advanced electronics and biochemistry to create electronic detectors of specific DNA sequences.  These “biosensors” have been used in the diagnosis of disease, the detection of environmental pathogens and in monitoring food safety. A novel use for these sensors is emerging in the field of personalized medicine, where these sensors are being used to identify genetic signatures in individual patients that can help in the determination of which drug at what dosage is best for this particular individual. 

Clinical Micro Sensors is emerging as an important player in the new field of applied genomics.  The company has recently launched its instrument and first test, a carrier screen for Cystic Fibrosis, which received FDA clearance in 2006.  This test will be followed shortly by additional tests for clinically relevant mutations and polymorphisms (SNPs).

In 2004, Dr. Kayyem left Clinical Micro Sensors to co-manage the Efficacy Capital family of biotechnology funds. The Efficacy Biotech Fund, which he co-manages, currently has $70 million in assets under management and is becoming a significant institutional investor specializing in micro-cap biotechnology companies.

Since 1997, Dr. Kayyem has been awarded 32 U.S. patents in nucleic acid detection technology, all licensed to or owned by Clinical Micro Sensors.  The intellectual property describes the bio-electronic detection of DNA and numerous methods and compositions for detecting and analyzing DNA.

Dr. Kayyem serves on various private company boards, including an AIDS gene-therapy company and a Web 2.0 company developing web-based tools for business and personal presentations.  He co-produced a soon-to-be completed feature-length film titled “Nobel Son,” about a “Cal Sciences” Professor and the kidnapping of his son on the eve of the Professor’s receipt of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  He is also Executive Producer on “The Ground Truth: After the Killing Ends,” a feature-length documentary about the emotional and psychological effects of war on US soldiers.  The Ground Truth has been well received by critics and audiences, including those at the Sundance Film Festival.  This film also made the “short list” of Oscar potential nominees in 2006.

Dr. Kayyem serves on the Board of Trustees of Caltech and of Polytechnic School, where currently four of his five children attend.  He recently served on the Board of Trustees of The Art Center College of Design.  Finally, in support of his passion for renewable fuels, he is a founding board member of Green Depot, a non-profit organization supporting sustainable transportation.  Green Depot seeks to build alternative fueling stations that will provide much-needed distribution points for biodiesel, ethanol and other renewable fuels and also serve as educational centers for those seeking information about energy, climate, pollution and transportation.

Amit Kumar, Ph.D.

Dr. Kumar has been President and CEO of Combimatrix Corporation(NASDAQ:CBMX) since September 2001. He has been a Director since September 2000. Previously, Dr. Kumar was Vice President of Life Sciences of Acacia Research Corp. (NASDAQ: ACRI). From January 1999 to February 2000, Dr. Kumar was the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of Signature BioSciences, Inc., a life science company developing technology for advanced research in genomics, proteomics and drug discovery. From January 1998 to December 1999, Dr. Kumar was an Entrepreneur in Residence with Oak Investment Partners, a venture capital firm. From October 1996 to January 1998, Dr. Kumar was a Senior Manager at IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., a biotechnology company. From October 1993 to September 1996, Dr. Kumar was Head of Research & Development for Idetek Corporation, which was later acquired by Idexx Laboratories, Inc. Dr. Kumar received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Occidental College. After joint studies at Stanford University and the California Institute of Technology, he received his Ph.D. from Caltech in 1991. He also completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University in 1993.

Dr. Kumar's interest in nanotechnology started with his doctoral studies at Stanford University and the California Institute of Technology where he studied semiconductor solar cells. After completing his Ph.D. he served as a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard University where, working with Professor George Whitesides, he was the co-inventor and author of several pioneering patents on a nanotechnology now known as Micro-Contact Printing and Soft Lithography. These patents have been licensed by Fortune 500 companies and younger public and private biotechnology firms. Since that time Dr. Kumar has worked as a scientist, a venture capitalist and company executive focused in the areas of miniaturization and nanotech. CombiMatrix is commercializing a semiconductor-based array technology that enables executing thousands of independent, chemical reactions in parallel in volumes of a few tenths of nanoliters. Commercial applications of this technology include highly parallel genetic analysis microarrays, materials synthesis, drug development, and biodefense detection systems. Dr. Kumar is a board member of the NanoBusiness Alliance and a member of the steering committee of the Washington Nanotechnology Initiative.

Business / Legal Advisory Team

Bill Collins

Managing Director, Starboard Venture Partners
Past President, Tech Coast Angels, Los Angeles

Bill Collins is a managing director of Starboard Venture Partners, LLC and is an executive committee member of the Tech Coast Angels in LA. Bill started his career at Intel Corporation, quickly becoming a lead sales person on the IBM account and helping to establish the Intel-IBM relationship. He was a key executive for International Rectifier, ramping the company from $60M to over $700M. Collins was instrumental in taking IR's power MOS technology from the early adopter phase to global market leadership in multiple market segments. He then became an angel investor and is a prolific deal lead with a successful portfolio. He serves in multiple BOD and advisory roles and is a certified corporate director. He is a frequent industry panelist and guest lecturer at CalTech, USC and LARTA. Bill has an EE degree from Clarkson University.

Karen Winnett
Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis LLP

Corporate Counsel

Ms. Winnett, a partner in the Orange County office, practices primarily in the areas of securities, mergers and acquisitions and finance. Ms. Winnett represents clients in public and private offerings of securities, ongoing Securities and Exchange Commission reporting and compliance, business sales and acquisitions, reorganizations, shareholder buy-sell agreements, limited liability company organization and general business and employment matters.

Ms. Winnett has served as counsel to public companies in SBIC debenture financing and initial and secondary equity offerings; to development stage companies in equity private placements; and to partnerships and limited liability companies engaged in public and private real estate syndications. Ms. Winnett has also represented numerous sellers and purchasers of manufacturing businesses involving complex structures, and has served as counsel to a nationwide franchisor in regulatory compliance and franchisee matters. Ms. Winnett also prepares general business and corporate documents for clients and counsels clients with respect to employment issues.

Ms. Winnett received her juris doctor degree from the University of Southern California . She earned a master's degree in business administration and a bachelor's degree in economics from California State University, Long Beach.