Van Heron Labs

Van Heron Labs has been active within the cultivated meat industry since early 2021, and last night, our CEO, Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D., hosted UPSIDE Foods in Huntsville for one of the first and last tastings of their cultivated chicken product in the state of Alabama. The event brought together VHL team members, UPSIDE executives, and those in the start-up ecosystem in Huntsville and beyond, many of whom traveled from out of state to participate. It was a wonderful evening of food, friends, and festivities, and we’re grateful to have been chosen as a sponsor. Massive thank you and congratulations to the UPSIDE teams for such a delicious product. We're grateful to be a part of your success! UPSIDE Foods  #culturedmeat #biotechnology Christopher Udall Sierra Pena Valentin Korman Rigved Joshi Alec Santiago, PhD Vanessa Garapola Ali Udall Jessica Halper, MS Jessica B. Weaver, MA John Schmitt Amanda Pope MBA, PMP Chigozie Chukwu

We’re now partnered with NVIDIA and Microsoft! Van Heron Labs has been accepted to the NVIDIA Inception Program and Microsoft for Startups. Both companies are ramping up resources and infrastructure for companies like ours, leveraging biological data, AI tools, and high-performance computing to solve global and biotechnological challenges and continuing their commitments to support deep tech companies founded and led by women. These partnerships represent a continuing effort at VHL, which started nearly a year ago to invest further in our AI and omics-powered metabolic analytics platform - ai.VHL, to create the fastest and most powerful precision nutrition engine for fueling cells on the planet. From integrating with both companies’ existing platforms and getting a glimpse into emerging tech and tools over the past few weeks, we can say that there are some massive things in the works, and we’re stoked to be a part of the coming tsunami. These advancements and the support from NVIDIA and Microsoft will allow Van Heron Labs to hit impact escape velocity. We’re working on some exciting developments, and we can’t wait to share more in the coming months! Thank you to the NVIDIA team for finding us and believing in what we're building, and a massive thank you to both companies for investing in our potential. #NVIDIAInception #Microsoftforstartups Microsoft for Startups #NVIDIA #Microsoft #AWS

"How Van Heron Labs, a HudsonAlpha resident associate company, is revolutionizing biotech and speeding up innovation" Massive thank you to the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology for highlighting Van Heron Labs. Read about our story and some of our recent work in the fantastic article by Deborah Storey linked below! https://lnkd.in/eHgTp9q6 https://lnkd.in/ge2jcR5m Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D. Business Alabama Magazine

Thrilled that our founder and C.E.O., Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D., was recognized as one of the Top 24 Women in Tech for 2024 by Business Alabama Magazine!!! 🌟 👩🔬 💡 Check it out below: https://lnkd.in/ebMZjrGW  #WomenInTech #Leadership

Our CEO, Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D. will at the BioTools Innovator West Coast Pitch Event in San Diego this week to share how our novel ai.VHL platform is contributing to the growth of the new bio-economy. She’ll be detailing the ways we enable faster media optimization that improves performance, lowers costs, and improves sustainability by using the latest computational technologies. Reach out if you will be at the event or in the San Diego area this week and want to learn more! #biotools MedTech Innovator

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🚀 News: Van Heron Labs Receives $1.1M Seed Funding Led by FoodLabs to Revolutionize the Bio-Economy! Van Heron Labs proudly announces the successful conclusion of our seed funding round, raising an impressive $1.1 million. Spearheaded by FoodLabs, a renowned investor in groundbreaking food and biotech endeavors, this funding fuels Van Heron Labs' efforts to develop and enhance existing technologies, build novel solutions, and address pressing industrial and global challenges. VHL stands at the forefront of biotechnology, improving cell culture and utilization using innovative technologies like genomics, bioinformatics, artificial intelligence, and nanotechnology. As champions of sustainability and progress, Van Heron Labs is dedicated to shaping a future where human health and environmental well-being converge symbiotically. 💡Don't miss the full press release posted in the comments. To double down on existing efforts and expand the team, Van Heron Labs will be raising additional funds in 2024! Stay tuned for more updates on our groundbreaking initiatives, and be sure to read more below. #bioeconomy #biotechnology #sustainability #ai #environment #bioinformatics #genomics #nanotechnology #AI #VHL

🌞 Meet Mark! We are thrilled to introduce our newest team member, Mark Mackiewicz, PhD, who joins us as our Senior Scientist of Research and Development. With an impressive career spanning the realms of genomics, biology, and biotechnology, Dr. Mackiewicz brings a wealth of expertise to our dynamic research team. Previously, Dr. Mackiewicz dedicated nine years to the laboratory of Dr. Richard M. Myers, serving as the Project Manager for the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)-funded ENCODE Production Group at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. His research journey has touched upon various facets of life sciences, including stem cell biology, neural cell differentiation, microRNA dysregulation in breast cancer, alternative reproductive strategies in evolution, and anaerobic microbial bioremediation. Notably, Dr. Mackiewicz's academic journey also saw him managing a core DNA Sequencing Facility at The University of Georgia while pursuing his PhD. His work on the Characterization of human transcription factor function and patterns of gene regulation in HepG2 cells was also recently featured on the cover of Genome Research! In his own words, "I am excited for this opportunity to work for Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D. and join the Van Heron Labs team. They have been an innovator in the development of precision nutrition strategies for maximizing cell growth and product yields in any given cell type. The knowledge I have gained in transcription factor biology and gene regulation during my years with the ENCODE project will contribute directly toward our R&D efforts." Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Dr. Mark Mackiewicz; Van Heron Labs is set to reach new heights with this valuable addition to our team! 👏🔬 #VanHeronLabs #ResearchAndDevelopment #Biotechnology #LifeScience Shout out to Cathleen Shaw on the amazing cover art featured here!

🔬 Meet Rebecca Vaught, Ph.D., the driving force behind Van Heron Labs. As the CEO and a multi-disciplinary scientist, she's on a mission to innovate and bring to market cutting-edge technologies that reside at the exciting crossroads of biology, chemistry, genetics, artificial intelligence, and engineering. Under her visionary leadership, Van Heron Labs has swiftly emerged as a top 100 startup in the state, heralding a new era of scientific advancement. Beyond her role at Van Heron Labs, Rebecca is actively shaping the future of biotechnology. She is a distinguished member of the Board of BIO Alabama and the Cultivated Meat Modeling Consortium. Her influence extends further as she acts as a scientific advisor for CellMind and ValleyDAO and lends her expertise to Firestone Packaging Solutions and the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology Educational Outreach. Her dedication to pioneering advancements in longevity biotech earned her the esteemed title of a 2023 Longevity Biotech Fellowship. Rebecca's journey to this point has been a remarkable one. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Molecular, Cell, and Microbial Biology from Auburn University and a Ph.D. in Evolutionary Genetics from Monash University. Her extensive academic background spans biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, microbiology, evolutionary biology, genomics, physiology, mitochondrial biology, longevity and aging, and bioinformatics. Dr. Vaught was shortlisted for the Forbes 30 Under 30 list not once but three times for 2021, 2022, and 2023 across multiple categories. In addition, her recent recognition as an ISCT, International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy Top Abstract and Top Early Career Professional, and her recent selection for the ISCT Mentoring Program showcase her contributions and dedication to the scientific community. Let’s give it up for Rebecca! ✨ #VanHeronLabs #Biotechnology #LifeScience