Advisory Board
Dr. Ganesh M. Kishore
Member of Advisory Board
Dr. Kishore (Kish), is a Managing Director of Burrill & Company and CEO of the Malaysia Life Science Capital Fund.
Prior to joining Burrill & Company, Kish served as the VP of science & technology and the chief biotechnology officer of DuPont. Prior to this he was the VP of technology for DuPont’s Agriculture & Nutrition division. He joined DuPont in June 2003 and began focusing on R&D efforts related to biotechnology within the company.
Kish previously served as co-president of the Nutrition & Consumer Sector and assistant chief scientist/chief biotechnologist for the Monsanto Company, which he joined in 1980. His contributions include the discovery, development and commercialization of ag-bio products, manufacturing processes for Nutrasweet® and the transformation of a chemical giant into a leading food and nutrition company.
Kish is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the American Society of Plant Physiologists, and the Institute of Food Technology.
Kish is a founder of the plant biotech/informatics company Metahelix Life Sciences. He also serves as the chairman for the St. Louis RCGA’s Bioenergy group and serves on the boards of numerous for profit and not-for-profit institutions including: the School of Nutrition and Policy, Tufts’ University, St. Louis RCGA, and the National Research Advisory Board of the Washington University at St. Louis. He has also served as an advisor to National Science Committees in many Asian countries and to venture capital groups.
Dr. Sass Somekh
Chairman of Advisory Board
Dr. Somekh is responsible for leading the development and driving the business growth of several key products in the Semiconductor-equipment industry. In 2007, Dr. Somekh retired as president of Novellus Systems to found Musea Ventures, a family venture firm dedicated to investing in Alternative Energy and Synthetic Biology. Prior to joining Novellus in 2004, he was with Applied Materials for 24 years, where he served as Executive VP of all products and a board member.
In 1993, Dr. Somekh was recognized as a co-inventor of the Precision 5000 when it became the first semiconductor-manufacturing system to be placed in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution. It is on display in the Information Age exhibit at the National Museum of American History, Washington, D.C.
In 2006, Dr. Somekh was inducted into the Silicon Valley Engineering Hall of Fame for his professional achievements and contribution to the Silicon Valley community. In 1994 he received the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials Institute’s SEMI Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his many contributions to the industry.
Dr. Somekh received his EE Ph.D. from Caltech and he holds more than 50 U.S. patents. He serves on the boards of Synopsys, HelioFocus and Kateeva.