Our Vision
To harness the transformative power of dynamic human cell response data, driving breakthroughs in drug discovery and precision medicine.
Our Mission
To empower researchers globally with innovative single-cell kinetic imaging, advanced analytics, and screening solutions.
Our Strengths
We are trailblazers in single-cell imaging and analysis, unlocking unparalleled insights into the dynamic behavior of human cells.
Our History
Founded in 2004 by cell imaging pioneer Jeffrey Price. We remain privately held.
By leveraging innovative imaging and analysis technologies, we aim to eliminate the guesswork in preclinical research and reduce avoidable clinical failures, ultimately improving patient outcomes worldwide.
Our Leadership Team
Dedicated professionals driving our success
Jeffrey Price, M.D., Ph.D.
Founder, Board Chair & CEO
Founded Vala Sciences in 2004. Inventor of the Kinetic Image Cytometer (KIC®), the imaging technology engine for the ValaDATE.AI™ platform and holder of over 30 patents. He has 200+ publications and helped establish the Conrad Prebys Center for Chemical Genomics. LinkedIn
Mark Mercola, Ph.D.
Board Member, Professor of Medicine
Professor of Medicine at the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute. Known for key discoveries in heart development, he has pioneered applications of KIC® with patient-derived iPSC-cardiomyocytes for disease modeling and developing safer candidate drugs. LinkedIn
Paul J. Dostart, J.D., LL.M., C.P.A.
Co-Founder, Board Member
Co-founded Vala Sciences. He leads the highly rated law firm, Dostart Hannink LLP, which provides counsel to public and private entities, including many of San Diego’s leading technology companies, several of which have appeared on the Inc. 500 list. LinkedIn
Pablo Lapuerta, M.D.
Discovery Advisory Board Chair
CEO at 4M Therapeutics with 28 years of drug development experience. He previously held senior leadership positions at Lexicon Pharmaceuticals and Bristol-Myers Squibb, contributing to successful FDA drug approvals for multiple drugs. LinkedIn
Heather Pelton, M.S.
Director of Finance & Operations, Board Member
Oversees finance and operations for Vala. She has over a decade of business management experience plus extensive accounting and finance training, with a specialization in accounting information systems. LinkedIn
Mike Hancock, Ph.D.
Chief Discovery Officer
Leads Vala’s early drug discovery and partnering activities, bringing 23 years of experience from top biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Formerly at Recursion, he led discovery teams that supported the advancement of multiple AI-enabled drug discovery programs. LinkedIn
Babu L. Tekwani, Ph.D.
Vice President of Research & Development
Leads Vala’s research and development activities via securing grants and contracts. His expertise spans biochemistry, molecular biology and preclinical drug screening across infectious diseases, neurobiology, oncology, and immunology. LinkedIn
Ranor Basa, M.S.
Director of Assay Development & Screening
Guides cardiotoxicity assay development and drug screening at Vala. His team is advancing drug safety testing via the highly predictive ValaDATE.AI™ with proph𝔼CG™ platform application, which accurately predicts key cardiac effects. LinkedIn
Randall Ingermanson, Ph.D.
Director of Software Engineering
Software architect of CyteSeer®, Vala’s advanced computer vision AI-enabled cellular image analysis platform for drug screening. With over 30 years of experience, he is an expert in object-oriented programming, mathematics, and computer vision algorithms. LinkedIn
Ramses Agustin, Ph.D.
Director of Applications & Support
Oversees Kinetic Image Cytometer (KIC®) instrument manufacturing, quality control, and technical support, bridging the gap between biologists and engineers. He is an expert in image processing for high-throughput microscopy and high-content screening. LinkedIn
Kara Gordon, Ph.D.
Director of Neurobiology
Leads a team developing advanced hiPSC-derived cell models and drug screening neuro-relevant applications for the ValaDATE.AI™ platform. Her team focuses on creating alternative methods to animal testing for neurotoxicity safety assessment. LinkedIn