Our Team

Ted joined Radicle Science as a founding team member and Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer. He has over 30 years of investment and management experience in industries ranging from venture technology to established natural resource and industrial companies.

Ted has served in CEO, COO, and CFO roles in startups and mature companies, both domestically and internationally. And has been an active investor and board member for over 25 companies ranging from digital transformation technologies, media and marketing application services, manufacturing, real estate, and medical devices.

Jason has been in technology and startups for the last 25 years and has made impacts in a number of different industries including nootropics, pharmaceuticals, defense, and wearables. He sees technology as a tool to solve problems and applies his team’s combined experience to solve those problems, whether it be a healthier lifestyle or simply shaking things up. 

His early career started in Army Intelligence and he worked on several high profile technical projects. Since then he has been involved in the startup industry applying his knowledge of data analytics, development, and technical team leadership to get quality solutions to the market. His experience delves into pharmaceutical, customer relationship management, enterprise tools, and social platforms. 

When Jason’t isn’t working, he’s out adventuring, as true Radicle Rebels do. He’s his own brand of “Action Adventure Geek,” whether is riding his motorcycle to the Arctic Circle, mountain biking via helicopter in the Canadian Rockies, or just out camping in the wilderness.

Peter joins Radicle Science as the SVP of Growth and Revenue.  He has more than 20 years of executive leadership experience with several market making, tech-enabled service company leaders.

Peter has spent most of his time with transformative venture backed companies delivering analytics solutions to help client’s gain clearer business and consumer insights.  He’s held global and national roles helping define strategy, building teams/process and primarily driving execution of new client and partnership objectives to fuel growth.  Industries of focus have included Retail, Restaurants, CPG, Communications, Pharma, Tech and Finance.

As a lifelong athlete and coach, Peter is very dedicated to health, exercise, and teamwork.  He strongly believes the balance of work, family, exercise and community has been a key to his success.  He has seen the same significant impact on others overall well-being when applied.  He is grateful to still be actively playing ultimate frisbee on a national level and is called on to advise lacrosse coaches and programs for his expertise.

Meghan is passionate about natural health and healing, as well as empowering individuals to make informed choices. She’s also driven to build streamlined systems for optimal flow. Her goal is to create a seamless experience for clients as well as participants as they engage with Radicle Science. Meghan thrives on building relationships, creating operational efficiencies, coordinating cross-functional teams, and leaving no detail unchecked.

Before joining Radicle Science, Meghan was the Director of Customer Engagement at Aisle Planner, a cloud-based project and business management tool in the Wedding and Event industry. Meghan was employee #3 and involved in all aspects of system creation, tracking feedback, prioritizing the development schedule, regression testing, bug replication/reporting, as well as training, onboarding, and retaining users. She also ran an education-related non-profit for several years, and prior to that worked in project management and business development at Proflowers.com.

Meghan earned her MBA at the University of Washington and a BA at UC Santa Barbara. When not working, Meghan loves hiking, backpacking, cooking, yoga, breathwork/meditation, hanging with her 2 teens, tennis, reading, volunteering, and going to concerts and festivals.

Recently named by Fortune as one of the “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders,” Peter H. Diamandis is the founder and executive chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation, which leads the world in designing and operating large-scale incentive competitions. He is also the executive founder of Singularity University, a graduate-level Silicon Valley institution that counsels the world’s leaders on exponentially growing technologies. As an entrepreneur, Diamandis has started over 25 companies in the areas of longevity, space, venture capital and education. He is cofounder of BOLD Capital Partners, a venture fund with $250M investing in exponential technologies, and co-founder and Vice Chairman of Celularity, Inc., a cellular therapeutics company. Diamandis is a New York Times Bestselling author of two books: Abundance – The Future Is Better Than You Think and BOLD – How to go Big, Create Wealth & Impact the World. His newest book in this series of exponential technologies—The Future is Faster Than You Think—was released in 2020. He earned degrees in molecular genetics and aerospace engineering from the MIT and holds an M.D. from Harvard Medical School. Diamandis’ favorite saying is “the best way to predict the future is to create it yourself.”

Martin is a partner at Hogan Lovells and is one of the nation’s top FDA, food and dietary supplement regulatory attorneys. Over the last decade he has been recognized by Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, and Chambers USA for categories including Food and Beverage Law, FDA Law, Food and Drugs, and Food & Beverage Regulatory & Litigation.

Thomas Aarts is Managing Director of Nutrition Business Advisors (NBA), a company that provides advanced consulting, strategic advising, capital raising, and full-service business development focused on the Global Nutrition Industry. Mr. Aarts sits on several boards, including Vitamin Angels, a non-profit whose mission is to provide vital nutrients to children and women in need. Tom is a graduate of Colgate University and completed his MBA from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. 

Mr. Aarts is a high-level management consultant with 25+ years of experience working with C-suite executives across the nutrition industry. His experience lies in management consulting, M&A transactions, capital raising, and strategic market research. 

Mr. Aarts co-founded the Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ) in 1996, the business journal of record for the nutrition industry. Through this, he was an integral part of creating many industry-leading reports that helped shape the nutrition industry. Mr. Aarts now serves as Chairman of the Editorial Advisory Board for NBJ. He is also the Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the annual NBJ Summit, a premier CEO/executive retreat for the nutrition and natural products industry, now in its 27th year. 

Bruce is an entrepreneur and executive with a depth and breadth of experience across big data, AI/analytics, and fin-tech. Previously, Bruce was Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of ID Analytics (acquired by LifeLock for $200+ million) and President of HNC Software Inc. (NASDAQ: HNCS), a $1 billion+ global AI software provider in financial services, telecom and healthcare (acquired by FICO in 2002). Bruce served as Director at 3 public and 7 VC and private-equity backed firms, and was named Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year (San Diego) and the Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Entrepreneur of the Year.

Jonathan is Professor at the Jonathan Fielding School of Public Health at UCLA, former Director of the Los Angeles Department of Public Health and was appointed by President Obama to the National Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion and Integrative Public Health.

Susan joined Radicle Science with 10 years experience in the dietary supplement industry as a consultant and with a CRO, and over 20 years experience in academia and nutrition research. She received her BS in nutrition, MS in exercise physiology, PhD in nutrition all from Florida State University.

Additionally her background includes Research fellowship in protein metabolism at UTMB. Registered Dietitian, personal trainer, graduate certificate in cannabis science. Professor Stetson University Tenured, founding faculty UCF College of Medicine, professor Central Michigan University. Medical writer and author. Founder of Substantiation Sciences consulting. Director of Scientific Affairs Nutrasource.

She is a writer, researcher, dog lover, runner and scientist, and her philosophy about nutrition and health has always been evidenced based but “with an eye on what makes sense to drive the next step in research”

Armin Jamshidi, MS, is a data scientist and machine learning expert who joined Radicle Science as the Director of Data Science. He is deeply passionate about the impact of machine learning applications on health data, and is channeling that passion at Radicle to directly impact the wellbeing of people through personalized medicine for the population at large.

While at UC San Diego, Armin gained experience in the healthtech space by working as a deep learning researcher focused on semantic segmentation for musculoskeletal MRI imaging. He supported a database of medical images and deployed a method to analyze image data over time to determine musculoskeletal health. The software was then leveraged across multiple infrastructures.

Outside of work, Armin loves to go bouldering, play chess, and also explore the city of Los Angeles with his newfound passion for film photography.

Armin earned his BS in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and MS in Machine Learning and Data Science at UC San Diego.

Kaustubh (Kaus) first joined Radicle Science as an intern shortly before he finished graduate school at UC San Diego. Armin, whom Kaus had known since freshman year of their undergraduate programs, introduced him to Pelin. While interning at Radicle Science, he enjoyed the creative process of designing systems and solutions, which he hadn’t done at such a scale, and how nice and easy to work with everyone was. Kaus was invited to join Radicle Science as a full time employee and happily accepted.

Kaus strives to be the absolute best at anything he does. While his main area of interest is machine learning and genetic algorithms, he has a wide skill set relevant to his work at Radicle Science. Kaus has led research using statistical learning to classify multiple metabolite-based drug transporters discovered in the lab, has worked in cyber-security as a full-stack engineer, and has built serverless architectures and platforms for internal tools. A large part of Kaustubh’s independent research in graduate school focused on genetic learning and neuro-evolution algorithms.

Kaustubh loves dogs, video games, and exploring new cities and environments. He also loves to cook, and is slowly working towards mastering different cuisines.

While working for two of the largest healthcare providers in the nation, Grace saw many patients suffering from diseases that could have been prevented with lifestyle and wellness interventions. Her personal passion for preventative medicine aligns with Radicle Science’s mission and her desire to improve people’s health outcomes. Grace has been professionally supporting Dr. Jeff since his days running one of UCLA’s first natural medicine research programs, and she was recruited by Radicle to guide its PR and communication efforts.

After graduating from UC Berkeley and the Haas School of Business, Grace served in Americorps and then worked as an academic journal reviewer for Cambridge Scientific Abstracts. She then founded and ran a content firm, publishing ~10 million words annually for online and traditional brands, such as Gillette, Bacardi, and eHealthinsurance, as well as the world’s largest ad agency. She spearheaded content development for several Silicon Valley success stories from beta stage through acquisition, notably Archives.com (acquired by Ancestry.com) and Uptake (acquired by Groupon).

After witnessing her grandmother’s heartbreaking, late-stage Alzheimer’s, Grace began transitioning into healthcare and research, working for Mt. Sinai Health Systems and BJC Healthcare. She is currently in grad school at Harvard, where her research focuses on Alzheimer’s prevention and etiology.

Grace has a wonderful son from whom she learns constantly. Her favorite way to travel is with a backpack, a one-way ticket, and the Spirit wind.

Through the Latin-X program at UC San Diego, Emerly first became connected to Radicle Science as a program management intern for Radicle ACES, the first-of-its-kind, multi-brand CBD study. Emerly’s background, both cultural and professional, mirrors Radicle Science’s mission of increasing access to affordable health and wellness products and, ultimately, democratizing medicines. She’s passionate about being a part of a movement that is revolutionizing the traditional clinical trial process. Emerly finds herself most useful and fulfilled by working on the management end of Radicle Science and ensuring optimized efficiency. She sees her employment with Radicle Science as not just a career, but a way for her to give back to her community.

Emerly earned her B.S. in Public Health with a Concentration in Health Policy and Management Sciences at UC San Diego. She was programs intern at Startup San Diego, where she played a fundamental role in designing and creating their signature event playbook.

Emerly enjoys going on long hikes around beautiful San Diego. She loves baking, traveling, attending concerts and comedy shows, and spending quality time with family and friends.

Varun is passionate about using technology to solve practical, real-world business problems and engineer products that positively impact the world, which is why Radicle’s B-corp mission resonates with him. His goal is to gain a wide breadth of experience across different disciplines, so when a friend approached him about joining Radicle Science, he jumped at the chance.

Varun got his B.S. in Electrical Engineering with a minor in Business from UC San Diego. He was interested in using data to make practical decisions, so decided to stay and get his graduate M.S. in Machine Learning and Data Science, also at UC San Diego. Throughout his education, Varun has interned in different industries across the US. He has built internal software to keep track of product features, implemented a data simulation for next-generation MEO satellites and spearheaded the AI initiative for a cloud video processing project.

Varun was fortunate to grow up in different countries around the globe, including India, Kenya, Singapore, Netherlands and experience their different cultures. This has set him on a journey to explore what life has to offer and use these lessons to become the happiest, healthiest and most positive version of himself.

Rachel came upon the innovative work being accomplished by Radicle Science and was drawn in by our emphasis on both workplace and participant diversity. This resonated with her desire for personal growth and for advocating positive change in the world. At Radicle, she enjoys being one-on-one with study volunteers, and ensuring proper protocols with cross-functional teams. For Rachel, her current role, the timing, the sense of purpose, and the alignment with her personal convictions roll up into a game-changing opportunity at Radicle Science.

Rachel has an undergraduate degree in biology from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and is currently pursuing a graduate degree (MLIS) at the University of Alabama. Her coursework in the MLIS program has strengthened her passion for advocacy as it promotes and explores the tenants of equity, diversity, and inclusivity. She has more than eight years of professional clinical animal care experience, which gives her a broad understanding of clinical study requirements.

Rachel enjoys hiking with her rescue pups Denver, a husky mix, and Shelly, a border collie mix. When she’s not getting her hands dirty gardening, she’s painting everything from wind chimes to coffee tables. She also frequents nearby music venues to hear the work of local artists.

Megan worked in oncology for eighteen years before she was contacted by Dr. Emily Pauli about an open position on her Radicle Science research team. While working together for a number of years in Dr. Emily’s former oncology lab, they both shared similar frustrations with the traditional research model. She was excited by Radicle’s vision of making studies more available to diverse groups and researching what they consume in their daily lives. At Radicle, Megan loves working with volunteers and ensuring they have the best experiences possible. She enjoys trouble-shooting and getting deeper into the details of our studies.

As a Research Lab Coordinator Megan oversaw the collection, processing, and storage of research patient specimens. She was also on the Cancer Committee at her local hospital helping doctors, nurses and other medical professionals create many procedures for the oncology community. During Megan’s career in oncology she gave upwards of 20,000 informed consents for real world pharma trials.

Megan enjoys spending time with her husband Joe and their two kids, Jaxon and Baylor, at the beach and in the mountains. Her hobbies include watching (and shouting at) baseball and football games, gardening in her backyard and crafting. She is also a huge un-ironic fan of Hallmark holiday movies.

Lara is an adventurous individual passionate about multiculturalism, having lived in Belgium, Russia, Brazil, and currently in the US. For this reason she became part of the Latin-X Leadership Program at The Basement at UC San Diego while pursuing her B.A in International Business and B.S in Cognitive Science with a specialization in Design and Interaction. After she shared her goals with the Latin-X representative, he connected her with Pelin at Radicle Science. Radicle’s diverse, positive company culture, and our data-driven approach to everything we do inspired her to intern, then join as a full time employee a few months later.

While pursuing her degree at UC San Diego, Lara worked in a department that promoted educational and cultural events for international and out-of-state students, as well as mentored Brazilian high school students to prepare them for college in the US. She also interned for one of Brazil’s largest retailers, Americanas S.A, as a Marketing Assistant, and aided the creation of a loyalty program for one of their brands.

Lara is an early bird who spends the wee dawn hours lifting weights, doing yoga, kickboxing, playing tennis, or taking spin classes. When she is not traveling, she enjoys spending time at home reading on her Kindle.

Leo joined Radicle Science as VP of Brand Partnerships after supporting the company as an advisor in its early stages. He is a seasoned business development and cannabis executive, strategist, designer, and human performance enthusiast.

Leo’s experience spans several countries in the cannabis and technology industries, and includes advising companies on their financing strategies, M&A activities, and go-to-market campaigns. He is passionate about the enhancement of human performance using nootropics, novel supplements, adaptogens, and herbal compounds. He is dedicated to the research and validation of these substances to unlock their full potential while providing a safe and clean mode of consumption.

Equality, diversity and inclusion are the core tenets of Leo’s mission to enable people to access affordable and safe medicines and increase the agency they have over their health.

Jessica Saleska, PhD, MPH is an epidemiologist and behavioral scientist. She is deeply interested in using insights from psychology, behavioral economics and human-centered design to foster positive experiences and behaviors, particularly in people’s encounters with the healthcare system and health research. She is presently a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA’s Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior. When not working, she loves to trail run, listen to behavioral science podcasts and hang out outside with her husband and (brand new!) baby.

Emma was introduced to Pelin Thorogood through a mutual friend and interned for Pelin’s Wholistic Research and Education Foundation. Shortly after Pelin and Dr. Jeff Co-founded Radicle Science in November 2020, Emma crossed over to work as an intern with Radicle. After graduating in June 2022, she transitioned into a full-time position on the research team as a Study Manager, as she is passionate about pioneering change in the clinical trial space.

Emma earned her B.S. in Physiological Science from UC Los Angeles, where she was also a member of the Women’s Swimming and Diving team. She found her true passion and mission to become an innovative scientist and a warrior for equitable health care after a tragic nerve injury ended her collegiate swimming career. She worked on the Student-Athlete Mentors (SAMS) Bruin Brave campaign, which aimed to destigmatize mental health in the student-athlete community and encourage student-athletes to seek the support they need and to realize their worth outside of sport. She was also a member of Dr. Pearl Quijada’s UCLA Cardiology research lab and weekly journal club, and a multiple-time recipient of the UCLA Athletics Scholar-Athlete award. She is currently pursuing higher education in the medical field.

Outside of work, Emma enjoys her daily yoga practice, cuddling her two cats, traveling, and spending time in the sunshine.

Dave has been in the natural products/nutritional supplement industry for 25+ years, selling everything from raw materials, contract manufacturing and finished products. He joined Radicle Science after a brief stint selling pharmaceuticals, an experience that made him truly appreciate working in wellness rather than the sickness industry.

He was excited to join the Radicle Rebellion disrupting the natural products industry, as he fully understands the leverage that clinically proven products can have on consumer confidence.

When not working, he enjoys extolling the benefits of dietary supplements, racing bicycles,  fitness training and leading a healthy lifestyle.