Ecovative is a diverse group of engineers, biologists, artists, and designers— all dedicated to the development of high performance, environmentally conscious materials across a range of industries.

Eben Bayer is the CEO and cofounder of Ecovative. He graduated with dual degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Design from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Eben believes that biology as technology will change how we live over the next hundred years and has shared this view around the world, from the TED conference to the World Economic Forum in Davos. Eben invented the mycelium platform central to Ecovative’s technology, and continues to participate in the advancement of the company’s mycelium based materials platform. Eben grew up on a small, multi-season farm in Vermont, which gave him deep experience in animal husbandry, agriculture, and the sweet stuff—Pure Vermont Maple Syrup. He now lives with his wife and son in an off-grid home powered by solar, a small micro-hydro system, and fire wood on the outskirts of Troy, NY.

Gavin McIntyre cofounded Ecovative in 2007 to solve environmental challenges through biology. Gavin oversaw research and development during the company’s early product launches, and now leads business development, growing a network of mycelium-material partners. Gavin is a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where his studies in mechanical engineering and social design led to his passion for building home-spun bioreactors in which he has cultivated everything from oysters to orchids.

Richard B. Kelson is the Chairman and CEO of ServCo, LLC, a strategic sourcing and supply chain management company.
He retired from Alcoa, Inc. in 2006 as Chairman’s Counsel. He also served as Alcoa’s Executive Vice President and CFO for nearly a decade. Prior to that, he was Alcoa, Inc.’s Executive Vice President – Environment, Health and Safety and General Counsel.
In addition to sitting on the Board of Directors at Ecovative, Richard is currently a member of the Board of Directors of PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. where he serves as Chair of the Audit Committee, Commercial Metals Corporation where he is currently lead Director and Ingevity where he serves as Non-Executive Chairman.
Richard was a member of the Board of Trustees at Carnegie Mellon University from 2000 to 2006 and serves on the board of the University of Pittsburgh Law School Board of Visitors.

Charles Deull is a member of the board of directors of Ecovative Design, LLC, and Clark Transfer, Inc., a leading transporter of theatrical equipment. Charles’ practice focuses on corporate transactions, including domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, public and private securities issuances, bank lending, and structured financing for companies engaged in the publishing, television, oil, steel, automotive, supermarket, restaurant, power, and telecommunications industries. Prior to joining the firm, Charles spent over a decade as the Chief Legal Officer of Scholastic Corporation, where he helped drive the company’s revenue growth from $670 million to $2.3 billion during his tenure, playing a key role in approximately twenty-five acquisitions and divestitures. . Charles has also volunteered for over thirty years with not-for-profit organizations involved in international development and served as Corporate Secretary for The Hunger Project for many years.
Charles graduated magna cum laude from Boston University School of Law, obtained an M.B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Boston University School of Management, and received his undergraduate degree, cum laude, from Tufts University. Charles Deull is a member of the board of directors of Ecovative Design, LLC, and Clark Transfer, Inc., a leading transporter of theatrical equipment. Charles’ practice focuses on corporate transactions, including domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, public and private securities issuances, bank lending, and structured financing for companies engaged in the publishing, television, oil, steel, automotive, supermarket, restaurant, power, and telecommunications industries. Prior to joining the firm, Charles spent over a decade as the Chief Legal Officer of Scholastic Corporation, where he helped drive the company’s revenue growth from $670 million to $2.3 billion during his tenure, playing a key role in approximately twenty-five acquisitions and divestitures. . Charles has also volunteered for over thirty years with not-for-profit organizations involved in international development and served as Corporate Secretary for The Hunger Project for many years.
Charles graduated magna cum laude from Boston University School of Law, obtained an M.B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Boston University School of Management, and received his undergraduate degree, cum laude, from Tufts University.

Jerry Weinstein has been a Board Member of Ecovative since 2006. Jerry formerly held positions as President of Owens Corning’s Exterior Products Division, with sales in excess of $2 billion annual revenue. Jerry was CEO of UC Industries prior to its acquisition by Owners Corning in 1994, and was President and CEO of UCI from its commercial startup in 1979 through 1994 when the company was sold. UCI manufactured and marketed rigid Foam building products under the brand Foamular in the USA and through an extensive Licensing network and produced and sold products in Asia, Europe, and North America. Prior to that, Jerry served in various positions of American Hoechst Corp and was VP of Technology for its Plastics and Chemicals Divisions and represented the company as a Director of a Tri Venture in Brazil. Mr. Weinstein has served on several Boards in the Industrial products sector for both publicly traded companies and privately he held,both in the USA and in Europe.
Jerry currently serves on two other privately held companies as well as on a Non Profit in the Performing Arts sector.
Jerry holds a BS Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic University and has graduate training in Business and Operations research. He makes his home in Manhattan and Sandisfield MA.

Daniel has been with Ecovative since 2014. Dan served as a Gas Turbine Electrical systems Technician with the U.S. Navy and holds an Associate's Degree in Science. Daniel has also competed internationally in Footbag tournaments.

Grace Knight is a Designer, Artist, and Woodworker disguised under the title Product Fabricator on Ecovative’s Concepts team. Grace believes designs taste best over-easy with a sprinkle of science on top, bridging the Market needs with the capabilities of R&D. Grace holds a BFA in Industrial Design with a concentration in Nature, Culture, and Sustainability Studies from Rhode Island School of Design, and was awarded the Yousef Karsh Student of Design Science Award in 2016 and the Rachel Carson Award in 2018.

Deb Antonelli has been with Ecovative since 2011, spending most of those years as an HR consultant to support the growth of the business and to establish a formalized HR practice. Over the past year, Deb has taken on a more active role at Ecovative managing the HR function and focusing energy on supporting the advancement of our management and technical skills across the entire business. With over 23 years in HR management, Deb is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, Society for Human Resource Management Senior Certified Professional, and Certified Compensation Professional.

Nick has worked at Ecovative since May 2016 as production operator before starting his new role in April as Engineering Maintenance Technician. Nick served in the United States Navy as a machinist mate for 4 years and holds an Associate’s degree in automotive service and technology and a welding certification from Olney Central College in Illinois.

Peter Mueller is the Director of Technology Operations. Peter has seven years of experience at Ecovative, where he has been involved in the development of multiple mycelium biofabrication processes and platforms and material evaluation across a number of industries. Prior to Ecovative, Peter was part of the Enabling Technologies team at Velcro, where he was responsible for long term research into novel fastening technologies. Peter is motivated by a desire to achieve meaningful advancement of beneficial technologies within his lifetime.

Jake Winiski has worked as a Research Scientist at Ecovative since 2012, with a primary focus in mycological process development. Within this role, Jake has worked on the development of solid-state fermentation systems and fungal cultivation paradigms, has worked to optimize cultivation processes and material qualities, and has performed strain development and characterization. Jake holds a B.F.A. from the University of Iowa (2005) and an M.F.A. from the University at Albany (2009).

Jen has been with Ecovative since the Spring of 2018 as our Administrative Specialist. Before joining Ecovative, Jen was an IVF Coordinator/Patient Educator at a local infertility specialty office for 15 years. Her current title encompasses assisting the executive management team, processing all purchasing requests, as well as coordinating all Ecovative events and meetings.

Aaron is a goal oriented, motivated professional who brings years of experience as an Research & Development Operator. Aaron believes in cultivating a great work environment and helping to provide the best tools to enable the success of our team. Aaron possesses a consistent, reliable work ethic and can be counted on to keep an open mind to shift gears when needed.

Dan joined Ecovative in 2016 and brings over 20 years of experience in manufacturing to his role as R&D Operator supervisor. He enjoys hunting and fishing, painting, and spending lots of quality time with his granddaughter.

Lauren received her Bachelor’s degree in Cell and Molecular Biology from the State University of New York at Oneonta, where she also minored in Philosophy. Lauren joined the Evocative genetics team in the Fall of 2017. During her final year of college, Lauren's research focused on the patterns of retrotransposable elements in saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Asa has worked as an engineer at Ecovative since 2011 and enjoys the unique experience of working at the intersection of biotechnology and engineering design. He has worked extensively on R&D, data analysis, and design and fabrication of machines and control systems. Outside of work, Asa enjoys hiking, canoeing, and foraging for wild mushrooms.

Sam began working at Ecovative in 2018 and holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Ithaca College. Sam grew a full chess set out of mycelium as an undergrad to show the possibilities of growing complicated shapes with mycelium. His background in exploring the possibilities of fungus as a sustainable fabrication material allowed for the transition to a research technician position here at Ecovative.

Maxwell Reitman received his Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. There, Max traveled to Argentina to work on mycorrhizal communities through SUNY-ESF with Dr. Thomas Horton, explored yeast genetics with Dr. Keeney, and worked with Dr. Regina Lamendella of Wright Labs on metagenomic inquiry into rare members of stream communities. Max then moved on to UF where he received his MS Plant Pathology working on cryptic speciation in pecan truffles with Dr. Matt Smith.

As Ecovative's Technology Transfer and Education Manager, Melissa brings over 10 years of experience leading production teams and developing training programs. Melissa is dedicated to creating simple, innovative, and effective micro-learning programs for rapid deployment of technology, and has been with Ecovative for more than 5 years. Melissa was educated primarily by nature on her family farm, and attended Yale with a focus on Pre-med. When not at work, she can be found doing more work on her family’s farm, coercing her children into embracing agriculture or volunteering as the President of the Hoosic Valley Education Foundation.

Damen Schaak is an experienced molecular and cellular biologist with over ten years of experience in infectious disease research. Damen has been a pioneer in establishing a genetics research program here a Ecovative, and has been PI on various government grants supporting such work. Currently, Damen is leading an effort to develop living programmable materials with sense-response, and self-repair capabilities that can be deployed and grown on site.

Meghan is a collaborative research scientist, having begun her career at Ecovative in 2011 as a production operator. Meghan has held many roles at Ecovative, and her previous work in both the equine and food service industries has lent her a well rounded background that allows her to examine scientific problems with novel approach. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Geology from Southern Oregon University and an Associate's degree in Environmental Science from Hudson Valley Community College.

Dan has been a leader in all of our production systems since joining Ecovative in 2013. Before Ecovative, Dan spent time as an operator and in management in several industries, including food service, paper and book manufacturing. Dan is heavily involved in the culture at Ecovative where he helps plan team events, provides comic relief, and is a member of the safety committee.

Jessie joined Ecovative in 2015 and is a Research Scientist and the lead for our MycoFlex material. Jessie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies from Juniata College and has years of lab research experience. Jessie is passionate about the environment, people and animals (especially majestic sea creatures.)

Maria has worked at Ecovative since 2017. Currently, she is scaling up the Mylo platform for production and is leading efforts to ensure high quality and excellence at each stage of the process. Maria was previously employed at top research institutions, brings expertise in forest mycology, and over 10 years of experience as a research professional, laboratory manager, and safety coordinator. Maria holds a Master's degree in Forest Science from Oregon State University and a Bachelor of Science in Earth Systems with an emphasis in Aerospace Engineering from the University of California, Irvine. Maria commutes to work by foot or on bike to demonstrate her commitment to environmental stewardship and to reduce her carbon footprint. In her spare time, she loves traveling to national and state parks, staying present on the mat at hot yoga, rock climbing, Barre, or enjoying an evening sunset sail on the Saratoga lake.

Kevin is the R&D Manufacturing Manager and his team helps bring our technology from the lab to pilot scale. Before joining Ecovative in 2015, Kevin spent over 10 years at AT&T and Target in sales and management roles after graduating from Clarkson University's Engineering and Management program.

Alex joined Ecovative in 2015 as a member of the Production team. Alex spent two years developing his knowledge of growing mycelium-based materials before transferring to the R&D Department as a Research Technician, where he has been working to both optimize the growth process for developing technologies and quantify the properties of new materials being produced. Alex holds a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science from the University of Vermont with a concentration in Ecological Design.

Brad is an Engineer and Ecovative’s Materials Testing Lead. Brad has worked extensively with both the hardware and software behind the production of composite materials, while also facilitating the materials testing lab through the training of operators and the implementation of applicable ASTM standards to each test method. Brad began working at Ecovative Design as a part-time Technician in the summer of 2015. In 2017, he graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a Master's in Mechanical Engineering and soon proceeded into his current role.

Dan Meeks started his career at Ecovative as a summer intern for the Strain Development Team while obtaining his B.S. in Environmental Biology at the University of Vermont. After graduation, Dan started at Ecovative full time, working on a variety of projects before landing on the Core Research Team. Dan spends his days developing Ecovative's Aerated Bed Reactor system, his nights playing hockey and soccer, and his (winter) weekends skiing.

Cory grew up in Schaghticoke, NY and got his first job there as a Land Surveyor. He attended Hudson Valley Community College for 2 years while continuing to work and earned an Associate's degree in Business Management. After college, Cory worked at MVP Healthcare in Schenectady, NY in their Information Technology Department. Cory joined Ecovative in May 2016, where he is an R&D Operator.

Matt is a Genetics Research Scientist involved in the characterization and optimization of fungal biology. After graduating from the Milwaukee School of Engineering in 2013 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Biomolecular Engineering, Matt joined Ecovative as a Strain Development Laboratory Technician in the fall of 2013. Transitioning to the Genetics team as a Research Scientist at the end of 2015 has allowed Matt to dedicate his molecular biology knowledge to the pursuit of fundamental fungal biology research.

Danielle studied Industrial Design and packaging science at the Rochester Institute of Technology, with a focus in sustainability.  After working as a community garden organizer for almost two years, Danielle is now a package and product designer at Ecovative. She is also an illustrator on the side and has published two books. When she's not at work, Danielle can be spotted on a bicycle, in the mountains, or perhaps even writing bad poetry.

Jeff joined Ecovative in January 2018 as a Research & Development Operator, bringing years of production experience to his current role. Jeff is a highly motivated team player who takes pride in a job well done.

Alex is a research scientist who has been working at Ecovative since 2010. Alex majored in chemistry at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and enjoys long walks on the beach with his three-legged dog, Rocky.

Dave has been with Ecovative Design since January 2018 as Research & Development Operator. Dave has a lifetime of manufacturing and logistics experience, including 8 years of service in the USMC as an Aviation Ordnance Munitions Technician, and 16 years at GE's Locomotive division.

Katelyn Pohlmann is Ecovative's Digital Media Specialist. Katelyn is a multidisciplinary artist specializing in graphic design. She is heavily inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement as well as by illustrators such as Thomas Nast.

Luke started at Ecovative in May 2018 as an engineering intern and is pursuing dual degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Design at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Before college, Luke served in the Air Force as a Photojournalist and Public Affairs specialist. He now works part time at Ecovative as a Junior Engineer.