HOME | AFINGEN

TO GROW

FASTER AND HEALTHIER

TOWARD SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS IN THE 21ST CENTURY

By 2050, the world’s population is expected to reach 9.7 billion, requiring global crop production to nearly double to meet rising demands for food, feed, fiber, phytochemicals, and phytomedicines. AFINGEN® is developing novel biotechnology platforms that enable crops to grow faster, healthier, and more sustainably – advancing agricultural productivity while reducing pressure on natural resources.

MANAGEMENT TEAM

Ai Oikawa, Ph.D.

CEO/CSO

Ai Oikawa, Ph.D. is CEO/CSO of AFINGEN®, where she develops plant biotechnology platforms to advance sustainable food, feed, fiber, and phytochemicals production. Her research has been supported by SBIR grants from the U.S. Department of Energy, USDA, and NASA for its impact on global food security and environmental sustainability. Dr. Oikawa earned her Ph.D. in Agricultural Bioprocess Engineering, followed by research appointments at Yale University, UC Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. She has also completed executive training at Harvard Business School and UC Davis School of Law, focusing on technology integration, intellectual property, and commercialization.

Carolyn Fritz, M.B.A

Biotech-Business Consultant

Carolyn Fritz has over 20 years of experience building and leading industrial biotechnology businesses. From 2004 to 2014, she was CEO of Allylix, where she raised $34 million in venture financing, developed a product pipeline for flavor, fragrance, and insect control markets, established strategic partnerships, scaled up and commercialized products, and guided the company to its acquisition by Evolva. Earlier in her career, she led renewable chemical and biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing initiatives at Dow Chemical, and at Cargill, she built a plant biotechnology business focused on new food ingredients and industrial products from canola oil. At Afingen, she emphasizes strategy and commercialization to drive market penetration and growth.

Kenneth Davenport, Ph.D.

AgTech-Strategy Consultant

Kenneth Davenport is a seasoned agricultural industry executive with deep expertise in strategy, technology, and commercialization. He has held senior leadership roles including Vice President of Strategy & CTO at Chromatin, Inc., Director of New Business Ventures at Bayer CropScience GmbH, and CEO of ArborGen, LLC. Earlier, he was Director of Central Research at Hoechst Celanese, leading programs in chemistry and biotechnology. Throughout his career, he has focused on advancing novel technologies and building commercial opportunities across cotton, forestry, and specialty crops. At Afingen, he leads product development, regulatory and intellectual property strategy, out-licensing, and industry partnerships in ag-biotech and seed markets.

ADVISORS

Keith Newhouse, Ph.D.

Keith Newhouse brings more than 35 years of commercial experience in agricultural biotechnology, seed, and sustainability. Most recently, he served as Director of Business Development at Land O’Lakes SUSTAIN, following 16 years in strategic leadership roles with Land O’Lakes. His work included guiding seed business strategy, overseeing sunflower, canola, and sugar beet programs, building a consolidated forages program, launching a tropical corn breeding program in Mexico, and leading international testing and licensing of forages and corn. He also directed sustainability initiatives, including corporate program leadership and topic area leadership for WinField® United. Earlier, he contributed to the launch of new seed and biotech technologies at Monsanto, BASF, Syngenta, and Bayer. Since retiring from Land O’Lakes, he has continued to consult on agricultural sustainability. He earned his Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Breeding from Iowa State University.

Bill Shelander, M.B.A.

Bill Shelander is Co-Director of the Cleantech to Market program at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and formerly served as Business Development Expert at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, where he fostered entrepreneurship and supported startup creation within the research community. He brings over 20 years of venture capital experience, having managed nearly $180 million in funds and generated more than $600 million in returns. Bill has invested in and helped launch dozens of high-technology companies, with a record that includes both challenges and notable successes as an officer or director of businesses acquired or listed on NASDAQ. He holds a B.S. in Systems Engineering with a minor in Physics, an M.S. in Chemical Engineering, and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.