Why Debut is Different
Debut uses a proprietary platform technology we have pioneered called cell-free biomanufacturing. We use cell-free biomanufacturing to unlock and overcome the limitations of cell-based biomanufacturing. This process retains the useful parts of the cell, such as enzymes, and discards the limiting parts of the cell to overcome the barriers of traditional biomanufacturing. We unlock latent markets and provide access to sustainably produced ingredients that no others can.
Leadership
Debut Biotech is led by a senior team that is driving biomanufacturing to new heights by overcoming problems with traditional biomanufacturing. Our seasoned team of experts deeply understand the pain points of biomanufacturing and are dedicated to creating a new future for sustainable production.
Dr. Joshua Britton
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Nicholas Brideau
Senior Vice President of Research & Development
Dr. Kallie Li
Vice President of the Molecular Foundry
Dr. Ali Emileh
Director of Protein Engineering
Dr. Gregory Weiss
Co-Founder and Scientific Advisor
Dr. Joshua Britton
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Joshua is the CEO of Debut Biotechnology and is responsible for the vision, growth, operations, and finances of the company. He is an innovative leader in biomanufacturing and business and holds a PhD in biochemistry. Joshua developed the fundamentals of advanced biomanufacturing and continuous manufacturing at UCI and MIT before founding Debut and leading operations. Joshua has authored over 25 publications and has received multiple awards for his contributions to science.
Dr. Nicholas Brideau
Senior Vice President of Research & Development
Nicholas leads Debut’s molecular biology team and is an expert in biochemistry and small molecule biomanufacturing. Nicholas is an accomplished scientist with tenures at Cornell University, the University of Oxford, and the Salk Institute where he developed a new family of RNA-targeting CRISPR proteins. Nicholas has interest in developing and creating emerging technologies and the intersection of science and business.
Dr. Kallie Li
Vice President of the Molecular Foundry
Kallie leads Debut’s metabolic engineering team to develop multiple cell lines to produce highly valuable small molecules. Before joining Debut, Kallie worked with Genomatica gaining extensive experience in genome editing, synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, molecular biology, and microbiology.
Dr. Ali Emileh
Director of Protein Engineering
Ali has a diverse background at the interface of biology and physics. After graduating Drexel University, he moved to Dartmouth to apply directed evolution toward engineering novel antigens for HIV vaccines. Following his postdoctoral training, he joined BASF Enzymes in San Diego, and from there, went on to Novozymes where he worked on the design and screening of focused enzyme libraries using computational biology.
Dr. Gregory Weiss
Co-Founder and Scientific Advisor
Gregory is a Professor of Chemical Biology at the University of California Irvine focusing on the interface between chemistry and biology, including the study of enzymes and molecular recognition. His awards include Outstanding Professor in the School of Physical Sciences at UCI, Beckman Foundation Young Investigator, and election to Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.