Our Team
Gaurav Byagathvalli, CEO and Co-Founder
Gaurav is a co-inventor of Piezo’s novel platform. Prior to Piezo, he’s served in a variety of roles at Moelis and Company, Capital One, and Elevance Health. He’s a published scientist with a background in vaccine delivery and synthetic biology. He holds a BS in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Mark R. Prausnitz, PhD, Co-Founder
Mark is a Regents' Professor and Regents' Entrepreneur in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Georgia Tech with over 30 years of experience in drug delivery systems with a focus on microneedles and electroporation. He has published over 320 research articles, invented 75 US patents issued or pending, and co-founded 8 companies that have raised more than $300 million in funding. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and holds a BS from Stanford University and a PhD from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, both in chemical engineering.
Saad Bhamla, PhD, Co-Founder
Saad is an Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Georgia Tech with over 10 years of experience in research areas including frugal science and biotechnology. He is a prolific inventor with notable inventions such as the 20-cent centrifuge and 96-cent hearing aid. He holds a B. Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Madras and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Stanford University.
Cynthia Sundell, PhD, Co-Founder
Cindi is a Principal and Director of Life Sciences in the Georgia Tech VentureLab, aiding in commercialization and translation of technologies from research to the market. She is a former VP of Pharmacology for AtheroGenics and former VP of Drug Development at Cerenis Therapeutics. She holds a BA in Biology from Rutgers University and PhD in Biological Sciences from University of Pennsylvania.