plant-science
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BioLumic
BioLumic is a New Zealand-founded agricultural biotechnology company that uses precisely tuned ultraviolet light treatments to program desirable traits into seeds and seedlings without genetic modification. Applied in seconds, its patented 'light recipes' switch on plants' natural genetic expression to deliver double-digit yield gains, stronger disease resistance and stress tolerance across crops including corn, soybean, rice and ryegrass. The company partners with seed producers to commercialize non-GMO, climate-smart traits at scale.
Steve Sibulkin
Steve Sibulkin is the CEO and board member of BioLumic, a New Zealand-and-US agtech company that uses precise UV light signals to switch on genetic traits in seeds without genetic modification. A repeat CEO with a background bridging advertising strategy and agriculture, he earlier co-founded and led Agronomic Technology Corp, maker of the Adapt-N nitrogen tool, which was acquired by fertilizer giant Yara International. He now leads BioLumic's push to commercialize xTraits, light-programmed seed traits it says can cut years and up to 90% of the cost out of traditional trait development across corn, soybean, rice and forage.
Simon Cheng
Simon Cheng is the founder and CEO of Pique, a Los Angeles-based wellness company that turned whole-leaf tea into dissolvable crystals using a patented cold extraction process. A Hong Kong native who grew up drinking tea with his grandparents, Cheng abandoned those rituals in his teens, then spent his 20s cycling through surgeries and a decade of health crises. He rebuilt his health on a multi-year study trip across Asia learning from medicinal-plant and breathwork masters, and channeled that obsession into Pique, which launched in Whole Foods in 2016 and scaled to thousands of stores. Harvard and Stanford educated, and the youngest member of Harvard School of Public Health's Nutrition Roundtable, Cheng built Pique on three promises: efficacy, purity, and zero prep.