📍 1 Triton Square, London NW1 3BF
Join ARIA and Convergent Research for the official London launch of two new Focused Research Organizations (FROs): Meridial and Echo Labs.
FROs are a new institutional model designed to tackle ambitious, societally consequential scientific challenges that fall outside the scope of traditional labs or startups. Through a moderated conversation and two in-depth, story-driven presentations, attendees will learn how ARIA’s scientific organizing principle supports this model, and how Meridial and Echo Labs are applying it to ecosystem dynamics and large-scale brain mapping.
This event is designed to be substantive: you’ll leave understanding not only what these teams are building, but why this structure exists and what it unlocks for UK science.
There will be meaningful networking opportunities throughout the night, accompanied by a selection of refreshments and activities
How's your wine knowledge?
Convinced the only thing that works for you is a supermarket Sauvignon Blanc (your go-to) – and everything else just gives you a headache?This session is here to flip that idea!
This tasting isn’t about memorising regions or impressing anyone. It’s about discovering how your brain, senses and context shape what you taste – and how easily they can trick you.
Expect a playful, interactive experience and, of course, seriously good wine from How To Wine, making your Tuesday better!
Introduction from Venture Café London and Convergent Research
ARIA’s Product Manager, Pranay Shah, in conversation with Kristin Ellis, Partner at Convergent Research, on ARIA’s scientific organising principle, the origins of Focused Research Organisations (FROs), the gaps they fill that traditional research institutions cannot, and why this model matters for the UK
Join us for the launch of Echo Labs, a Focused Research Organization that aims to close a gap in nature intelligence. Echo Labs aims to develop both integrated data streams and learning systems capable of representing ecosystem condition and resilience as a dynamic, measurable property. Their goal is to embed modern machine learning, causal inference, and dynamic modeling in ecosystem science, just as their application to genomics and transcriptomics revolutionized biology. Echo proposes to build a single feedback architecture that learns from nature as continuously as nature changes itself.
This session will be delivered in conversation with Yannick Wurm, Program Director at ARIA.
Join us as we launch Meridial, a newly launching Frontier Research Organization tackling the large-scale challenge of mapping the living brain, why this requires a new institutional structure, and what it unlocks for neuroscience and beyond.
This session will be delivered in conversation with Pippy James, Chief Product Officer at ARIA.
Building and launching FROs in the UK in partnership with ARIA focused on genetic engineering, connectomics, AI, and climate
Mehmet Fisek is the Founder & CEO of UK FRO Meridial. Mehmet is a neurophysiologist by training, with extensive experience developing cutting-edge methods for in vivo physiology and biophysics in multiple model systems including crabs, fruitflies and mice.
Pippy James is Chief Product Officer & Executive Board Member at ARIA, where she oversees the development of ARIA's products and programmes. Pippy was previously Global Product Manager at Entrepreneur First.
Dr Kaja Wasik is a scientist, serial entrepreneur, and the CEO of Echo Labs. She previously co-founded Gencove and Variant Bio where she led scientific strategy, helped secure ~$150M in funding, and established numerous partnerships. Kaja managed research design and partnerships across 25 global sites, leading to numerous discoveries advancing to clinical trial programs. She also pioneered the first equitable research model in biotech supported by large-scale genomic data governance. Prior to launching Echo Labs Kaja helped deploy a £300M deep-tech fund with Ahren Innovation Capital.
Yannick joined ARIA from Queen Mary University of London, where he is Professor of Evolutionary Genomics & Bioinformatics. Yannick pioneered the use of molecular tools to assess pollinator health, has built startups to commercialise genome analysis software, and created a real-time network for pollinator monitoring.
📍 1 Triton Square, London NW1 3BF
Join ARIA and Convergent Research for the official London launch of two new Focused Research Organizations (FROs): Meridial and Echo Labs.
FROs are a new institutional model designed to tackle ambitious, societally consequential scientific challenges that fall outside the scope of traditional labs or startups. Through a moderated conversation and two in-depth, story-driven presentations, attendees will learn how ARIA’s scientific organizing principle supports this model, and how Meridial and Echo Labs are applying it to ecosystem dynamics and large-scale brain mapping.
This event is designed to be substantive: you’ll leave understanding not only what these teams are building, but why this structure exists and what it unlocks for UK science.
There will be meaningful networking opportunities throughout the night, accompanied by a selection of refreshments and activities
How's your wine knowledge?
Convinced the only thing that works for you is a supermarket Sauvignon Blanc (your go-to) – and everything else just gives you a headache?This session is here to flip that idea!
This tasting isn’t about memorising regions or impressing anyone. It’s about discovering how your brain, senses and context shape what you taste – and how easily they can trick you.
Expect a playful, interactive experience and, of course, seriously good wine from How To Wine, making your Tuesday better!
Introduction from Venture Café London and Convergent Research
ARIA’s Product Manager, Pranay Shah, in conversation with Kristin Ellis, Partner at Convergent Research, on ARIA’s scientific organising principle, the origins of Focused Research Organisations (FROs), the gaps they fill that traditional research institutions cannot, and why this model matters for the UK
Join us for the launch of Echo Labs, a Focused Research Organization that aims to close a gap in nature intelligence. Echo Labs aims to develop both integrated data streams and learning systems capable of representing ecosystem condition and resilience as a dynamic, measurable property. Their goal is to embed modern machine learning, causal inference, and dynamic modeling in ecosystem science, just as their application to genomics and transcriptomics revolutionized biology. Echo proposes to build a single feedback architecture that learns from nature as continuously as nature changes itself.
This session will be delivered in conversation with Yannick Wurm, Program Director at ARIA.
Join us as we launch Meridial, a newly launching Frontier Research Organization tackling the large-scale challenge of mapping the living brain, why this requires a new institutional structure, and what it unlocks for neuroscience and beyond.
This session will be delivered in conversation with Pippy James, Chief Product Officer at ARIA.
Building and launching FROs in the UK in partnership with ARIA focused on genetic engineering, connectomics, AI, and climate
Mehmet Fisek is the Founder & CEO of UK FRO Meridial. Mehmet is a neurophysiologist by training, with extensive experience developing cutting-edge methods for in vivo physiology and biophysics in multiple model systems including crabs, fruitflies and mice.
Pippy James is Chief Product Officer & Executive Board Member at ARIA, where she oversees the development of ARIA's products and programmes. Pippy was previously Global Product Manager at Entrepreneur First.
Dr Kaja Wasik is a scientist, serial entrepreneur, and the CEO of Echo Labs. She previously co-founded Gencove and Variant Bio where she led scientific strategy, helped secure ~$150M in funding, and established numerous partnerships. Kaja managed research design and partnerships across 25 global sites, leading to numerous discoveries advancing to clinical trial programs. She also pioneered the first equitable research model in biotech supported by large-scale genomic data governance. Prior to launching Echo Labs Kaja helped deploy a £300M deep-tech fund with Ahren Innovation Capital.
Yannick joined ARIA from Queen Mary University of London, where he is Professor of Evolutionary Genomics & Bioinformatics. Yannick pioneered the use of molecular tools to assess pollinator health, has built startups to commercialise genome analysis software, and created a real-time network for pollinator monitoring.