Outset | Frontier

Jacob is co‑Founder & CEO of Futurity, building the LIMA® platform to deliver longer‑lasting, lower‑carbon roads and more resilient infrastructure supply chains. He leads strategy and execution across technology, markets and capital, turning under‑utilised kraft lignin into high‑value infrastructure materials that help decarbonise hard‑to‑abate sectors.

Jessica Chiang, PhD is co-founder and CEO of Hyphera, a startup using fungal chemistry to create a natural alternative to the synthetic additives used in everyday wood products like MDF and particleboard. Hyphera builds on insights from her doctoral research and prior experience in fungal-based materials. Jessica is also active in research commercialisation, having previously chaired the Momentum Investment Committee.

Matt co-founded Neocrete in 2018 with the mission of making concrete regenerative, carbon-zero, and more resilient - at a lower cost. He now leads global growth and chairs the board. Previously, he led business.govt.nz; co-founded and sold Bill-in; and founded WordZebra. Earlier, he was a commercial lawyer at Goldman Sachs, Standard and Poor's, and Simpson Grierson, and a travel writer for the NZ Herald.

Helen leads operations and product development at RespirAq, which is creating the RespirAq™ Active Humidifier System—a compact respiratory medical device that delivers active heated humidification without an external water supply. With a background in mechanical engineering, product design and research, she has worked with the team since its beginnings as a university research project.

Irina Miller is Co-founder and CEO of Daisy Lab, a New Zealand precision fermentation company developing dairy-identical proteins, with a current focus on lactoferrin. With a background spanning strategy, organisational effectiveness and bioinformatics, Irina has led Daisy Lab from early-stage R&D through pilot-scale manufacturing, commercial partnerships and regulatory preparation, while building relationships across the global dairy and biotechnology sectors.

Natalia Lopez is Chief Operating Officer of Kitea Health, combining engineering, regulatory, and operational expertise to advance market entry for the Kitea System, an investigational intracranial pressure monitoring device for hydrocephalus. A decade ago, she brought that rigor into life sciences and medical devices, designing and implementing quality management systems for companies navigating complex regulatory pathways.

Nathan is co-founder of Heatr, developing intelligent load-control and low-voltage topology-discovery technology for electricity networks. Heatr identifies where flexible loads are connected and coordinates them in real time, helping networks manage local constraints, integrate more renewable energy and unlock capacity without relying solely on expensive physical infrastructure upgrades.

Keith is the founder and CEO of Sapro-Tech, developer of Sapro+, a next-generation leather alternative designed to combine the performance and aesthetics of premium leather with the sustainability demands of a circular economy. Keith focuses on creating compelling, scalable green alternatives to conventional materials. He is an experienced scientist and entrepreneur whose career spans the University of Oxford and three New Zealand biotechnology companies.

Dr Mark Eltom, founder of Reactory with nearly two decades in the alcohol and technology industry. From his garage in Auckland Mark built Reactory, a deep tech startup that ages spirits in days instead of decades. Backed by Outset Ventures and leading Family Offices, Reactory is here to rewrite centuries of history in an industry entrenched by tradition. Work is underway with the largest spirits companies, globally.

Prathima Chowdary is a gynaecological surgeon with a masters in engineering and a PhD in drug delivery. She founded E-Leviate to build long-acting devices for women's pelvic health, starting with a vaginal ring pessary registered in New Zealand for prolapse and stress urinary incontinence. Manufactured in Auckland, available 2027. It eases the burden on women and clinicians in an area long underserved.