About

The Scientist Behind
the Analysis

Scientific due diligence for biotech investors, grounded in over a decade of hands-on molecular biology research, a granted U.S. patent, and publications in the world's leading scientific journals.

GN

Professional headshot

Education

Ph.D., Microbiology & Plant Pathology — UC Riverside

B.Sc., Biology — UC San Diego

Patent

Named Inventor, U.S. Patent 11,186,845 B1

Patent Training

Casimir Jones Life Sciences Patent Academy

Fellowships

National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowship (NDSEG)

NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (awarded)

Dr. Gregory Newkirk, Ph.D.

I've delivered technical due diligence for biotech investment decisions — evaluating whether the science holds up, how defensible the IP is, and where the real risks lie. That work draws on over a decade of hands-on molecular biology research, spanning CRISPR gene editing, nanotechnology, and agricultural biotechnology.

My doctoral research at UC Riverside in the Giraldo Laboratory focused on the intersection of nanotechnology and plant biology, developing novel approaches for delivering biomolecules into plant cells using engineered nanomaterials. That work led to publications in Nature Nanotechnology and ACS Nano, and to a granted U.S. patent — U.S. Patent 11,186,845 B1 — on which I am a named inventor.

Before my doctoral work, I served as Senior Research Associate at Cibus, leading next-generation sequencing and CRISPR initiatives. I then joined BASF as Scientist III, leading the Host Strain Engineering team building CRISPR-based tools for agricultural biotechnology.

I completed formal patent training through the Casimir Jones Life Sciences Patent Academy. That training, combined with the experience of filing my own patent, means I understand IP not as an abstraction but from the inventor's perspective. I founded Priori Intelligence to bring that combination — real scientific depth plus genuine IP literacy — to investors and founders who need more than keyword searches and boilerplate reports.

Selected Publications

  • Nature Nanotechnology — Plant nanobiotechnology research on nanomaterial-mediated biomolecule delivery in plants
  • ACS Nano — Engineered nanomaterials for plant science applications
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My Approach

Every analysis I deliver is AI-accelerated but scientist-validated. I use modern research tools for speed and scale, then apply the scientific judgment that only comes from years at the bench. Investors need to make decisions fast. My goal is to get them a rigorous, honest technical read in days, not weeks — without the generic boilerplate that passes for due diligence elsewhere.

Career

Professional Experience

2025–Present

Founder & Principal Consultant

Priori Intelligence

Biotech IP intelligence and scientific due diligence consultancy

2024–2025

Advisory (formerly Solventum Advisory)

Solventum Advisory → Priori Intelligence

Scientific consulting and patent analysis services

2019–2023

Scientist III, Host Strain Engineering Team Lead

BASF

Led CRISPR-based strain engineering programs for agricultural biotechnology

2014–2019

Ph.D. Research — Giraldo Laboratory

UC Riverside

Doctoral research in plant nanobiotechnology, CRISPR delivery systems, and nanotechnology-enabled gene editing

2012–2014

Senior Research Associate, NGS & CRISPR Lead

Cibus

Next-generation sequencing and CRISPR gene editing pipeline development

2009–2012

Research Assistant — Mayfield Lab

UC San Diego

Algal biofuels and recombinant protein expression research

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