Melissa Fensterstock brings a unique mix of scientific and business acumen applicable at both the strategic and tactical levels. With an MBA from Harvard Business School, MPhil in Bioscience Enterprise from Cambridge University, and a BA in Neuroscience from Johns Hopkins University she develops and commercializes early-stage, scientific innovations. Melissa is a Company Builder at Material Impact, a venture fund building deep tech companies powered by material science. Material Impact is a champion of the bravest ideas for the future, building companies from the ground up that turn material science and deep tech innovation into products that solve enduring, large-scale, real-world problems. Melissa is also co-founder and former CEO of Landsdowne Labs, a spin out from MIT co-founded with Robert Langer. In her role as CEO Fensterstock transformed an academic concept to market-ready status that included executing a global partnership with one of the world’s largest metal and mining companies, receiving a NSF grant, raising venture capital investment, and being involved with developing legislation around child safety. 

Previously, Fensterstock worked across the life science sector ranging from running corporate development for a small publicly traded biotechnology company, to consumer product CEO, to spinning out companies from Columbia University and Johns Hopkins University and is part of the Milken Institute Young Leaders Circle. Fensterstock lives in Wilton, CT with her husband and two sons.