Shai Ufaz is a molecular biologist with over 18 years of experience in biotechnology, including 10 years in leading positions in Israel’s biotech industry.

Shai founded ViAqua Therapeutics in 2014 together with Shai Einbinder, to address the challenges of disease in aquaculture. He has led the development of the ViAqua Therapeutics oral delivery platform and the company’s IP from the start.

Prior to founding ViAqua, Shai served as an R&D Project Manager at Protalix Biotherapeutics and at TransAlgae. Shai received his Ph.D. in Biotechnology from the Faculty of Life Sciences at the Tel Aviv University and conducted Postdoctoral research at the Weizmann Institute’s Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences.  

Shai Einbinder is a marine biologist with over 25 years of experience in marine operations, field expeditions, deep water and closed-circuit rebreather (CCR) diving, marine biotech, and aquaculture. In the last 15 years he has held leading positions in Israel’s biotech industry.

Shai founded ViAqua Therapeutics in 2014 together with Shai Ufaz, to address the challenges of disease in aquaculture. He was the CEO of ViAqua Therapeutics until 2018 and has greatly contributed to the development of the ViAqua Therapeutics oral delivery platform.   

Prior to founding ViAqua, Shai served as VP, Development and Projects, at TransAlgae and as CEO at Aurora-V. Shai received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology from the Charney School of Marine Sciences at the University of Haifa, Israel.  

Elad Zohar is an executive manager and business consultant with over 19 years of experience driving innovation and growth across diverse sectors, including aquaculture, animal nutrition and health. 
Elad's career spans roles with global corporates, private investors, and academic institutions, with a focus on the intersection of innovation, product development, and strategic business planning. He has led large-scale projects, developed commercialization strategies for emerging technologies, and worked with industry leaders to bring novel products to market

Experienced microbiologist with a BSc in marine biotechnology and a MSc in Biotechnology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Ori joined ViAqua in 2017 and has since gained growing responsibility for the company’s Operation Department. He has taken an active role in developing ViAqua’s biotechnology-based oral delivery platform for targeted administration of RNA-based solutions, including the downstream process development and the formulation of ViAqua’s platform. 

A professional biochemistry researcher with a PhD in chemistry and post-doc protein engineering experience. Prior to joining ViAqua, Rita was a researcher at Protalix R&D, focusing on LC-MS of proteins. Rita joined ViAqua in 2019 and has since taken a leading role in the growth of the R&D Department, including the development of the analytical methods and the fermentation process of ViAqua’s biotechnology-based oral delivery platform. 

Chris has over 30 years' experience in the Global Aquaculture industry, combining a strong scientific background with extensive commercial experience across the fields of nutrition, health, technology, and genetics. Chris has held senior executive roles including Global Head of Aquaculture at Merck Animal Health, General Manager for Skretting North America and Regional Business Director of AKVA group North America and Australasia. He is currently Chief Scientific Officer for AquaBounty Technologies where he leads R&D, Regulatory and Compliance functions.

Extensive development in fields of RNA and protein delivery and nanotechnology; Asst. Prof. of Chemical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology; postdoctoral fellow with Prof. Robert Langer, MIT