David Van Dijk is a founder-scientist blending 12 years of machine learning and computational biology experience with academic leadership as an Associate Professor at Yale. As Co-Founder & CEO of CellType (YC W26) he leads development of foundation models that simulate human biology—work highlighted by Google leadership—and has already discovered and validated a novel cancer treatment signal in partnership with top-tier pharma. He maintains a strong research pedigree with publications in Cell, Nature, ICML and NeurIPS and over 11,000 citations, reflecting deep expertise in translating cutting‑edge ML into actionable biology. Based in New Haven, he hires exceptional bio+ML builders and uniquely combines hands-on model engineering with drug discovery execution informed by both industry and high-impact academia.
12 years of coding experience
8 years of employment as a software developer
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam)
Yale University
Doctor of Philosophy - PhD Computer Science, Doctor of Philosophy - PhD Computer Science at University of Amsterdam
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David Van Dijk - Co-Founder & CEO at CellType (YC W26)