About Prodigy Labs | San Diego Biotech Infrastructure

Our Story

Prodigy Labs was founded with a clear mission: to bridge the gap between cutting-edge science and practical application. Located in the heart of San Diego's thriving biotech corridor, we've created a space where early-stage research teams can operate like mature R&D organizations without the overhead.

What started as a vision to provide accessible, high-quality analytical testing has grown into a research laboratory and incubator with an integrated Laboratory OS — combining accredited testing services, physical incubator space in San Diego, and lab operations software into a single membership. We support early-stage biotech and research teams from first experiment to first product.

Today, we're proud to be at the forefront of emerging testing methodologies, including microplastics detection — addressing one of the most pressing environmental and health challenges of our time.

Our Mission & Values

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Excellence

We maintain the highest standards in all our testing and research, ensuring accurate, reliable results every time.

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Collaboration

We believe the best science happens through partnership. We work closely with our clients to achieve their goals.

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Innovation

We stay at the forefront of technology, continuously investing in new equipment and methodologies.

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Sustainability

We're committed to environmental responsibility and helping our clients develop sustainable products.

Our Journey

2018

Foundation

Prodigy Labs founded with a focus on analytical testing services for the food and supplement industry.

2019

Lab Incubator Launch

Expanded to offer lab incubator space, supporting early-stage biotech startups in San Diego.

2021

Equipment Expansion

Added advanced mass spectrometry capabilities to support pharmaceutical and environmental testing.

2023

Microplastics Pioneer

Launched industry-leading microplastics testing service using pyrolysis GC/MS.

2026

Laboratory OS Platform Launch

Launched the Prodigy Labs platform — Laboratory OS with ELN, inventory, and integrated analytical testing — as a unified membership for early-stage research labs.

Leadership

James Thompson

Founder & CEO

James founded Prodigy Labs to bridge the gap between cutting-edge analytical science and the early-stage research teams that need it most. His background spans molecular biology research, pharmaceutical assay development, and over a decade in analytical instrumentation — and he leads platform strategy, partnerships, and commercial development.

Selected Publications Progressive degeneration of human neural stem cells caused by pathogenic LRRK2 (Nature, 2012)
Stalled spliceosomes are a signal for RNAi-mediated genome defense (Cell, 2013)

Ilya Gertsman, PhD

Scientific Director

Ilya leads analytical method development and scientific operations strategy at Prodigy Labs. He holds a PhD in Biochemistry from UCSD and spent over a decade there as a postdoctoral fellow, project scientist, and Assistant Adjunct Professor in the Biochemical Genetics Laboratory — a CLIA/CAP accredited clinical lab — where he developed deep expertise in LC-MS method development, metabolomics, and biomarker discovery. He is also founder of Clarus Analytical.

Selected Publications Validation of a dual LC–HRMS platform for clinical metabolic diagnosis (Metabolomics, 2014)
Promises and pitfalls of untargeted metabolomics (J Inherited Metab Dis, 2018)

Kirti Chahal, PhD

Lab Manager

Kirti oversees day-to-day laboratory operations at Prodigy Labs, bringing 10+ years of research experience in oncology, neuroscience, and translational pharmacology. She holds a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from SSPPS at UCSD, with expertise spanning drug discovery, cell-based assays, and high-throughput screening across small molecules, antibodies, ADCs, and molecular glues. She also serves as founder and CEO of Tristania BioLabs.

Selected Publications Nilotinib inhibits smoothened in Hedgehog-dependent medulloblastoma (PLOS ONE, 2019)
New inhibitors of Hepatitis C NS3/4A protease (ACS Omega, 2019)

Alena Nikolskaya, PhD

Scientific Advisor

Alena brings 20+ years of analytical development expertise to Prodigy as a scientific advisor and consulting partner. Her career spans leading CROs and CDMOs — including nearly five years at Abzena leading analytical method development for mAbs, bispecifics, ADCs, and AOCs — with deep expertise in FDA/ICH/USP regulatory compliance. She currently serves as Chief Scientific Officer of 2T Labs, a Prodigy partner organization.

Strategic Partners

We collaborate with leading analytical chemistry experts and innovative technology partners to deliver exceptional results.

Clarus Analytical 2T Labs

Join Our Team

We're always looking for talented scientists, researchers, and innovators to join our growing team.

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