Sandra Ast

Sandra Ast has a diverse work experience spanning from 2013 to the present. In 2013, they were a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Sydney, where they designed, synthesised and investigated different fluorescent markers for biological and medicinal applications. In 2016, they worked as a German Teacher at Berlitz Australia. From 2015 to 2018, they were the CEO & Founder of Australian Sensing and Identification Systems (AusSI Systems), a deep tech start-up developing internet-enabled diagnostic platforms. In 2018, they were an Honoary Staff at the University of Technology Sydney. Since 2019, they have been the Manufacturing Manager and Research and Development Manager at CALUMINO, an emerging deep-tech company, developer and manufacturer of proprietary and mass-deployable thermal sensors and AI technology.

Sandra Ast attained their Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Potsdam between 2007 and 2012. Sandra also obtained their Master's degree in Chemistry from the same university between 2001 and 2007. From 2004 to 2005, they were a Research apprentice at the University of California, Santa Cruz. In 2011, they were a Visiting Researcher at the University of Sydney. In 2015, they completed a Medical Device Commercialisation Training Program 2015 at Cicada innovations / NSW Ministry of Health.