Jiayi is a 5th-year PhD student in Microbiology, Virology & Parasitology in Dr. Frederic Bushman’s lab. Her research leverages next-generation sequencing to characterize the human virome and its relationship to health and disease. She is also a fellow in the Penn Center for Innovation Fellowship Program, where she helps evaluate early-stage assets for technology licensing and commercialization. Prior to Penn, she earned her B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology from Johns Hopkins University. An active PBG member for three years, she has been recognized with the Best Team Member award for a PBG pro bono consulting project and won first place at the 2026 Wharton Biotech Conference Stock Pitch Showcase. As Co-VP of Venture & Investing, she is dedicated to creating immersive, well-resourced programming to demystify biotech venture and investment for fellow scientists and help them build robust professional networks with investors, founders, and industry leaders across the biopharma ecosystem. In her free time, she enjoys swimming, embroidery, J-pop, experimenting with new recipes, and organizing potlucks with friends!