Matt Easterday, Ph.D. ’03

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Before leading a company at the cutting edge of genomic research, Matt Easterday, Ph.D. ’03, was a UCLA graduate student exploring the genetic foundations of brain development. He earned his doctorate in neuroscience through UCLA’s Interdepartmental Program for Neuroscience, focusing on stem cell genetics, a field that would prove foundational to his interdisciplinary career.

Today, Easterday serves as CEO of Dovetail Genomics (part of Cantata Bio), a company known for developing advanced tools for structural variant detection and 3D genomics. Under his leadership, Dovetail is expanding its reach across cancer research, rare disease studies and broader applications in genomic medicine.

“Dovetail is focused on solving some of the biggest challenges in genome analysis,” Easterday said. “We’re working to give researchers the tools they need to understand the genome more completely.”

Easterday’s path to Dovetail has been defined by both scientific rigor and strategic vision. After completing his Ph.D. at UCLA, he pursued postdoctoral research at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Minnesota. There, he studied developmental genetics related to the heart, brain and autism spectrum disorders.

Recognizing the importance of intellectual property in life sciences innovation, Easterday later earned a law degree from the University of Minnesota and went on to practice patent law at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Palo Alto, advising early-stage biotech companies on IP strategy.

In 2016, Easterday joined EdenRoc Sciences, a biotechnology platform company, where he currently serves as general counsel, secretary and treasurer. Many of the companies he advised during his time in law practice would later become part of the EdenRoc ecosystem. Dovetail Genomics is one such company.

As CEO of Dovetail, Easterday has overseen the development and release of innovative genomic tools, including the LinkPrep Kit, which enables high-resolution detection of structural variants across a range of sample types. Recent company milestones under his leadership include the launch of early access services for analyzing challenging FFPE samples, the expansion of certified service provider partnerships in Europe, and a strategic partnership with CareDx to drive the next wave of innovation in transplant matching using advanced Hi-C technology.

What remains constant across these milestones is a commitment to scientific accessibility. Easterday’s leadership reflects a core mission: to make high-resolution genomic tools more widely available to researchers solving complex biological problems.

Easterday credits his time at UCLA with shaping him not only as a scientist, but also as a leader. “I was fortunate to have great mentors at UCLA,” he said. “Harley Kornblum taught me that advancing science is all about building the right team - collaborators, advisors, skilled technical experts and funders. I use those lessons every day.”

Easterday continues to guide Dovetail Genomics in developing innovative, accessible solutions for the genomics research community, living out the UCLA tradition of discovery, leadership and impact.