David Hastman, Ph.D.

Dr. David Hastman joined ARPA-H in October 2026 after supporting the Biological Technologies Office at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for five years. For the last two years, Hastman provided support as a Scientific Engineering and Technical Assistance (SETA) and a Chief of Staff, where he directed operational execution, program ideation, and technology transition across a ~$500M research portfolio focused on developing and deploying novel biological technologies to address highly visible national security initiatives. Before his time with DARPA, Hastman was a scientist at the U.S. Naval Research Lab, designing and engineering hybrid nanomaterial-biological systems for biomanufacturing and biosensing applications.

Hastman’s technical expertise spans biomanufacturing, biosensing, catalysis, materials science, and applied microbiology; with expertise developing and scaling biological systems for industrial applications.

Hastman earned his Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Maryland and holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Mathematics and Nanoscience from Virginia Tech.