Dr. Anne A. Madden
Speaker Engagement Information
Dr. Madden is currently accepting limited speaking engagements and workshops due to ongoing schedule conflicts throughout 2025.
Dr. Anne A. Madden (she/her) is an award-winning scientist, 5-time TED/TEDx speaker, and microbe wrangler who presents at corporations, startups, universities, and technology conferences on topics related to:
Exploring the microbial cosmos to find technology that improves our world
Wasp yeast beer and the future of flavor
How science-art projects can help scientists engage broader audiences
The importance of an impact-centric science communication strategy for STEM companies and entrepreneurs
And a range of other topics…
Past Speaker, Panelist, or Invited Participant at:
(Selected)
What People Are Saying:
“Thanks again for your wonderful seminar and teaching us about the mostly hidden world.”
-Technology Conference Workshop Attendee (General Public)
“Loved your talk today…Brilliant work and storytelling.”
-Technology Conference Attendee (General Public)
“Your keynote was excellent. Working with undergraduates, it’s sometimes a challenge to get them to see the bigger picture. All of my students were talking about your talk on the way home and how much they enjoyed it. It was also helpful for them to see your path… such a cool story.”
-Education Conference Attendee
“Thanks for your Sci Comm session at Harvard Medical School! It was helpful for me in my role as well.”
-Webinar Host and Assistant Director for Employer Engagement at Harvard Medical School
“Whether brewing better beer, discovering novel antibiotics or chronicling the lives of the microscopic creatures living in the dust under the couch, Anne Madden seeks to understand and utilize microbial world around us.”
-TED.com
“Anne Madden bends creatures to her will, with the deftness of a shephard. But Madden is a microbe wrangler—her critters cover petri dishes. Rather than merely observe bacteria and fungi, Madden sees a community ready for work.”
-PBS NewsHour
“These days, her experiments are buzzing, as she takes microbes—yeast—from bees and convinces them to brew beer.”
-Scientific American
“Anne Madden sees the beauty and brawn of creepy-crawly microbes and how they may hold the solution to many human problems.”
-The Scientist
Dr. Madden’s Bio:
Dr. Madden (she/her) is an award-winning scientist, science communicator, and 5-time TED/TEDx speaker. Her 2017 TED talk has been viewed more than 1.6M times.
In 2013, Dr. Madden discovered the first-in-class lactic acid yeasts (Lachancea yeasts) for rapid sour brewing—now an industry standard for making sour beer. As Chief Scientific Officer and partner at Lachancea LLC, she continues to find new yeasts—(from wasps and bees)—that deliver improved flavors to the fermented food and beverage industries.
A thought leader in the broader field of microbial applications, Dr. Madden has discovered novel antibiotics from soil microbes, developed eDNA technology used by NASA, and named a new species of fungus to science. As a former Innovation Strategist for Harvard University, and former Global Head of Science Communication at the world’s most financially successful agriculture technology startup, Dr. Madden has advised a portfolio of clients on science communication and impact innovation strategy, including biotechnology startups, leading universities, and Fortune 500 companies.
Beyond research and innovation across academia and industry, Dr. Madden founded the nonprofit research organization The Microbe Institute, which democratizes microbial discovery for a better tomorrow. This organization’s vision is a world where everyone, regardless of background or age, can explore microbes, discover microbial technology that can improve our world, and find inspiration in the microbial cosmos. This distributed organization partners with organizations and individuals across the world to co-create and accelerate the impact of participatory and interdisciplinary microbial research, education, and art projects. Broadly, they engage new audiences with the science, wonder, and awe of the microscopic world.
Dr. Madden received her undergraduate degree from Wellesley College and a PhD in Biology from Tufts University before completing postdoctoral training in eDNA methods, applied microbiology, and science communication at the University of Colorado and NC State University. She is a former Adjunct Assistant Professor of Applied Ecology at NC State University, has published more than 20 peer-reviewed publications, and has received funding and prestigious fellowships from The Explorers Club, National Geographic, The National Science Foundation, The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, National Geographic Society, and The American Philosophical Society.
Dr. Madden blends microbial technical expertise and vast experience in science communication with her trademark whimsy to occasionally surprise, often delight, and always inspire awe in audiences.
Interviews and Media Coverage:
(Selected)
Brief Highlights:
Science Outreach:
Founded The Microbe Institute, a nonprofit organization that partners with researchers, artists, and educators to create high-impact, participatory microbiology projects that improve our world
Partnered with a fashion designer and university to create commercially-available fashion featuring yeast images
Collaborated with an award-winning artist to create an immersive, augmented-reality art exhibit on microbes at the famed Cooper Union Gallery in NYC
Worked with sound artist to translate brewing data into music in order to make data more accessible to diverse communities
More Media Coverage:
Radio interviews (e.g., BBC, NPR, TED Radio Hour, Canadian Broadcasting Company)
Podcasts (e.g., Gastropod, The Disruptors, River of Suck)
Cover articles (e.g., SMORE Science Magazine, Wellesley College Magazine, Micrographia Today)
Print/digital features and quotes (e.g., Scientific American, The Atlantic, NPR, National Geographic, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The Washington Post, The Scientist, Stem Crew Magazine)
Media coverage of research and outreach projects (e.g., CNN, CBS News, The Verge, Nature Biotechnology, Scientific American)
On-screen (e.g., Curiosity Stream Science Documentary, PBS NewsHour)
Research:
Published over 20 peer-reviewed publications in leading research journals including Proceedings of the Royal Society, eLife, Molecular Ecology, and The Journal of Antibiotics
Discovered a new fungal species to science
Part of the biotechnology team that discovered the novel antibiotics, Neocitreamicins I & II
Developed DNA-based protocols used by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory as part of the Osiris-Rex Mission
Discovered, patented, and commercialized the first lactic acid yeasts for sour beer brewing, now an industry standard method for brewing sour beer
Industry Experience:
Former Innovation Consultant for Harvard University’s Microbial Science Initiative
Former Global Head of Science Communication for the world’s most financially successful agriculture technology startup
Developed, led, or improved the Microbial Discovery Pipeline at companies in the food and beverage tech, pharma, and ag tech industries
Research, Innovation, or Engagement Consultant or Advisor for Fortune 500 companies, life science corporations, MIT Media Lab, and various technology startups
NSF I-Corps National Team Advisor- the nation’s leading entrepreneur training program (leading a team from MIT)
As Heard On:
NPR TED Radio Hour - Audience: ~14M
Gastropod Podcast - ~100K Downloads
Radio Interviews94.3 Radio One - India’s Only International Radio Station
Past Speaker At:
Corporations (e.g., Dow Dupont’s Annual TechCon, New England Biolabs, Indigo Ag)
Technology Conferences (e.g., TED, SynBioBeta - the world’s leading synthetic biology conference, DefCon - the world’s leading hacker conference)
Universities & Commencements (e.g., Harvard University, Oxford University, Wellesley College)
Industry Conferences (e.g., Craft Brewers Conference, The World Beer Festival, Leading Bread Conferences)
Museum and Education Events (e.g., Bell Museum, North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality, North Carolina Art Museum)
Classrooms (e.g., Inspire High Ed platform servicing >30,000 students across Asia, middle school-graduate school classrooms across the USA).
As Seen On:
5 TED/TEDx Talks (> 1.6M views)
The Science Documentary Film: “The Kingdom: How Fungi Made Our World” (Curiosity Stream)
PBS NewsHour: “From the Wing of a Wasp, Scientists Discover a New Beer-Making Yeast”
Funding and Awards:
New England Biolabs Passion in Science Award for Science Advocacy and Mentorship
Rowan University School of Earth and Environment Award for Notable Research
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Microbiology of the Built Environment Postdoctoral Fellow
The Explorers Club Fellow
American Philosophical Society Lewis and Clark Fellow
Tufts University Institute of the Environment Fellow
Wellesley College Graduate Research Fellow
Additional grants from The National Geographic Society, NC Biotechnology Center, and Sigma Xi-the international research society
Luxurious Flowing Hair Club for Scientists 2015 Woman of the Year