About Us
INSTAR Lab Inc. is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit research institute headquartered in Marietta, Ohio — Ohio's oldest town. We advance scientific knowledge across AI, quantum computing, health, energy, and materials by organizing grant-ready research teams, shared computational infrastructure, and disciplined public-benefit programs. Gifts to INSTAR are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Our Mission
INSTAR Lab is an independent research institute advancing scientific discovery to enhance research, development, theory, education, innovation, and societal growth — translating those advances into real-world benefit through the INSTAR Consortium and direct technology transfer. As an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity (NTEE U05: Science & Technology Research Institutes), we are accountable to the public interest, not to shareholders.
INSTAR builds research programs around reproducible methods, secure computational infrastructure, grant-aware program management, and accountable public-benefit outcomes. We draw on the talents of Appalachian scientists and collaborate with university researchers and regional partner companies advancing education, applied AI, and industry-leading research. Every researcher who joins INSTAR gains genuine intellectual freedom, a broad interdisciplinary network, and institutional support unconstrained by departmental politics or commercially-driven agendas. Our north star: advancing civilization toward the Kardashev scale.
Our Team
INSTAR's research community spans principal investigators, research scientists, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and technical specialists drawn from diverse institutional backgrounds. Our administrative staff — encompassing grants management, legal counsel, facilities operations, and communications — creates the operational foundation that allows researchers to focus on their science.
Our leadership team and Board of Directors are now publicly introduced — including AI Lead Scientist and Board Member Suzanne Conejos, Board Member and AI Researcher Sean Hackney, Applied Scientist · Materials Physics Dr. Spoogmay Khan, and Research Scientist Maha Khan.
Our History
INSTAR Lab Inc. was incorporated and received IRS recognition as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2020, establishing its base in Marietta, Ohio — Washington County, in the heart of Appalachian Ohio. From that founding, INSTAR has built programs spanning the natural sciences, social sciences, and technology, and has assembled the INSTAR Consortium: a network of seven specialized partners whose disciplines span workforce development, business acceleration, procurement, federal IT, international logistics, education, and applied research. Our growth is measured not in headcount but in the quality of questions we pursue and the rigor we bring to answering them.
OUR PARTNERS
Philanthropy & Grants
Fund Independent Science
INSTAR Lab is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Your tax-deductible contribution directly supports public-benefit research in AI, quantum science, health, energy, and the broad sciences.