TEAM
Ashley Walsh CEO
As the Founder and CEO of Inner State, my mission is to lead our company in creating safe and effective tools for mental health and medical innovation, utilizing natural noninvasive, nonaddictive products. In July 2022, I proudly helmed a significant contract with Ohio State University, setting the stage for groundbreaking collaborations.
One of our most noteworthy achievements came to fruition in April 2023, after years of rigorous protocol and contract negotiations. We successfully established the first-ever DEA-approved psilocybin-producing whole mushroom grow house at an American University and formed a transformative research partnership with Ohio State University, solidifying our position as a leader in the field of innovative medical research.
In my role as CEO, I am actively fostering partnerships with prestigious institutions like Ohio State University and the Institute for Neuro Innovation. Simultaneously, I am spearheading efforts to capitalize on opportunities for growth by leveraging our intellectual property and patents in the realm of drug development. Inner State is committed to transforming the landscape of mental health and medical innovation, and I’m honored to lead our vision towards a brighter, healthier future.
Before taking on the role of founder and CEO at Inner State, I had a rich and diverse career that laid the groundwork for my passion for innovation and my commitment to making a positive impact on people’s lives. Prior to this venture, I co-founded an award-winning spirit company, Kimo Sabe Mezcal. Over the years, Kimo Sabe Mezcal evolved into a better-for-you beverage house that encompasses Surf City Still Works, Aga Vie, and Kimo Sabe. In fact, Kimo, Inc. is now on the verge of going public, a testament to the success and growth we achieved during my tenure.
During my six years at Kimo Sabe, I had the privilege of overseeing operations and marketing while collaborating with a national sales team. This experience sharpened my business acumen and honed my ability to manage multifaceted operations within a competitive industry. It was here that I developed a deep appreciation for the complexities of growing a brand and positioning it for long-term success. Before my time at Kimo Sabe, I served as the Chief Operating Officer of Sobe Lizard Chocolate, a pioneering company in the functional food space. Sobe Lizard Chocolate was not only a first mover but also the first company to secure a licensing deal with Pepsi Co and Sobe Drink Company. As COO, I was responsible for overseeing nationwide operations and leading a marketing team that played a pivotal role in positioning our chocolate bars as the number one low-carb chocolate bar at major retailers like 7-11 and Walmart.
My innovative spirit didn’t stop there. I continued to create several popular iterations of our chocolate bar, expanding their presence in the market and solidifying our brand’s reputation for quality and innovation.
These prior experiences, spanning the spirits industry, functional food space, and marketing of groundbreaking products, have given me a strong foundation and a diverse skill set that I now bring to Inner State. As the founder and CEO, my goal is to leverage this background to drive groundbreaking innovations in mental health and medical technology while building strategic partnerships and fostering growth opportunities for the company. Inner State’s mission is not just a vision but a commitment to improving lives, and I am proud to be at the helm of this transformative journey.
Jim Walsh
Chairman of the Board
In 1985, Jim Walsh moved his family to Hawaii, and over the next ten years created the first U.S.-grown cacao plantation and line of chocolate products -Hawaiian Vintage became the world’s first vintage varietal chocolate, and is lauded by The New York Times as the world’s best tasting chocolate.
Jim’s love for cultivating and harvesting the land and its products led him to start growing cacao in Mexico, and eventually cultivate agave.
Walsh is the creator and co-founder of Kimo Sabe Mezcal. Mezcal is the broader category of tequila, agave-based liquors. His idea was to create a sustainable mezcal of top quality, and Kimo is now a triple gold medal winner and named “Best of Class International Specialty Spirit” by the American Distilling Institute (ADI) Spirits competition.
He is also a founding member of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, and chairman of Mind Matter AI.
Walsh is considered one of the world’s leading experts on chocolate and he is widely published and quoted in New York Times, USA Today, The Economist, The London Times, The Sunday Hour, The Los Angeles Times, Time magazine, CNN, Fox News, PBS, ABC’s Good Morning America, NBC, CBS, Atlantic Monthly, Newsweek, Gourmet Magazine, Country Living, and Food & Wine, BBC, CNN, PBS and many others.
Catherine Powell
Board Member
Catherine Powell is the Global Head of Hosting at Airbnb. In her role, Catherine manages Airbnb’s global community of more than 4 million Hosts of Homes and Experiences. Her responsibilities include overseeing Airbnb’s regional operations teams, the Host Community team, the Commercial Team and the Experiential Creative Product team, as well as developing standards, education, products and features for Airbnb’s Host community.
She also serves on the board of Airbnb.org, an independent nonprofit, which provides support for people in need of emergency stays.
Prior to Airbnb, Catherine was at Disney for more than 15 years where she most recently served as President of Disney Parks Western Region in the United States and Disneyland Paris in France.
Before that, Catherine served as Présidente for the Euro Disney Group’s Disneyland Paris.
Prior to joining Disney, Catherine worked for BBC Worldwide for seven years.
Tom Smith
Board Member
Tom is now CEO and Director of Set Jet, LLC (www.setjet.com), a Membership based private jet charter In 1993
Tom co-founded TASER International (now Axon Enterprise, Inc, NASDAQ: AXON), and served as President of TASER until October 2006 and served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of TASER from October 2006 to 2013.
Tom was CEO, President and Director of Wrap Technologies, Inc (NASDAQ: WRAP). Under Tom’s leadership, Wrap Technologies experienced rapid expansion of its international and domestic presence and improving market position as more agencies across the United States continue to adopt the BolaWrap.
Tom holds a B.S. degree in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Arizona and a M.B.A. degree from Northern Arizona University.
Tom is an avid aviation fan and has over 10,000 hours of flying time and is certified in multi‐engine aircraft as an airline transport pilot.
Bruce Culver
Board Member
Bruce Culver is an entrepreneur, investor, executive and scientist.
Mr. Culver has 30 years international business experience in the staffing industry.
In 1985, he raised venture capital and found Lab Support, Inc. He was CEO, Chairman and Director until 1990 when he successfully recruited a CEO. The IPO on NASDAQ was in 1992 as On Assignment, Inc (symbol ASGN), currently ASGN is on NYSE.
In 1990 Mr. Culver founded Professional Staff plc, a UK technology staffing business. IPO on NASDAQ in 1996 (PSTF); privatized in 2003.
He also successfully acquired and sold a specialized staffing business in France.
As an angel investor, he has invested in more than 25 start-ups: Axon (formerly Taser), Coffee Equipment Company, Digital Map Products, Futures, Bioptix, ATS Armor, Bullseye Engagement, Moonlighting, Kimo Sabe Mezcal, Titan HST, Lightning Technologies, Airi, Tractor Beverages and Surf City Still Works, to name a few.
He has served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. He was a member of the Business Advisory Council for the California State University Channel Islands, Smith Business School and is Chairman of God’s Hidden Treasures, a mobility device provider for disabled people in Ukraine.
Dr. Sonny Mattek
Head of Neuroscience
A visionary in the realm of psychedelic science, Dr. Sonny Mattek, as the Chief Scientific Advisor of Inner State, is leading transformative research programs focusing on the medicinal potential of psychedelics.
Her endeavors aim to bridge interdisciplinary understanding with scientific innovation, furthering drug discovery, product development, and the regulatory approval of groundbreaking medical applications.
• With 13 years of distinguished experience in behavioral and neuroscience research
• Expertise in neuroimaging methods, including fMRI and EEG.
• PhD in Psychological & Brain Sciences from Dartmouth College
• Research stints at Stanford University and the University of Oregon.
Integrating knowledge across disciplines like physics, engineering, and artificial intelligence, she is passionate about pioneering methods to comprehensively map the intricacies of the human mind and emotions. A prolific thinker and writer, Dr. Mattek actively contributes thought pieces on theoretical psychedelic science. Her commitment to the field extends to generating intellectual property, exemplified by her endeavors in developing patents related to psychedelics. Her scholarly contributions have graced top-tier peer-reviewed journals, including the esteemed Perspectives on Psychological Science.
Dr. Jim Dalton
Advisory Member
Executive Vice president & provost at the University of Alabama.
Previously served at Dean and Professor of the Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy at the University of Michigan.
Professor and Chair in the Division of Pharmaceutics.
CSO of GTX where he oversaw the preclinical and clinical development of selective androgen receptor molecules.
Dr. Amir Vokshoor
Advisory Member
Board Certified neurosurgeon specializing in minimalistic brain and spine surgery for the past 20 years.
Previously chief spine surgeon at Providence St. John’s Health Center championing cohesive and multidisciplinary paths for the care of patients.
Founder of Neurosurgical spine group, Neurovella Brain Spa and the Institute of Neuro Innovation, a non-profit research and philanthropy foundation dedicated to brain and spine health recovery, with emphasis on neuropsychological and mental aspects influencing healing.
Bruce Vaughn
Advisory Member
Founder and the Managing Partner of Zuber Lawler, a national law firm.
Personally manages relationships with more than 10 of the firm’s Fortune 1000 clients, as well as funds and government entities.
He’s a leading voice in the global cannabis and psychedelics industries. He is a founder of the leading international cannabis consultancy Global Go, the print magazine Global Cannabis Times, and the print magazine Psychedelia.
Dr. Ryan Yates
Advisory Member
Doctorate degree in clinical pharmacy and clinical pharmacology.
Authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications and has been granted multiple patents in fields including molecular biology, drug discovery, and natural product ingredient innovation believes that the key to human health lies in our ability to unlock nature’s secrets using sustainable agricultural practices that protect and promote the health of our planet
Dr. Emeran A. Mayer
Advisory Member
Is a Gastroenterologist and Neuroscientist.
Recognized as one of the pioneers and leading researchers in the study of the bidirectional communication within the brain-gut microbiome system, with applications in intestinal and brain disorders. Founding Director of the Goodman Luskin Microbiome Center at UCLA, Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Executive Director of the G. Oppenheimer Center for Neurobiology of Stress & Resilience.
– Authored 425 scientific papers , 1 PBS special and co-edited 3 books including best-selling books: “The Mind Gut Connection” (2016), “The Gut Immune Connection” (June 2021), and the recipe book “Interconnected Plates” (2023).
Dr. Amanda Holley
Advisory Member
Honed expertise in psychedelic drug regulation in the US FDA as a nonclinical pharmacology / toxicology reviewer.
Strong foundation in neurobiology and psychedelic regulation with nearly two decades of academic research experience.
Bachelor’s in Psychology/Neuroscience, a Master’s in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Ph.D. in Biology from Concordia University in Montreal.
Passionate about bridging the gap between drug development and regulation, their aim is to foster a productive, data-driven dialogue that accelerates the safe introduction of psychedelic medicines to patients. Career is marked by a commitment to improving public health through innovative regulatory strategies.
Dr. Mauro Zappaterra
Advisory Member
Director Of multidisciplinary care and research at Synovation Medical group.
Md, PHD from Harvard Medical School. Completed his PhD on the role of Cerebrospinal Fluid in brain development while studying craniosacral therapy. Viewing it as a potential fluid to convey source information to the body
Dr. Suzanne Gilbert-Lenz
Advisory Member
OBGYN and diplomat of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Just published Menopause, the boot camp and involved in women’s empowerment and public education, and appears frequently as an expert in women’s health and integrative medicine on TV, in print and on-line.
Dr. Suzy Ross
Advisory Member
Associate Professor of Recreation Therapy at San José State University.
Over the past three decades, Dr. Suzy (Susan) Ross has systematically and scientifically analyzed the phenomenon of biospychospiritual transformation from transdisciplinary perspectives.
Associate Professor of Recreation Therapy at San José State University.
Author of The Map to Wholeness, Suzy translates her model to wide-audiences where voyagers discover the phases of transformation through real-life intimate stories of crisis, change, and reinvention.
Tom Zuber
Advisory Member
Founded and and the managing partner of Zuber Lawler, a national law firm.
Personally manages relationships with more than 10 of the firm´s Fortune 1000 clients, as well as funds and government entities. He’s leading voice global cannabis and psychedelics industries. He is founder of the leading international cannabis consultancy Global Go. print magazine Global Cannabis Time, and Psychedelia.
Dr. Warren Vidrine
Advisory Member
Founded and operates Vidrine Consulting, specializing in industrial chemistry, biochemistry, instrumentation design, and virtual project management, consulting in Europe and Asia as well as the U.S. and Canada.
Formal education is in brain lipid biochemistry and physical organic chemistry.
He’s published over 50 peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals and authored over a dozen patents, a substantial fraction of them currently incorporated in commercial products.
He is the recipient of the Coblentz Society’s Williams-Wright Award.
Lauren Maher
Advisory Member
Licensed psychotherapist who works in private practice.
Author of Mindfulness Workbook for Panic Attacks: Healing Strategies to Reduce Anxiety, Manage Panic, and Live in the Moment.
Specializes in anxiety management and trauma therapy, and is trained in EMDR, Trauma Resiliency Model, and other somatic methods.
Lauren is a certified yoga therapist (C-IAYT) and yoga teacher (ERYT-500)
Joe Moore
Advisory Member
Co-founded Psychedelics Today.
Created one of the world’s best known psychedelic podcasts, blogs and training platforms.
Expert in transpersonal breathwork and much sought after international speaker on the intersecting subjects of psychedelic medicine and healing, breathwork, drug policy, medical innovation, international justice and environmentalism.