Moss, 26 October 2026
Gentian Diagnostics ASA, a fast-growing developer and manufacturer of diagnostic tests, has appointed Heidi Vebø as Vice President Research & Development. She will join the company on 18 January 2027 and lead Gentian's R&D organisation as the company accelerates execution of its updated R&D strategy and broader development pipeline.
During 2026, Gentian Diagnostics introduced a more dynamic and customer-driven R&D model, focused on portfolio diversification, disciplined prioritisation and commercial relevance. The new model combines projects developed with IVD partners with internally initiated opportunities and has resulted in a significantly broader pipeline. At the end of Q3 2026, seven assay development projects and one technology development project were active.
Heidi Vebø joins Gentian from Thermo Fisher Scientific, where she has served as R&D Manager within Cell Therapy since 2020, building and leading an R&D team of approximately 30 scientists. During this period, her organisation launched ten products. She previously worked at Gentian from 2015 to 2020 and has seven years of experience from Genetic Analysis AS. She holds a PhD in molecular biology. "I am very excited to return to Gentian at such an important stage in the company's development. Gentian has strong scientific and technological capabilities, and its broader and increasingly customer-driven development model provides a strong foundation for bringing more high-impact diagnostic products to market. I look forward to working with the team to build on these strengths, further develop our capabilities and execute on the growing development portfolio," says Heidi Vebø.
"We are very pleased to welcome Heidi back to Gentian. Our R&D model has changed significantly during 2026, with a broader pipeline and closer collaboration with customers and partners. The focus now is on strong execution and converting these opportunities into new products and long-term growth," says Matti Heinonen, CEO of Gentian Diagnostics. "Heidi brings an excellent combination of scientific expertise, product development experience, people leadership and commercial understanding. She knows Gentian and our markets from her previous time with the company, and her experience in building and leading R&D teams and successfully bringing products to market makes her very well suited to lead the next phase of our R&D development."
Gentian Diagnostics develops and manufactures high-quality, in vitro diagnostic reagents. Our mission is to innovate diagnostic efficiency for better treatment decisions. Gentian's expertise and focus lie within immunoassays, specifically for infections, inflammation, kidney disease and heart failure. By converting existing and clinically relevant biomarkers to the most efficient, high-throughput analysers, the company contributes to saving costs and protecting life. Gentian Diagnostics is headquartered in Moss, Norway, serving the global human and veterinary diagnostics markets through sales and representative offices in Sweden and USA. For more information, please visit www.gentian.com.