Sonoma’s new cannabis lab lures Tesla exec

Daniel Witt joins Darius Anderson’s Sonoma Lab Works|

Sonoma Lab Works, the licensed testing lab for cannabis purchased by Darius Anderson earlier this year, has hired Daniel Witt as its new president and COO. The company has also formed its board of directors.

The testing lab began in 2014 as part of the Santa Rosa-based cannabis manufacturing firm, CannaCraft.

Witt is a former Tesla Motors executive, and becomes the company’s first president and COO. Anderson, who is also managing partner in Sonoma Media Investments, which owns the Index-Tribune, serves as the company’s CEO.

“Witt’s energy and familiarity with both government and burgeoning industries melds perfectly with our desire to grow and expand the company into a leading service for the cannabis industry,” said Anderson in the company’s hiring announcement.

“California’s cannabis industry is perhaps one of the few things that has moved even faster than technology,” said Witt in the announcement. “Despite changing regulations, the innovation is inspiring and it’s a privilege to work with a talented team to provide exceptional service and innovation.”

The company also announced a board of directors including: Anderson; Gary D. Nelson, founder and chairman emeritus of the Nelson Family of Companies and founder of Nelson Solar Projects, LLC; Henry Hansel, a director of Hennessy Advisors, Inc. since 2001 and president of the Hansel Auto Group since 1982; Marisol G. Lopez, former chief of staff for Oakland Mayor Ronald Dellums and current chief of staff at Platinum Advisors; and Frank Yeary, former chairman of CamberView Partners and on the board of directors of PayPal Holdings Inc. and Intel Corp.

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