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Part 1 of 3.
My guest for this week’s episode is Grant Aarons, Co-Founder and CEO of FabricNano, a London-based biotech whose mission is to transform industrial chemical processes using cell-free biomanufacturing. FabricNano empowers users with the world's most advanced, flexible, and easily scalable biocatalyst platform. With clients ranging from startups to multinationals like Sumitomo Chemical Company, FabricNano provides highly stable and performant biocatalysts to enable profitable production of sustainable and biobased chemicals. FabricNano's approach starts with novel immobilization engineering for enzyme stabilization, followed by budget-conscious protein engineering and process engineering to reach their clients' targets for commercialization of their new biochemical production process. Before FabricNano, Grant was a Research Analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and while pursuing his PhD at the London Business School, became an Entrepreneur In Residence at Entrepreneur First, an international business accelerator that has created over 300 companies worth over $10 billion. Grant's diverse experience gives him a unique perspective on the startup ecosystem that everyone can benefit from.
Join us this week and hear about:- Benefitting from diverse experiences while studying engineering at Cooper Union
- Embracing experiences at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York as a research analyst
- The impact of the economy on deep tech companies
- Tips for embracing capital dependency, intensity, and efficiency
- And much more!
Please enjoy my conversation with Grant Aarons.
Find Our Guest, Grant Aaron, at these links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grantaarons/https://fabricnano.com/
Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joncheehttps://www.excedr.com
Timestamps:00:28 Intro2:29 Episode starts, early days, growing up in upstate New York and New York City’s influence on Grant’s career path5:42 Decision to attend The Cooper Union and study engineering7:38 Undergrad experience with physical and chemical labs, courses about new inventions11:45 The value of diverse work experiences in coding, mechanical electrical plumbing (MEP), and economics, experience as an Android developer17:28 The challenges of a slow feedback loop in engineering and its impact on his career choice19:10 Experiences and opportunities at The New York Federal Reserve Bank, the opportunity to attend research presentations and being employed as a research analyst23:39 How times of uncertainty and stress at The Fed led to innovation, new tools, new models25:53 The purpose of the Federal Reserve Bank and its goals to keep inflation in check and keep unemployment low30:02 The current state of the economy, coming off zero, and its impact on deep tech and innovative technology businesses34:29 Benefits of deep tech embracing capital dependency with capital intensity and efficiency37:02 Outro
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Enriched Notes:
Topics Mentioned:The Cooper Union https://cooper.edu/welcomeFederal Reserve Bank of New York https://www.newyorkfed.org/Mechanical Electrical Plumbinghttps://apaengineering.com/engineering/mechanical-electrical-plumbingWhat is debugging?https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/web-development/what-is-debugging/Tappan zee Bridge Replacement Projecthttps://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ipd/project_profiles/ny_governor_cuomo_bridge.aspxDSGE Model-Based Forecasthttps://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/sr554.html#:~:text=Dynamic%20stochastic%20general%20equilibrium%20 New York Fed Nowcasthttps://www.newyorkfed.org/research/policy/nowcast#/overview
Equipment Leasing vs. Traditional Financing https://www.excedr.com/resources/equipment-leasing-vs-traditional-financing Loan Covenants 101 for Startups https://www.excedr.com/resources/loan-covenants-and-their-effectsLease Financing vs. Debt Financing https://www.excedr.com/blog/lease-financing-vs-debt-financing What Is an Operating Lease? https://www.excedr.com/blog/operating-lease
People Mentioned:Ben Bernanke https://www.federalreservehistory.org/people/ben-s-bernankeChristopher Sims https://jrc.princeton.edu/people/christopher-simsDomenico Glannone https://www.linkedin.com/in/domenico-giannone-55755b45/ The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business
and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.
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