Watch the video recording on YouTube: https://youtu.be/BM6x59oMnKg?si=qF0xDvgUMvU60ctP

2025 has been the start of a bull period for psychedelic medicine.

​Psychedelic Biotechs like GH Research, Compass Pathways and Lykos Therapeutics are releasing impressive, late stage clinical trial data

​Capital is following the data: Cybin just raised $500M and Johnson and Johnson's Ketamine-inspired antidepressant Spravato broke $1B+ / year of topline.

​A new administration seems surprisingly interested in accelerating the FDA approval of psychedelics as treatments for mental health disorders

​Learn how top VCs and LPs are mapping and allocating to this exciting space in this special event designed for family offices and HNWIs.

​You will learn:

​The contrasting approaches that biotech and pharma are taking to commercialize psychedelic medicine

​Where we see the highest-leverage points for investing

​Lessons from past failures

​And of course there will be plenty of time for interaction and Q&A

​This event is run by Brom Rector and Sam Tabone of XEIA, a venture capital fund that invests in "Human 3 - the next epoch of human health, wellbeing and performance". As part of their Human 3 thesis, they have invested in 8 psychedelic medicine companies from pre-seed to pre-IPO.

The past few years have been rough for psychedelic and shroom stocks, but recent news from ATAI (and Recognify), Compass Pathways and GH Research + positive regulatory tailwinds from RFK and MAHA make me think that Psychedelics are back on the menu in 2025.

In this video I discuss:

(0:00) - why psychedelics are hot again in 2025

(5:45) - latest thoughts on Compass a month after their Phase 3 topline data

(9:45) - thoughts on ATAI / Recognify, and how this feeds back into our psychedelic macro theme

Join our investing in psychedelics webinar www.psybio.org

Ryan Field is the CEO of Kernel, a brain-computer interface company founded by Bryan Johnson. Kernel is a cutting edge, non-invasive BCI that uses fNIRS to image the brain. Imagine if getting an MRI was as easy as putting on a bike helmet: that's Kernel in a nutshell.

Kernel is developing several applications on top of their device including (A) predicting which antidepressant you will respond best to and (B) BrainAge, a cognitive assesment that tells you how young your brain is relative to your chronological age.

Ryan joins Brom Rector and Sam Tabone on the podcast to discuss:

(0:00) - Ryan’s background

(7:30) - history of Kernel

(10:00) - non-invasive VS invasive BCI (Kernel vs NeuraLink)

(25:00) - what Kernel can do: depression treatment response + brain age

(31:00) - Kernel's AI: black box or hand tuned features

(45:00) - How Kernel can detect cognitive impairment

(55:30) - Kernel's alcohol study

(58:00) - Kernel vs cheap neurotechand more!Get your Brain Age measured at https://www.kernel.com/brainage

I interviewed Michael Huseby to learn about his life story and his new book: Fundamentals: Your Friendly Guide to Investment Funds and SyndicationsThis is a great listen for anyone interested in starting an investment fund or interested in making the transition from "practitioner" to "practitioner operator", like Michael did when leaving BigLaw to start his firm, and like I did when leaving the hedge fund I was to start my own fund. We cover: 0:00 - Michael's backstory. Big Law. Going blind. The road to Entrepreneurship16:30 - from legal practitioner to legal entrepreneur23:30 - how TIL is different, a law firm run like a startup37:30 - how Michael is growing his firm + law in the age of AI44:30 - trends in the private markets world51:00 - what are the attributes of successful fund managers54:00 - 506(b) vs 506(c)1:03:00 - most common mistakes people make when starting a fund1:07:30 - Michael’s views fund-in-a-box services like AngelList, Carta and SydecarMichael's law firm: https://www.investmentslawyers.com/Michael's book: https://www.amazon.com/Fundamentals-Friendly-Guide-Investment-Syndications-ebook/dp/B0FCMJL1G8/ref=sr_1_1

Replay of our webinar on investing in brain computer interfaces. Join our upcoming July 30th event on investing in psychedelic biotech: psybio.org

Xylo is a biotech startup that is using computational methods to design novel brain drugs to treat mental health disorders and neurodegeneration. Many of their drug candidates are inspired by naturally occurring psychedelic drugs but are specifically designed to not induce hallucinations. Xylo's cofounders Josh Ismin and Sam Banister join Brom Rector and Sam Tabone to discuss:

(3:25) - Xylo origins + why design novel psychedelic molecules?

10:30) - How Xylo’s AI approach is different than other non-hallucinogenic psychedelic companies like Gilgamesh and Delix

(21:30) - What is the head twitch response?

(25:30) - How Xylo’s drugs are different than other psychedelics even though they hit the same receptor (5HT2a)

(26:30) - How Lykos’ failure to get MDMA approved impacts Xylo

(32:00) - Running trials in Australia

(43:00) - How has Xylo has evolved over the years

(50:30) - How will AI change drug discovery

(53:00) - How much of the neuro receptor space has been characterized

(56:00) - Is Xylo bullish or bearish on AIMore on Xylo here: https://www.xylo.bio/

More on Brom, Sam and XEIA here: www.xeiavp.com

Arye Lipman is the cofounder of Biosphere, a startup that recently raised millions of dollars from Peter Thiel's Founders Fund and Chris Sacca's Lower Carbon Capital to Unleash Industrial Biomanufacturing at scale. Biosphere is replacing the 1950's steam bioreactor with a modern, UV-enabled design that reduces the capital intensity of biomanufacturing.

Arye joins Brom Rector and Sam Tabone to share how biomanufacturing promises to unlock a new era of global abundance and American sovereignty. We also discuss: (0:00) - what is biomanufacturing

(5:00) - biomanufacturing vs traditional manufacturing

(10:00) - how Biosphere's UV bioreactors are 10x better than traditional bioreactors

(28:30) - what a 10x cost decrease in biomanufacturing unlocks.

(35:00) - can we grow a steak without a cow?

(42:00) - how biosphere raised from Founders Fund and Lower Carbon Capital

(51:00) - is biomanufacturing "woke climate" or American Dynamism?

(55:50) - how Biosphere is working with the DOD

(1:07:30) - Trump’s view on biomanufacturing

(1:12:00) - Consciousness, dolphins and the CIA Check our biosphere here: https://www.biosphere.io/

Compass Pathways ($CMPS) released an interim readout from their Phase 3 trial of Psilocybin (COMP360) for treatment resistant depression (TRD).

The data was positive and highly anticipated by the psychedelic community, but the stock dropped 50% on June 23rd. Brom Rector and Sam Tabone of XEIA Venture Partners react and comment in this emergency podcast.

We discuss:

(0:00) - what did the Compass Pathways data readout actually say

(12:00) - putting the Compass trial results into context vs SSRIs, Lexapro, Spravato and Ketamine

(19:00) - why Compass crashed

(24:00) - will Comp360 get FDA approval?

(26:00) - will COMP360 be commercially successful?

(30:00) - price targets for Compass Pathways $CMPS

(35:00) - will Compass get acquired?

(40:00) - are we bullish or bearish on Compass?

Learn more about Brom, Sam and XEIA at www.xeiavp.com

Martin Jacko is the founder of Aperture Therapeutics, a startup developing ASO (Antisense Oligonucleotide) based therapies for neurodegenerative diseases like ALS. Aperture's approach is unique in how they are guided by genetic profiles of individuals who are naturally resilient to neurodegenerative diseases. Martin joins Sam Tabone and Brom Rector to discuss (5:00) - Aperture origin story

(10:00) - history of trying to cure ALS, why 150 attempts failed

(25:00) - why neuro is hot right now - genetic medicine

(33:00) - why 23 and me failed

(41:00) - how genetics lead to personalized medicine

(53:00) - martin’s advice for founders https://www.aperturetx.com/

Wes Jones is the CEO of Vonova, a brain computer interface company that (unlike Neuralink) is enabling access to the brain without drilling a hole in your skull.

Wes joins Brom Rector and Sam Tabone to discuss:

(1:25) - how Wes got into neuro, background as a catheter engineer

(6:30) - how Wes’s parachute malfunction and resulting paralysis made him focused on the brain

(10:30) - how Wes met his cofounder

(14:00) - Wes demonstrating how his device treats chronic subdural hematoma

(18:00) - ancient Peruvian history of brain surgery + the problem of the skull

(22:30) - how does Vonova’s device actually work

(26:00) - Wes’s encounter with Lawrence Livermore National Labs

(28:00) - how Vonova is different than Neuralink

(35:00) - how Vonova could treat chronic pain

(38:00) - could Vonova’s device be used for Neurodegenerative disease

(41:00) - how long does Vonova's device stay implanted?

(43:00) - Wes’s fundraising journey - the challenges of medtech

(47:30) - why wes is excited about drug device combos and a primer on the blood brain barrier + how Vonova could be used for drug delivery

(53:00) - could Vonova’s device be used for brain stimulation

(56:20) - how Vonova’s device could help “solve” the brain + digital twins

(1:00:00) - Wes’s experience as a CEO + his first employee living on his couch for a year

(1:05:00) - does Wes think you need an MBA to start a company (hot take)

(1:08:00) - San Diego

https://www.vonova.io/