Nucleate Podcast

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02:16 - Dave discusses his early career path and how he got into science 

04:41 - Dave’s work on the Human Genome Project 

13:38 - Founding Cofactor Genomics

16:42 - Discussing Pioneer Fund and its investment approach 

48:58 - Thoughts on AI in health and biology 

58:27 - Advice for founders in the current challenging funding environment 

1:09:04 - How Pioneer Fund makes investment decisions 

1:14:16 - Most difficult advice for entrepreneurs 

1:16:47 - Final advice for founders: "Just go do it"

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Apply to the Entrepreneurial Fellows Program in Chicago with the CBC open from March 20-May 2,2025! https://chicagobiomedicalconsortium.org/awards/entrepreneurial-fellows/

In our latest podcast, hosted by Sam Kessel, Dr. Michelle Hoffmann discusses her unique journey from a PhD in molecular neuroscience PhD to a biotech consultant, and how her experiences shaped her passion for developing future leaders in the biotech industry in Chicago.

Dr. Hoffmann’s career path took her from academia to consulting, including a decade at Back Bay Life Science Advisors, where she used her scientific expertise to help biotech companies optimize their product strategies, secure funding, and build the biotech ecosystem via the Chicago Biomedical Consortium. She also discussed the Entrepreneurial Fellows program to train aspiring biomedical entrepreneurs in due diligence and company building within the Chicago ecosystem

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04:14 - Dr. Stehman-Breen discusses her decision to pursue a career in medicine.

05:49 - Dr. Stehman-Breen explains her specialty choice in internal medicine and nephrology.

08:09 - Skills and mindset that prepared Catherine for a career in industry.

13:53 - The critical impact that physicians can have in biotech

19:03 - Overview of epigenetic editing and Chroma Medicine's approach.

0:28:22 - Early days of building Chroma Medicine from the ground up.

0:38:22 - Merger with NVelop Therapeutics and future directions.

0:44:22 - Dr. Stehman-Breen offers advice for entrepreneurs and the value of an Entrepreneur in Residence role.

0:49:22 - Balancing her demanding career with personal hobbies and interests.

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02:18 - Eric Kelsic's background in physics and systems biology and how it shaped his approach to biological problems

03:57 - Differences in problem-solving between Kelsic's physics/systems biology background and traditional biology backgrounds

06:27 - Learning from working with George Church and his lab's approach to fostering innovation

10:02 - George Church's openness to exploring ideas

12:02 - How Kelsic's experience in George Church's lab led him to start Dyno Therapeutics

19:55 - Kelsic's process of validating the problem of AAV gene delivery and deciding to found a company

24:36 - Leveraging resources like Harvard, the Wyss Institute, and Lab Central in Dyno's early days

28:17 - Overview of AAV gene therapy and Dyno's machine learning-guided approach to engineering improved capsids

38:17 - Kelsic's perspective on partnerships and Dyno's collaborations with industry leaders

41:02 - Kelsic's vision for the future of Dyno and the potential impact of gene therapy

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Peter Barrett discussed his career journey, from starting in a technical role at Perkin Elmer to co-founding Celera Genomics and being part of the team that first sequenced the human genome. He then transitioned to venture capital, joining Atlas Venture, where he has focused on building and investing in innovative therapeutic and drug discovery companies. He shared insights on Atlas' approach, including their focus on targeted, therapeutics-only funds, their emphasis on diligence and de-risking early stage science, and their willingness to celebrate failures and redeploy talented founders. He also discussed Atlas' strategy of identifying platform technologies with broad applicability, like the cell therapy platform at Obsidian Therapeutics. He gives tips to founders to celebrate failures to learn from them and the importance of honesty and transparency rather than “faking it ‘til you make it”

02:42 - Peter discusses lessons from his early career at Perkin Elmer and transitioning from a technical to business role

07:57 - Peter talks about co-founding Celera Genomics and the experience of sequencing the human genome

14:41 - Peter describes his transition from Celera to venture capital at Atlas Venture

18:03 - Peter discusses learning about the drug development process and relying on expertise when making investment decisions

21:09 - Peter emphasizes the importance of "celebrating failures" and making informed decisions to avoid wasting time

26:37 - Peter explains Atlas Venture's investment strategy and approach during market downturns

29:30 - Peter discusses identifying platform technologies and de-risking early stage science

41:07 - Peter provides advice for entrepreneurs and reflects on balancing career and personal life

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• Jake Becraft, the co-founder and CEO of Strand Therapeutics, discusses his journey from pursuing a PhD in chemical engineering and synthetic biology at MIT to starting a biotech company focused on developing programmable mRNA therapeutics.
• At MIT, he worked on developing nanoparticles for DNA delivery and became interested in the challenges of mRNA delivery and therapeutic index. This led him to co-found Strand to engineer mRNA to amplify its signal in target cells while degrading quickly in non-target cells.
• Becraft discusses the importance of finding mentors and advisors, like his PhD advisor Ron Weiss, to help navigate starting a company as a graduate student. He emphasizes the need for more formalized programs and funding to support scientists in translating their research.
• Key skills he recommends for scientists interested in the business side include strong communication, the ability to build coalitions, and understanding the principles and goals that drive you rather than just pursuing a specific career path.

The Vagina Business, by Dr Marina Gerner, covers key issues in women's health and the novel solutions in development to address them. The book has already been getting attention with grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and The Society of Authors. Kirkus Reviews has praised the book as "energetic, thoroughly engaging reading" and emphasized its potential to improve women's health outcomes worldwide. It has also been recommended as a must-read business book by the Financial Times.

As a journalist, Marina has written about books and arts, as well as finance and tech for over a decade. Her range of expertise has led to Marina being called "a Renaissance woman of the modern age." ​Marina has won several awards and written for The Economist, Jewish Chronicle, Guardian, Financial Times, Wired, the Times Literary Supplement, The Times, and the Wall Street Journal. She has been a contributing editor at The Sunday Times Raconteur, the i newspaper and MoneyWeek.

Before that she was a Staff Writer at Money Observer, where she wrote a column called “Marina’s Imaginary Millions.”​ She is an Adjunct Professor of Commerce & Culture at the NYU Stern School of Business (on their London campus) and she has a PhD from the London School of Economics, which was funded by merit-based scholarships.​

Show Notes:

• 00:00 Dr. Gerner discusses her background as a refugee from Ukraine and how that has influenced her journalism and focus on women's health innovation.
• 02:40 Dr.Gerner explains how her dual backgrounds in journalism and academia prepared her to write "The Vagina Business" and the challenges she faced with the provocative title.
• 08:24 Dr. Gerner describes the specific events and stories that inspired her to write the book, including learning about gender differences in heart attack symptoms and the lack of innovation in women's health.
• 14:18 Discussion of the business case and broader societal benefits of investing more in women's health innovation.
• 16:53 Dr. Gerner talks about uncovering taboos around women's health issues and the need to challenge normalized biases and pain tolerance for women.
• 21:01 Examination of the gaps in sex-disaggregated research and sex education, and the role the femtech industry can play in addressing these issues.
• 25:38 Exploration of how a family-integrated approach to women's health, as seen in the Saathealth app example, could be applied more broadly, and the importance of engaging men as allies in the women's health movement.

00:53 Michael discusses his background and inspirations for pursuing an intersectional career in biotech investing and film-making
6:24 Michael shares about taking time away from college to backpack in places like Fiji and New Zealand, and how that impacted his personal growth 12:43 Michael reflects on his experience at Pear Therapeutics, including lessons learned about business model risk and bridging different teams
16:26 Michael discusses how his Pear experience influenced his approach to investing in tech bio companies at Gold/Silver VC
19:49 Michael talks about starting a new fund, TRX Capital, and the focus areas they will be investing in
21:54 Michael shares his perspective on the importance of storytelling in entrepreneurship and investing, and provides tips for effective storytelling

In this episode, Anastasia Janas interviews Leo Grady, founder and CEO of Jona. With over 20 years in AI and healthcare, Leo has made a profound impact on the field, including leading the development of the first FDA-approved AI system in pathology at Paige.AI. Together, they dive into the journey that led him to create Jona, a company focused on using AI to analyze the gut microbiome for personalized health insights.

Leo shares his thoughts on AI's role in healthcare today, from emerging trends to its transformative potential in improving patient outcomes. Drawing on his own experience building Jona, he offers practical advice for those looking to enter healthcare AI, touching on the unique challenges and opportunities in biotech. With over 100 peer-reviewed papers and 300 patents to his name, Leo’s contributions to AI-driven healthcare are significant. This episode is packed with insights and inspiration for anyone interested in the future of healthcare innovation!

Episode Notes:

• Leo's background and experiences in the medical AI space [00:00]
• Founding of Jona: personal story [03:30]
• Science behind Jona [07:30]
• AI in healthcare: ethical considerations, problems & potential [29:30]
• Potential of AI in medical practice: case study with Paige.AI [36:00]
• Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs [42:30]

In this episode, Sam Kessel and Anastasia Janas interview Luke Timmerman, an award-winning biotech journalist and founder of the Timmerman Report, as well as host of The Long Run Podcast. They explore Luke's non-traditional background, his curiosity, and his openness to learning, which shaped his journey to becoming a prominent figure in the biotech space. Luke shares insights into his career, discussing his book Hood, the founding of the Timmerman Report, and his podcast. He also offers his perspective on the key qualities of biotech founders and VCs, the importance of diversity, and how to unlock individuals' full potential. Additionally, Luke discusses his passion for mountaineering and how he combined it with his work, creating the Timmerman Traverse, a series of fundraising expeditions that have raised over $12M for causes such as cancer, poverty, and sickle cell disease.

Episode Notes:

2:05 Luke's upbringing and early influences

5:40 Path to journalism and early career after university

10:45 Transition to biotech journalism and key lessons

16:00 Book “Hood” 

20:55 Founding the Timmerman Report

25:40 Launching The Long Run podcast

30:05 Future projects outlook

32:00 Traits of a successful biotech founder 

37:05 Role of VCs in biotech innovation

40:05 Luke's perspective on AI in drug discovery

45:50 Launching the Timmerman Traverse, blending passion for mountaineering, biotech journalism and philanthropy

52:00 The importance of diversity and strategies to promote it