In this early-January episode, we slow things down, and reflect...

Today’s episode is a replay from the Raising Biotech archive — a conversation originally recorded in November 2023 with eGenesis, a company working at the frontier of xenotransplantation, or transplanting genetically modified animal organs into humans.

At the time, xenotransplantation sat somewhere between science fiction and early clinical reality. Advances in gene editing had made once-implausible biology feel suddenly within reach. But major questions around rejection, durability, ethics, and clinical scalability remained.

This episode is presented as a time capsule — a chance to revisit what we thought mattered in late 2023, what we knew and didn’t yet know, and how slowly and incrementally frontier biotech stories tend to unfold.

Before the replay, Surani shares a short reflection on why it’s worth listening back now. And at the end of the episode, Surani briefly outlines key milestones that have occurred since the original recording, including clinical progress and financing updates.

Original recording date: November 2023
Intro & postscript recorded: January 2026

For any comments, questions or feedback you can connect directly with ⁠⁠⁠Surani Fernando⁠⁠⁠ on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this episode, we dive into one of the most universal aesthetic concerns on the planet: pattern hair loss. Despite affecting more than 80 million people in the US and over a billion globally, innovations in treatment have barely moved in decades. Veradermics is aiming to change that with an extended release formulation of oral minoxidil (the same active ingredient in Rogaine), designed to improve efficacy while avoiding the cardiac safety issues that limit current oral off-label use.

Surani speaks with Dr Reid Waldman, dermatologist turned biotech founder and CEO of Veradermics, about his unusual path from the clinic to company building. Reid shares the origins of the company, key insights from treating hair loss patients, the scientific and market rationale behind the extended release approach, fundraising milestones, and the company's progress through Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials.

Surani also speaks with Julie Hoggatt, Senior Principal at InThought, for an external lens to discuss how dermatologists are viewing the early data and the drug's potential path to an approval, launch and commercial success.

Timestamps

00:01 – Introduction: the scale of pattern hair loss, emotional and social impact, and why innovation has stalled

02:30 – Reid’s elevator pitch on Veradermics and the extended release oral minoxidil program

06:30 – Reid’s story: accelerated education, dermatology training, and the clinical insight that sparked the company

09:30 – First funding support and shifting focus toward hair loss

12:30 – Fundraising: Series A to Series B to Series C and how investors evaluated a young founder CEO

15:30 – Why current off-label use of oral minoxidil falls short and the scientific rationale for an optimized extended release version

17:30 – Phase 2 male data: "striking" early hair count signals, patient reported outcomes, and safety observations

20:00 – The blinded retrospective photo analysis shown at EADV and what it suggests about early response

22:45 – Expert analyst Julie Hoggatt from InThought joins: how dermatologists are interpreting the data and what matters heading into Phase 3

26:00 – Female patients and dosing: hypertrichosis, tolerability concerns, and why female data will be important

29:00 – Pricing, access, willingness to pay, and how Veradermics could fit into the aesthetics market

31:00 – Competitive landscape: Pelage, market differentiation, and long-term positioning

34:00 – Veradermics pipeline beyond hair loss and future possibilities of an M&A, IPO or partnerships to grow.

For initial press released data and photos, click here

For any comments, questions or feedback you can connect directly with ⁠⁠Surani Fernando⁠⁠ on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this special on-the-ground episode of Raising Biotech, Surani takes you inside BIO-Europe 2025 in Vienna — the dealmaking, the caffeine, and the cautious optimism shaping Europe’s biotech landscape right now.

Over three packed days, 6,000+ attendees from more than 60 countries gathered to broker partnerships, court investors, and debate what’s next for the industry. Surani attended panels, spoke with companies, investors and experts on the ground, and gives her observations and analysis.

This episode includes a special conversation with Patrik Frei, CEO and Founder of Venture Valuation AG — who shares insights on valuations, investor behaviour, and why Europe might quietly be regaining its strategic importance.

In this episode:

Music featured in this episode: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” (I. Allegro) and “Rondo alla Turca” (Turkish March).

Both recordings are in the public domain, courtesy of GregorQuendel

In this episode, we dive into ReproNovo’s “trash to treasure” biotech story. Founded in Switzerland in 2021, the company is reimagining reproductive medicine, one of the most underserved areas in biotech, by reviving overlooked and discarded assets. Earlier this year, ReproNovo raised a $65M Series A from a syndicate of esteemed European investors to advance programs in male infertility, embryo implantation, and adenomyosis.

CEO Jean Marie Duval reflects on her unconventional path from patent attorney to biotech CEO, why she and her co-founders put their own capital on the line, and how they convinced investors to back them without fresh data. We also talk about the unique hurdles of drug development in fertility, the challenge of designing and powering clinical trials, and why the next two years will be pivotal for ReproNovo to prove its vision of revival and hopes for a successful exit.

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction

02:00 – Jean Marie’s elevator pitch on ReproNovo

03:00 – Pipeline overview: RPN-001 and RPN-002, from Novartis/Mereo and ObsEva

06:00 – Jean Marie’s career journey: from biomedical engineer to patent attorney to pharma exec and biotech CEO

07:30 – Founding story: bootstrapping, co-founders, and the first in-license

10:00 – The 18-month grind: capital risk, grit, and courage

12:00 – Bringing in M Ventures and building the Series A syndicate

15:00 – Convincing investors in an under-served field

19:00 – Asset history: male infertility data signals, IVF trial failures, and fresh strategies

21:30 – Embryo implantation and adenomyosis: unmet need and opportunity

22:00 – Clinical trial plans: Phase II timelines, endpoints, and design challenges

26:30 – Safety vs efficacy: the importance of balancing risk in women’s health trials

28:30 – Trial recruitment and patient motivation

30:00 – Looking ahead: pivotal studies, Series B or big pharma exit

For any comments, questions or feedback you can connect directly with ⁠⁠Surani Fernando⁠⁠ on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this episode, we look at AltruBio’s Cinderella story. While the company officially launched in 2020, its roots go back more than 20 years with a rich immunology pipeline stuck in “academic-style experiments.” On the brink of bankruptcy, a team of executives — including Dr. Judy Chou — stepped in to reboot the company, which has since raised nearly $300M.

Judy reflects on her journey from med school in Taiwan to Ivy League colleges and senior roles at AbbVie and Bayer before taking the leap into biotech leadership. We talk about AltruBio’s bold pivot into autoimmune disease, how Judy successfully convinced investors to save a sinking ship, her IPO visions for the company, and her mission to keep patients the priority. With Phase IIa ulcerative colitis data expected later this year, the question remains: will this Cinderella story endure?

Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction
02:00 – Judy’s journey: From to Ivy League and Big pharma all the way to biotech CEO
08:00 – Rebooting AltruBio: AB Genomics, rebrand, and pivot
13:00 – Near-bankruptcy and the $63M Series A lifeline
18:00 – Tough pipeline decisions: cutting staff, keeping one trial alive
19:00 – GVHD data: survival benefit from 28 days to 180+ days
20:00 – Building mode: second-generation antibody ALTB-268
22:00 – Fundraising in tough markets and the $225M Series B
25:00 – The unmet need in UC and promise of ALTB-268
28:00 – Expansion potential beyond UC: dermatology, rheumatology, GVHD
30:00 – Future outlook: IPO, partnerships, and Judy’s patient-first philosophy

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

This episode of Raising Biotech takes a different turn — not just the story of a biotech, but of a partnership. Steve Butts, CEO of Arrivo BioVentures, and Dr. Dave Adair, Co‑Founder and Managing Partner of Solas BioVentures, have built ten companies together over nearly two decades.

From Steve's first shaky startup pitch to Dave in San Francisco to major exits and a novel company‑building model, Surani explores their individual paths, their serendipitous meeting that kicked it all off, and the lessons they’ve learned along the way right up to their current venture, Arrivo BioVentures, which has raised over $100 million to be the first to tackle female depression.

Timestamps:

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this episode, we go inside the creation of Xaira Therapeutics — the biotech startup that raised over a billion dollars at launch without a product or clinical data.

Speaking with Vik Bajaj, CEO and co-founder of Foresite Labs (and one of the people behind Xaira’s creation), Surani explores how Xaira’s approach could redefine biotech company building, why it’s different from typical AI hype, and what makes it such a bold bet.

We follow Vik’s journey from academia to Google to Grail, and then into biotech investing with Foresite Labs, uncovering how a unique incubator model led to Xaira’s launch. From the big idea to the billion-dollar financing, we unpack what’s really happening behind the headlines.

Timestamps:

00:00 – Introduction: Why Xaira’s billion-dollar launch matters

01:00 – Vik Bajaj’s journey from academia to Google and Grail

04:00 – Moving from big tech to biotech: lessons and perspective

06:00 – Founding Foresite Labs and its unique model for biotech incubation

08:00 – Why data generation is key in biotech AI

09:00 – Foresite’s approach: building data, tools, and teams from scratch

11:00 – The origins of Xaira: ideation, science, and assembling the team

13:00 – Bringing in David Baker’s advanced protein design technology

16:00 – Early team building and leveraging Grail and Illumina networks

17:00 – Xaira’s $1B+ fundraising: why it happened and what it means

20:00 – Why Xaira needed so much capital up front

21:30 – What separates Xaira from other AI drug discovery companies

22:30 – The ambition to build a foundation model of the cell (GPT for biology)

23:00 – De novo design: creating antibodies from scratch

24:30 – Building products and platforms in parallel — not sequentially

26:00 – Where Xaira is today and Foresite’s ongoing role

27:00 – Vik’s vision for success: timelines and goals for Xaira

28:00 – Reflections: Can Xaira’s model really change how biotech is built?

29:00 – Outro: What to watch next, and how to support the podcast

For any comments, questions, feedback or suggestions you can connect directly with ⁠⁠Surani Fernando⁠⁠ on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this bonus episode, Surani shares an honest update on what’s been happening behind the scenes at Raising Biotech, why Season 3 took longer than planned, and what to expect going forward. From reflections on building the podcast solo to plans for the future, it’s a candid check-in for listeners who’ve been waiting patiently — and a thank you to everyone who’s supported the journey so far.

Support Raising Biotech via the Patreon Page.

In this episode of Raising Biotech, Surani finally delves into the scary zone of cancer with German biotech iOmx. The company has raised a total of EUR 115 million (Series A and B) since its inception in 2016 and is hoping to take immuno-oncology drug development to new heights. CEO Apollon Papadimitriou joins the podcast to speak about iOmx's unique mission with its iOTarg platform at the front and center, while scientific founder Professor Phillip Beckhove from the Regensburg Center of Interventional Immunology (RCI), also joins the conversation to take us back to iOmx's origins in the lab and what led his team to produce some groundbreaking research -- tackling tumor immune evasion -- which attracted heavy-hitter investors before the company was born. Apollon gives us details on ongoing clinical trials, detailed insight into some early and surprising efficacy signals coming out of the Phase I, and plans to initiate proof of concept (PoC) studies in various cancer indications. He also sheds more insight into imminent fundraising plans and potentially pulling the IPO trigger within the next two years. Jared Holz, Healthcare Equity Strategist at Mizuho also joins the podcast to give an outsider's take on iOmx's mission from a unique investor community lens. He discusses current gaps in the market, the potential attractiveness of iOmx pipeline and likely investor appetite should iOmx deliver compelling PoC datasets.

Timestamps:

00:35 - Partner segment: Mindgram.ai

01:05 - CEO Apollon outlines iOmx's mission to level-up the field of immuno-oncology with its iOTarg platform

05:24 - Going back to iOTarg's origins with Professor Phillip Beckhove and tackling tumor resistance

08:55 - Presentation at AACR 2015 drew investor and pharma interest and led to €40 million Series A

11:04 - Early days of iOmx, Apollon's background and decision to join the company

13:47 - Animal data and biomarker drive investor interest

18:40 - Progress with lead product OMX407 in Phase I trials and surprising early efficacy signals

24:12 - Jared Holz gives his outside take on iOmx's potential amidst crowded and challenged IO landscape

26:50 - iOmx's near-term plans for Series C and potential IPO within 2 years

28:00 - Future strategic predictions and company visions for the future

This episode is partnered with Mindgram.ai, a research tool powered by AI to better serve the biopharma community. Listeners of the Raising Biotech podcast are able to get an exclusive free trial of Mindgram via this link, using the code: raisingbiotech24

For any comments, questions, feedback or suggestions you can connect directly with Surani Fernando on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Title music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)

In this episode of Raising Biotech, Surani delves into the world of CNS and Parkinson's disease with Cerevance. CEO Craig Thompson joins the podcast to speak about Cerevance's unique mission and use of its NETSseq platform to develop more targeted precision medicines for CNS diseases, particularly targeting the GPR6 receptor in Parkinson's disease. He speaks about the company's origins, its unique financing journey (close to $200 million since inception), what drove him to join during the company's growth phase, plans for upcoming clinical trials as well as a potential near-term IPO. Expert neurologist Dr Karl Kieburtz, the founder of advisory firm Clintrex and Professor in Neurology at the University of Rochester Medical School gives us his take on the general Parkinson's unmet need and Cerevance's unique mission to go beyond targeting the dopaminergic pathway. As a company advisor, Karl has a good understanding of the NETSseq platform and how targeting GPR6 might make a meaningful difference for Parkinsons' patients, but he also illustrates what challenges Cerevance will have to carefully navigate to avoid a crowded Parkinson's graveyard.

Timestamps:

00:35 - Partner segment: Mindgram.ai

01:05 - Background on Cerevance's work in Parkinson's disease with its proprietary NETSseq platform

05:48 - Going beyond targeting the dopamine pathway to the GPR6 receptor - releasing the "break" on movement.

07:00 - Cerevance's origin story - Brad Margus and creating NETSeq with scientists from Rockefeller University

08:00 - Initial fundraising journey, CEO transition in growth phase and strategic financing for an eventual IPO

12:50 - Convincing investors on a intriguing yet scary CNS space riddled with failures

16:40 - CNS expert Dr Karl Kieburtz explains why Parkinson's is such a tough disease to treat and the original Levadopa breakthrough

18:50 - Scientific thesis of going beyond the dopaminergic pathway to tackle the GPR6 receptor

21:35 - Cerevance's clinical trial plans for CVN424 as a monotherapy and combination therapy with standard of care

24:13 - Navigating the many challenges associated with conducting a Parkinson's disease clinical trial

26:02 - Pricing considerations and benchmarks for "off-time" and non-motor improvement for successful reimbursement

29:45 - Cerevance's eventual wish to IPO and potential inflection points to pull the trigger

31:20 - Future visions for the company in 5 years time

This episode is partnered with Mindgram.ai, a research tool powered by AI to better serve the biopharma community. Listeners of the Raising Biotech podcast are able to get an exclusive free trial of Mindgram via this link, using the code: raisingbiotech24

For any comments, questions, feedback or suggestions you can connect directly with Surani Fernando on LinkedIn or email: [email protected]

Music composed by: Yrii Semchyshyn (Coma Media)