The Biotech Startups Podcast

Excedr

Welcome to The Biotech Startups Podcast by Excedr. Join us as we speak with first-time founders, experienced scientists, long-time company operators, serial entrepreneurs, and biotech investors about the challenges and triumphs of running a biotech startup. Gain actionable insight into navigating the ever-changing life sciences industry in each episode as we explore the business of science, from pre-seed to IPO. With your host, Jon Chee. read less

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🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 4 | Democratizing Access to Cells & the Evolution of bit.bio | A Financial Journey from Angel Investment to IPO | Building a Tech Bio Platform & Mark’s 10-Year Vision

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 4 | Democratizing Access to Cells & the Evolution of bit.bio | A Financial Journey from Angel Investment to IPO | Building a Tech Bio Platform & Mark’s 10-Year Vision

Part 4 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Mark Kotter, neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and CEO and founder of bit.bio. He has also been a professor and researcher at Cambridge for more than 15 years. Bit.bio is an award-winning human synthetic biology company providing human cells for research, drug discovery, and cell therapy. The company applies a patented safe harbor gene targeting approach to inducibly express transcription factor combinations that reprogram human-induced pluripotent stem cells into highly defined and mature human cell types. Bit.bio spun out of the University of Cambridge in 2016 and has since raised approximately $200 million from Arch Ventures, Foresight Capital, Milky Way, Charles River Laboratories, National Resilience, Tencent, and Pulau Capital, among others.

Episodes

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 4 | Democratizing Access to Cells & the Evolution of bit.bio | A Financial Journey from Angel Investment to IPO | Building a Tech Bio Platform & Mark’s 10-Year Vision

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 4 | Democratizing Access to Cells & the Evolution of bit.bio | A Financial Journey from Angel Investment to IPO | Building a Tech Bio Platform & Mark’s 10-Year Vision

Part 4 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Mark Kotter, neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and CEO and founder of bit.bio. He has also been a professor and researcher at Cambridge for more than 15 years. Bit.bio is an award-winning human synthetic biology company providing human cells for research, drug discovery, and cell therapy. The company applies a patented safe harbor gene targeting approach to inducibly express transcription factor combinations that reprogram human-induced pluripotent stem cells into highly defined and mature human cell types. Bit.bio spun out of the University of Cambridge in 2016 and has since raised approximately $200 million from Arch Ventures, Foresight Capital, Milky Way, Charles River Laboratories, National Resilience, Tencent, and Pulau Capital, among others.

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 3 | Success in Academia vs. Industry | Vital Things All Founders Should Know | The Importance of Company Culture | bit.bio & the Operating System of Life

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 3 | Success in Academia vs. Industry | Vital Things All Founders Should Know | The Importance of Company Culture | bit.bio & the Operating System of Life

Part 3 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Mark Kotter, neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and CEO and founder of bit.bio. Bit.bio is an award-winning human synthetic biology company providing human cells for research, drug discovery, and cell therapy. Bit.bio applies a patented safe harbor gene targeting approach to inducibly express transcription factor combinations that reprogram human-induced pluripotent stem cells into highly defined and mature human cell types. Bit.bio spun out of the University of Cambridge in 2016 and has since raised approximately $200 million from Arch Ventures, Foresight Capital, Milky Way, Charles River Laboratories, National Resilience, Tencent, and Pulau Capital, among others.

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 2 | Navigating Between the Clinical & Research Worlds | Lessons in Combining Different Fields | The Evolution of Cell Therapies | Transitioning from Academia to Entrepreneurship

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 2 | Navigating Between the Clinical & Research Worlds | Lessons in Combining Different Fields | The Evolution of Cell Therapies | Transitioning from Academia to Entrepreneurship

Part 2 of 4. My guest today is Mark Kotter, neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and CEO and Founder of bit.bio. Bit.bio is an award-winning human synthetic biology company providing human cells for research, drug discovery and cell therapy. Bit.bio applies a patented safe harbor gene-targeting approach to inducibly express transcription factor combinations that reprogram human induced pluripotent stem cells into highly defined and mature human cell types.

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 1 | Childhood Experiences in Different Countries | Overcoming Dyslexia & Developing Math Skills | Pivoting His Career to Science and Medicine | Facilitating Curiosity Via Research & Lab Experiences

🧬 Mark Kotter - bit.bio - Part 1 | Childhood Experiences in Different Countries | Overcoming Dyslexia & Developing Math Skills | Pivoting His Career to Science and Medicine | Facilitating Curiosity Via Research & Lab Experiences

Part 1 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Mark Kotter, neurosurgeon, stem cell biologist, and CEO and founder of bit.bio. Bit.bio is an award-winning human synthetic biology company providing human cells for research, drug discovery, and cell therapy. Bit.bio applies a patented safe harbor gene targeting approach to inducibly express transcription factor combinations that reprogram human-induced pluripotent stem cells into highly defined and mature human cell types. Bit.bio spun out of the University of Cambridge in 2016 and has since raised approximately $200 million from Arch Ventures, Foresight Capital, Milky Way, Charles River Laboratories, National Resilience, Tencent, and Pulau Capital, among others.

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 4 | Quin’s Journey Through Y Combinator | The Role of Empathy in Team Dynamics | Adapting in a Shifting Biotech Industry | Ochre Bio’s Fundraising Journey & Future Plans

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 4 | Quin’s Journey Through Y Combinator | The Role of Empathy in Team Dynamics | Adapting in a Shifting Biotech Industry | Ochre Bio’s Fundraising Journey & Future Plans

Part 4 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Quin Wills, CSO and Co-Founder of Ochre Bio, a pioneering biotechnology company developing RNA therapies for chronic liver diseases. Using a combination of genomic deep phenotyping, precision RNA medicine, and testing in live human donor livers, Ochre is developing therapies for liver health challenges ranging from increasing donor liver supply to reducing cirrhosis complications.

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 3 | University of Oxford’s Single Cell Consortium | The Pitfalls of Californian Entrepreneurships | Dinner Table Origins of Ochre Bio | The Laws that Guide Ochre Bio

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 3 | University of Oxford’s Single Cell Consortium | The Pitfalls of Californian Entrepreneurships | Dinner Table Origins of Ochre Bio | The Laws that Guide Ochre Bio

Part 3 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Quin Wills, CSO and Co-Founder of Ochre Bio, a pioneering biotechnology company developing RNA therapies for chronic liver diseases. Using a combination of genomic deep phenotyping, precision RNA medicine, and testing in live human donor livers, Ochre is developing therapies for liver health challenges ranging from increasing donor liver supply to reducing cirrhosis complications.

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 2 | Pursuing Dual Masters at Oxford & Cambridge | Moving from Genomics to RNA Research | Balancing Academia & Entrepreneurship | The Challenges of Product-Market Fit in Biotech

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 2 | Pursuing Dual Masters at Oxford & Cambridge | Moving from Genomics to RNA Research | Balancing Academia & Entrepreneurship | The Challenges of Product-Market Fit in Biotech

Part 2 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Quin Wills, CSO and Co-Founder of Ochre Bio, a pioneering biotechnology company developing RNA therapies for chronic liver diseases. Using a combination of genomic deep phenotyping, precision RNA medicine, and testing in live human donor livers, Ochre is developing therapies for liver health challenges ranging from increasing donor liver supply to reducing cirrhosis complications.

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 1 | Childhood Moments in Johannesburg | A Passion for Science Grows with an Evolving Society | Academic Experience in Biology and Genetics | Exposure to Bioinformatics and Big Data

🧬 Quin Wills - Ochre Bio - Part 1 | Childhood Moments in Johannesburg | A Passion for Science Grows with an Evolving Society | Academic Experience in Biology and Genetics | Exposure to Bioinformatics and Big Data

Part 1 of 4. My guest for this week’s episode is Quin Wills, CSO and Co-Founder of Ochre Bio, a pioneering biotechnology company developing RNA therapies for chronic liver diseases. Using a combination of genomic deep phenotyping, precision RNA medicine, and testing in live human donor livers, Ochre is developing therapies for liver health challenges ranging from increasing donor liver supply to reducing cirrhosis complications.

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 3 | Meeting His Co-Founder at Entrepreneur First | Importance of Sales to the Scientific Community | Disrupting the Petrochemical Industry | The Dark Horse of Biology, Synthetic Biology

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 3 | Meeting His Co-Founder at Entrepreneur First | Importance of Sales to the Scientific Community | Disrupting the Petrochemical Industry | The Dark Horse of Biology, Synthetic Biology

Part 3 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, providing highly stable and performant biocatalysts to enable profitable production of sustainable and biobased chemicals. Their 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.

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 2 | The Defensibility of Software Companies | Studying Econometrics at London Business School | Joining Entrepreneur First | Becoming a Biotech Startup CEO & Navigating the Startup Journey

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 2 | The Defensibility of Software Companies | Studying Econometrics at London Business School | Joining Entrepreneur First | Becoming a Biotech Startup CEO & Navigating the Startup Journey

Part 2 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, providing highly stable and performant biocatalysts to enable profitable production of sustainable and biobased chemicals. Their 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.

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 1 | How NYC Shaped a Love of Engineering | Benefitting from Great Diversity at Cooper Union | Experiences & Opportunities at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York | Impact of the Economy on Deep Tech

🧬 Grant Aarons - FabricNano - Part 1 | How NYC Shaped a Love of Engineering | Benefitting from Great Diversity at Cooper Union | Experiences & Opportunities at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York | Impact of the Economy on Deep Tech

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.

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 3 | Assurex’s Journey From Garage to GeneSight | Keeping a Team Together Through the M&A Process | Building a Diagnostics Company During Covid | What Sherlock & Netflix Have in Common

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 3 | Assurex’s Journey From Garage to GeneSight | Keeping a Team Together Through the M&A Process | Building a Diagnostics Company During Covid | What Sherlock & Netflix Have in Common

Part 3 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Bryan Dechairo, President, CEO, and Director at Sherlock Biosciences, an innovative biotech company that is enabling the democratization and decentralization of diagnostic testing to personalize healthcare and make an impact on global health.

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 2 | Transitioning From a Small Startup to Pfizer | Big Data's Role in Modern Genetics | Building & Leading Dynamic Teams | The Evolution of Personalized Medicine

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 2 | Transitioning From a Small Startup to Pfizer | Big Data's Role in Modern Genetics | Building & Leading Dynamic Teams | The Evolution of Personalized Medicine

Part 2 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Bryan Dechairo, President, CEO, and Director at Sherlock Biosciences, an innovative biotech company that is enabling the democratization and decentralization of diagnostic testing to personalize healthcare and make an impact on global health.

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 1 | A Love of Science Blossoming from a 10-Acre Hobby Farm | Experiencing Great Diversity at UC Berkeley | Growth & Enjoyment of Startups | Unexpected Travels to Pursue a Dream Overseas

🧬 Bryan Dechairo - Sherlock Biosciences - Part 1 | A Love of Science Blossoming from a 10-Acre Hobby Farm | Experiencing Great Diversity at UC Berkeley | Growth & Enjoyment of Startups | Unexpected Travels to Pursue a Dream Overseas

Part 1 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Bryan Dechairo, President, CEO, and Director at Sherlock Biosciences, an innovative biotech company that is enabling the democratization and decentralization of diagnostic testing to personalize healthcare and make an impact on global health. The Sherlock team and founders include engineering biology pioneers with world-leading expertise in CRISPR and synthetic biology, diagnostic industry veterans, and disease area authorities.

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 3 | Transitioning to Vizgen From Akoya | What is Spatial Genomics | The Importance of Genetic Mapping | How to Grow Your Company During Turbulent Times

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 3 | Transitioning to Vizgen From Akoya | What is Spatial Genomics | The Importance of Genetic Mapping | How to Grow Your Company During Turbulent Times

Part 3 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Terry Lo, President and CEO of Vizgen. Vizgen is developing and commercializing the next generation of genomics tools to expand on the capabilities of spatially resolved transcriptomics. Terry is a pioneer in the emerging Spatial Biology market, with a proven track record of driving exceptional growth across global life science organizations, including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Roche, Hologic, and PerkinElmer. In addition to his two decades of experience scaling and building multinational biopharma and diagnostic groups, he is also an expert in developing business strategies for novel, innovative products.

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 2 | Terry’s Move from Big Pharma to Diagnostics | Introduction to Spatial Biology | Navigating Regulatory & Reimbursement Challenges in Diagnostics | Balancing Multiple Roles in M&A Negotiations

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 2 | Terry’s Move from Big Pharma to Diagnostics | Introduction to Spatial Biology | Navigating Regulatory & Reimbursement Challenges in Diagnostics | Balancing Multiple Roles in M&A Negotiations

Part 2 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Terry Lo, President and CEO of Vizgen. Vizgen is developing and commercializing the next generation of genomics tools to expand on the capabilities of spatially resolved transcriptomic. Terry is a pioneer in the emerging Spatial Biology market, with a proven track record of driving exceptional growth across global life science organizations, including Bristol-Myers Squibb, Roche, Hologic, and PerkinElmer. In addition to his two decades of experience scaling and building multinational biopharma and diagnostic groups, he is also an expert in developing business strategies for novel, innovative products.

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 1 | Leveraging Passion for Science to Succeed in Finance | Sales Excellence as an Introvert Through Competition | Financial Modeling & Creating Proper Deal Structure | How Not To Be A Jack of All Trades

🧬 Terry Lo - Vizgen - Part 1 | Leveraging Passion for Science to Succeed in Finance | Sales Excellence as an Introvert Through Competition | Financial Modeling & Creating Proper Deal Structure | How Not To Be A Jack of All Trades

Part 1 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Terry Lo, President and CEO of Vizgen. Vizgen is developing and commercializing the next generation of genomics tools to expand on the capabilities of spatially resolved transcriptomics. Vizgen’s technology will aid the acceleration of biological research and discovery to advance human health

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 3 | Don’t Fake it ‘Til you Make It | Cleaning Your Corporate “Underwear” | Thielsen’s Investment Philosophy | The Critical Importance of Alignment

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 3 | Don’t Fake it ‘Til you Make It | Cleaning Your Corporate “Underwear” | Thielsen’s Investment Philosophy | The Critical Importance of Alignment

Part 3 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Mike Stadnisky, Managing Director of Thielsen Capital. Thielsen Capital is a seed-stage financing syndicate network bringing together life science investors, operators, and innovators to drive exceptional outcomes for founding teams, investors, and science.

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 2 | Transitioning from Academia to Business | Breaking Into Business Development | Finding Decision Makers & Champions | Navigating Partnerships & Strategy

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 2 | Transitioning from Academia to Business | Breaking Into Business Development | Finding Decision Makers & Champions | Navigating Partnerships & Strategy

Part 2 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Mike Stadnisky, Managing Director of Thielsen Capital. Thielsen Capital is a seed-stage financing syndicate network bringing together life science investors, operators, and innovators to drive exceptional outcomes for founding teams, investors, and science. Before Thielsen, Mike was the CEO of Phitonex, which Thermo Fisher acquired. He was also VP & GM of Informatics at BD Life Sciences and was the CEO of FlowJo before its acquisition by BD. He has also taught at MIT Sloan, authored 10 patents, and won the 2019 International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry Innovation Award.

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 1 | Familial Exposure to Business & Science at a Young Age | The Importance of “Care Before You Share” | Actively Managing Your Time | A PhD is a 10,000 Hour Degree

🧬 Mike Stadnisky - Thielsen Capital - Part 1 | Familial Exposure to Business & Science at a Young Age | The Importance of “Care Before You Share” | Actively Managing Your Time | A PhD is a 10,000 Hour Degree

Part 1 of 3. My guest for this week’s episode is Mike Stadnisky, Managing Director of Thielsen Capital. Thielsen Capital is a seed-stage financing syndicate network bringing together life science investors, operators, and innovators to drive exceptional outcomes for founding teams, investors, and science. Before Thielsen, Mike was the CEO of Phitonex, which Thermo Fisher acquired. He was also VP & GM of Informatics at BD Life Sciences and was the CEO of FlowJo before its acquisition by BD. He has also taught at MIT Sloan, authored 10 patents, and won the 2019 International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry Innovation Award.