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by Sofia Sanchez

Biofounders

A Life Sciences , Science and Business podcast

#70 in Life Sciences · 🇳🇿
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About the show

Early stage biotech founders, hackers, CEOs and investors. www.biofoundershq.com

Newest episodes

Inja Radman - Cofounder and CSO @ New Culture

47 min

Biofounders Podcast: Fun conversations with the founders, investors, researchers and artists you haven’t heard of | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this Biofounders episode, I interview Inja Radman, a scientist who went from studying optogenetics in worms to cofounding and leading R&D at New Culture, a company that is commercializing new dairy proteins made through precision fermentation. Timestamps * [0:00 - 1:24] Trailer * [2:13 - 6:12] – Academic background and early research journey * [6:51 - 10:08] – Climate obsession and the origin of New Culture * [10:57 - 14:21] – Leaving academia to co-found a company * [15:14 - 19:53] – Assessing economic feasibility at Indie Bio * [20:20 - 24:28] – Building the right technical team as CSO * [24:28 - 30:47] – From engineered strain to finished cheese product * [34:02 - 37:34] – Bioreactors and the real cost driver: downstream processing * [38:00 - 39:42] – Contract manufacturing vs. building in-house * [41:00 - 45:25] – Nutritional value and product positioning * [46:00 - end] – Advice for future bio founders This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Grace Chuang - Partner & Creative Director at Oscillator

53 min

Biofounders: Fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this Biofounders episode: * [0:00 - 1:53] Introduction by Sofia * [2:29] Grace introduces herself * [8:14] Turning a design hobby into a job in biotech branding * [11:21] How branding in biotech has changed in the last decade * [16:08] Common fears around branding and storytelling in biotech founders * [18:48] B2B vs B2C biotech branding fears and needs * [22:35] Bringing dinosaurs to the NYSE for Ginkgo’s IPO * [24:21] How AI has changed our jobs * [29:09] Questions relevant in today’s biotech ecosystem * [34:10] Going from biotech tools to products that people want * [35:30] How do you build a brand when everybody’s doing the same thing? * [38:25] New formats for biotech branding and a secret new project * [41:28] What makes Oscillator unique * [43:38] Making things that don’t suck and branding as a means to make science work * [47:33] Working with Christina Agapakis and finding her own voice * [51:29] Rituals to stay creative Grace is a chemical engineer turned creative director, or as we would both agree, a Biocreative. At Ginkgo Bioworks, she orchestrated branding for the company’s IPO, which was the largest of a biotech startup ever, and she cofounded GROW, a magazine about the societal aspects of biotechnology, which circulated more than 15,000 copies around the world. She was the first scientist to be recognized by Young Guns as one of the top creatives under 30 in the world, and her work has been recognized by the Art Directors Club, Webbys, Society of Publication Designers, and PRINT. In 2022, she started doing freelance work for companies like Bitbiome and Solugen, and last year, she joined forces with Christina Agapakis to start Oscillator, an agency that crafts new stories where biology and technology meet. This epis...

Alexander Titus - NSCEB Commissioner

49 min

As part of his work in the public sector, Alexander Titus is one of the Commissioners at the United States National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology. He previously worked at the DoD as the Head of Biotechnology Strategy, and helped launch PPPs BioMADE and armi. With too many interests to count, Titus was also part of early-stage startups like Colossal Biosciences; he worked at Google’s healthcare and life sciences division, and cofounded Dauntless Ventures and Decycle Bio. We’ve followed each other since he ran the BioXYZ publication in 2020. Today, he writes about the intersection of science, technology, policy, futures, and fiction through The Connected Ideas Project. His first science fiction novel, Synthetic Eden is now available. In this Biofounders episode: 0:00-3:53 Introduction 3:55 Public and private sector in biotech innovation 10:11 Questions the Pentagon asking about biotech during the pandemic 13:13 Building credibility as biotechnologists through different storytelling 17:49 Lessons from Bioeconomy.XYZ, The Connected Ideas Project, and Synthetic Eden 21:05 How to think about genetically engineered human embryos 27:11 Increasing our reliance on AI and robotics-powered biotechnology 32:35 US-China biotechnological race 36:20 Metrics to assess the progress of biotech 40:37 Lessons from the last few years of the biotech industry and analogies to the tech industry 46:09 How Titus personally decides what to work on at a given time Biofounders: fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Similar podcasts

All episodes

Inja Radman - Cofounder and CSO @ New Culture

47 min

Biofounders Podcast: Fun conversations with the founders, investors, researchers and artists you haven’t heard of | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this Biofounders episode, I interview Inja Radman, a scientist who went from studying optogenetics in worms to cofounding and leading R&D at New Culture, a company that is commercializing new dairy proteins made through precision fermentation. Timestamps * [0:00 - 1:24] Trailer * [2:13 - 6:12] – Academic background and early research journey * [6:51 - 10:08] – Climate obsession and the origin of New Culture * [10:57 - 14:21] – Leaving academia to co-found a company * [15:14 - 19:53] – Assessing economic feasibility at Indie Bio * [20:20 - 24:28] – Building the right technical team as CSO * [24:28 - 30:47] – From engineered strain to finished cheese product * [34:02 - 37:34] – Bioreactors and the real cost driver: downstream processing * [38:00 - 39:42] – Contract manufacturing vs. building in-house * [41:00 - 45:25] – Nutritional value and product positioning * [46:00 - end] – Advice for future bio founders This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Grace Chuang - Partner & Creative Director at Oscillator

53 min

Biofounders: Fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this Biofounders episode: * [0:00 - 1:53] Introduction by Sofia * [2:29] Grace introduces herself * [8:14] Turning a design hobby into a job in biotech branding * [11:21] How branding in biotech has changed in the last decade * [16:08] Common fears around branding and storytelling in biotech founders * [18:48] B2B vs B2C biotech branding fears and needs * [22:35] Bringing dinosaurs to the NYSE for Ginkgo’s IPO * [24:21] How AI has changed our jobs * [29:09] Questions relevant in today’s biotech ecosystem * [34:10] Going from biotech tools to products that people want * [35:30] How do you build a brand when everybody’s doing the same thing? * [38:25] New formats for biotech branding and a secret new project * [41:28] What makes Oscillator unique * [43:38] Making things that don’t suck and branding as a means to make science work * [47:33] Working with Christina Agapakis and finding her own voice * [51:29] Rituals to stay creative Grace is a chemical engineer turned creative director, or as we would both agree, a Biocreative. At Ginkgo Bioworks, she orchestrated branding for the company’s IPO, which was the largest of a biotech startup ever, and she cofounded GROW, a magazine about the societal aspects of biotechnology, which circulated more than 15,000 copies around the world. She was the first scientist to be recognized by Young Guns as one of the top creatives under 30 in the world, and her work has been recognized by the Art Directors Club, Webbys, Society of Publication Designers, and PRINT. In 2022, she started doing freelance work for companies like Bitbiome and Solugen, and last year, she joined forces with Christina Agapakis to start Oscillator, an agency that crafts new stories where biology and technology meet. This epis...

Alexander Titus - NSCEB Commissioner

49 min

As part of his work in the public sector, Alexander Titus is one of the Commissioners at the United States National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology. He previously worked at the DoD as the Head of Biotechnology Strategy, and helped launch PPPs BioMADE and armi. With too many interests to count, Titus was also part of early-stage startups like Colossal Biosciences; he worked at Google’s healthcare and life sciences division, and cofounded Dauntless Ventures and Decycle Bio. We’ve followed each other since he ran the BioXYZ publication in 2020. Today, he writes about the intersection of science, technology, policy, futures, and fiction through The Connected Ideas Project. His first science fiction novel, Synthetic Eden is now available. In this Biofounders episode: 0:00-3:53 Introduction 3:55 Public and private sector in biotech innovation 10:11 Questions the Pentagon asking about biotech during the pandemic 13:13 Building credibility as biotechnologists through different storytelling 17:49 Lessons from Bioeconomy.XYZ, The Connected Ideas Project, and Synthetic Eden 21:05 How to think about genetically engineered human embryos 27:11 Increasing our reliance on AI and robotics-powered biotechnology 32:35 US-China biotechnological race 36:20 Metrics to assess the progress of biotech 40:37 Lessons from the last few years of the biotech industry and analogies to the tech industry 46:09 How Titus personally decides what to work on at a given time Biofounders: fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Inside a Plant Engineering Lab

19 min

In the year 2000, Michael Elowitz and Stanislas Leibler published the first paper on a genetic circuit built in E. coli. A couple of years later, the first mammalian synthetic circuits emerged with work from Fussenegger in human cell lines. Genetic engineers remained blind to plants until the late 2010s, when similar genetic engineering efforts started in the autotrophs. Long time scales, heterogeneous cell types, and high polyploidy are only some of the technical challenges of plant engineering. Meanwhile, plants account for 80% of all biomass on Earth, they are our carbon capture machines by excellence, the original source of most pharmaceuticals in the world, and the basis of all of agriculture. For startups and academic labs alike, the fact that plant (genetic) engineering lags ~15 years behind other organisms means that the ocean is blue, and a green field lies ahead. When engineered, plants can serve as low-cost, natural bioreactors for pharmaceutical and cosmetic ingredients, for textiles and functional food… they can fix more carbon from the air and produce more food and, in some weird cases, they can even be turned into digital data storage devices and metal mining machines. The following is a Biopunk Tour of the Brophy Lab in Stanford, where they are building new genetic engineering tools for plants and their associated microbes, towards a sustainable future. Their PI, Jennifer Brophy, famously built the first logic gates in plants during her postdoc, setting a precedent for the Brophytes 🌱. PhD student Vivian Zhong and Postdoc Alexander Borowsky were kind enough to answer lots of questions about their current work, challenges and opportunities in industrial plant genetic engineering, under- and over-hyped plant biotechnologies, and societal challenges of engineered plants. * 00:00 — Inside the plant incubator * 00:36 — Vivian’s work to overcome random DNA integration * 01:30 — Alex’s work controlling gene expression in plants * 02:10 — The Brophy Lab’s m...

Michael Florea - Cofounder & CEO of Olden Labs

45 min

Michael Florea is the co-founder and CEO of Olden Labs, an SF-based company developing and shipping AI smart and low cost cages for animal studies. Michael has had a long term vision to advance human longevity since he was a teenager. After his PhD in biology at Harvard Medical School, where he worked on whole body gene delivery systems, he choose to accelerate biotechnology by building Olden Labs. In just one month after launching, they’ve got over 100 labs, companies, and institutions to sign up for their cages. As of February 2025, they’ve shipped close to 40. In this episode, we talk about the state of longevity, the state of the art in animal monitoring, how the Olden Labs smart cage works (watch YouTube video below for that), why animals are still relevant in a world of virtual biology and organoids, how the data they collect can further improve research, and my personal take on longevity. Biofounders: fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram | Support the podcast with a 5-star rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Timestamps 02:18 Upbringing and early interest in biology and longevity as a teen 7:15 PhD work in whole body gene delivery 13:02 State of the art and challenges of animal cages in research 18:40 Design of Olden Labs cages 27:40 Other companies in the space and vision 29:14 Cloud Lab vision for the next 5-10 years 31:58 Why we still need animals despite advancements in organoids and simulations 35:19 Capturing data for biomedical research 37:02 Longevity questions and discussion Subscribe to weekly updates on the latest biotech outside trad pharma and never miss a Biofounders episode! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Arye Lipman - Cofounder & COO @ Biosphere

34 min

Arye Lipman cofounded Biosphere, a startup building UV-sterilized bioreactors that replace the 1950’s steam reactors to reduce biomanufacturing costs. Previously, he built a network of biotech labs for startups like Minicircle and invested in some of them. Biosphere came out of stealth this year through a USD $8.8 M seed round led by Lowercarbon Capital and VXI Capital, with participation from Founders Fund. Biofounders: fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram | Support the podcast by sharing a rating on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this episode we cover: * Upbringing in the California countryside and falling for biology (0:00 - 2:44) * Early start in biotech as part of the founding team of an antibodies company (2:52 - 03:35) * Why he built a network of biotech labs and why it wasn’t a good business (03:52 - 8:52) * Investing in biotech through Mars Bio (8:52 - 10:26) * Deep dives into the biomanufacturing industry and why sterility is a key constrain in costs (10:27 - 13:41) * Superstition in biotechnology and redesigning the bioreactor from the ground up (13:50 - 15:59) * Scaling up to move the needle (16:02 - 16:45) * How UV sterilization and cleaning compare to steam (16:54 - 18:00) * Testing performance in plastic and other materials (18:12 - 19:00) * Building both biotech software and hardware to generate feedback loops (19:14 - 21:09) * What the DoD is doing with biotech and how Biosphere is working with them (21:26 - 24:28) * Why they’re not too concerned about downstream innovation (24:51 - 26:40) * The Biopunk vision of industrialized photosynthesis and the realistic future of taking over the chemical industry with industrialized biology (26:41 - 29:32) * Especially if you’re young, take the risk. Join a biotech startup or found your own! (30:00 - 31:16) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to b...

Onye Ahanotu - Founder of Ikenga Wines

37 min

Onye Ahanotu—scientist, artist, scholar, home chef, material architect, and founder of Ikenga Wines, a company reimagining palm wine, a drink with thousands of years of cultural depth in the global south. He previously worked at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and remains an active board member of the Counter Culture Lab in Oakland. In today’s episode, we talk about: * How his former interdisciplinary experiences shaped Ikenga wines * How palm wine is actually made and supply chain resilience * Balancing traditional with progressive knowledge in the wine industry * Why he was using GPT tech before ChatGPT was launched * Brand positioning and business model for Ikenga * Why he’s choosing to build his brand slow and methodically, as opposed to going the “build fast and break things” route * Challenges approaching foodtech VCs with a truly unconventional product * Owning a small niche vs going for a well tested and huge market (Blue Ocean strategy) Biofounders: fun conversations with unconventional founders, biohackers, CEOs, and investors you haven’t met yet, but definitely should | Follow along on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram → You can best support Biofounders by rating us on Spotify ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Timestamps * 00:00–01:58 Intro: BioFounders, Biopunk, and Onye Ahanotu * 02:01–03:50 Interdisciplinary Product & Brand Thinking * 03:51–06:59 Founding Origins & Prior Experience * 7:00–09:00 Challenges of Palm Wine Commercialization * 09:01–12:00 From Biology to Wine Chemistry * 12:01–14:00 Supply Chain Resilience * 14:01–15:30 Sensory Design & Winemaking Philosophy * 15:31–16:55 On Using GPT Before ChatGPT * 17:46–20:22 Brand Positioning & Target Customers * 20:23–21:49 Business Model: DTC, Preorders, Wine Club * 21:50–24:14 Social Media & Brand Expression * 24:15–26:30 Line between engineered and natural wine * 26:33–28:16 Why Not Make Grape Wine? * 28:18–31:14 Climate Change as an Opportunity for Leapfrogging * 31:15–35:09 VC Challenges & Blue...

Nick Desnoyer - The Plant Engineer

44 min

By day, Nick is a postdoctoral researcher in the group of Ueli Grossniklaus at the University of Zürich. By night, he is a flower engineer and artist on a mission to communicate the beauty of plant science to the public through educational projects… you may recognize him as the guy who genetically engineered Arabidopsis flowers and leaves to have different colors and shapes. In this episode: * Where do you draw the line between art and science? * Can we build flower design LLMs? * Could we engineer interactive, responsive, moving plants? * How can we epigenetically reprogram plants? * What future plant biotech tool would you be the most blown away by? * What are Nick’s next steps in his educational projects? * What are the craziest ideas to make with plant engineering? * How is biology different to other expression media? Follow the Biopunk: * Sofia’s X * Biopunk on X * Sofia’s LinkedIn * Biopunk on LinkedIn Thanks for following the Biopunk! Please share this episode, there will be new ones every week ;) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Gigi Minsky - Cofounder and CEO @ Senseory Plants

30 min

Senseory is a startup creating plants that bring natural, effervescent aromas indoors. This is an interview with Gigi Minsky, the co-founder and CEO. We talk about her previous experience at companies like Ginkgo Bioworks, her business plan for Senseory, working with a plant biohacker, and the product's most important technical specs (what they can say for now). Enjoy my intro on why I think companies Senseory are the future of consumer biotechnology. Thanks to Elliot Roth for kindly providing the space to record and thanks to Gigi for helping me experience the biotech they’re creating :-) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Guillermo Herrera-Arcos - PhD student @ MIT Media Lab

1 hr 3 min

Checa el trabajo más reciente de Memo en esta nota. Suscríbete gratis a Biofounders y Biopunk para conectarte al primer mundo de la biotecnología mediante newsletters, videos y podcasts. Sigue a Sofía en Twitter o LinkedIn para platicar sobre startups, biotecnología, o filosofía. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Darko Mandich - Cofounder & CEO @MeliBio

35 min

Episode highlights in 5-min video * MeliBio started as a precision fermentation company yet pivoted towards a plant-based product to avoid remaining as a “garage science project” for too long, without fulfilling their mission. * Darko experienced first-hand the hurdles of building not one but two manufacturing facilities in his previous jobs. He’s now outsourcing that for MeliBio and focusing on building a great team that improves the science and the brand for their customers. * Coming from a place of scarcity of resources, Darko is the only biofounder I’ve heard talk about the importance of using venture capital as a launchpad, which means making the right decisions to reach profitability. PS: HAPPY 4th-year BIRTHDAY, MeliBio 🥳!! Looking forward to trying out Mellody on my pancakes very soon 🍯. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Biology for the rest of us

15 min

It’s 5:00AM in Toluca when Sofia Sanchez wakes up to the sound of her Westclox, ready for another day as a business major. She drives to her hometown’s business school, listening to the radio, wondering what her professor’s reaction will be to the 76-page final report she wrote with the help of her beloved IBM Selectric, her worn-out Chartpak stencil, her family’s encyclopedia, and Mexico City’s IBM center for some calculations. She makes a stop at a phone call station to remind her teammate to correct the finger mistake on the cardboard they made about some ultra-innovative “personal computing” devices her uncle in the US once told her about. Not much more is to be said about Sofia Sanchez. April 1st, 2024 was just another day for a normal 20-year-old in a small town in Mexico. Thank Lick it’s April Fool’s! “How do the current and next thing get determined?” was the question that gave birth to this piece. Whether they’d be ideas, beliefs, fonts, or technologies, I’d been deeply curious to understand the nature of trends in our world. I wanted to know if there were principles for steering the world towards a particular direction, and whether I could use those principles to change the way biotechnology changes the world. For the past few weeks, I’ve explored J.C.R Licklider’s visionary mind, Everett Roger’s theory on the Diffusion of Innovations, René Girard’s Theory of Mimetic Desire, and the desires of GenZ influencers on Instagram. This piece is a third batch of thoughts at the intersection of culture and biology, this time focusing on how biology can influence modern culture as much as modern culture influences biology. The Presynbiotech Era The habitants of the terrifying alternate universe I described in the very first paragraph, are firm believers that the future is merely what hasn’t happened yet but eventually will. To them, technology equals destiny and evolution is synonymous with inexorable. What we, in this universe made happen in 30 years, they might st...

Majo Durán - iGEM Costa Rica, Compound Foods y habilidades interdisciplinarias en la biotecnología (Español)

43 min

Majo es actual investigadora en UCSF. Es iGEMer de corazón, ayudó a empezar Compound Foods (alternativa sustentable para el café), y estudió en el TEC de Costa Rica. Me da mucho gusto que podamos compartir contigo sus fascinantes e inspiradoras experiencias! Mis links: * Twitter * LinkedIn * Substack (blog) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Matias Peire - Cofounder & CEO @GRIDX

40 min

Entrevista completa en YouTube Mi serie de artículos con GRIDX This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Evan Groover - Plant synthetic biologist @ UC Berkeley

51 min

Evan is a super fun and kind plant synthetic biologist from Berkeley whose work focuses on improving CO2 capture. Even beyond that, Evan is mindful and proactive about making SB safe and accessible to everyone through efforts like spreading this knowledge to people in Kenya! In this family friendly (jargon-free) conversation, we touch on relevant books, the craziest things he’s seen plants do, how he juggles between being a saxophonist and a plant synthetic biologist, how it’s like inside the IGI, and more! Feel free to share with friends and fam! ‘til next one,S🧠fia Last 20 minutes This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Li Lu Lam - CEO & cofounder @ Forma Foods

46 min

Li Lu es la CEO de Forma Foods, la primera empresa de carne cultivada en México, que ha reunido a los mejores expertos en ingeniería de tejidos, bioreactores, y ciencia de carne para ofrecer la proteína del futuro a millones de Mexicanos. Con inversión de Saya Bio, comenzaron con un prototipo a base de plantas y están a buscan transicionar pronto a un producto híbrido con células animales, para tener en un futuro carne al 100% como la conocemos hoy. En esta entrevista: * Por qué Li Lu dejó la industria energética y petrolera para cumplir un sueño de niña de crecer carne “en un árbol” * Cómo Saya Bio empezó a reunir al equipo de Forma e invirtieron en ellos * Impresión 3D de células en un laboratorio de investigación del Tec de Monterrey a la carne a base de plantas y futuros híbridos * Cómo conectar con un mercado a través de la creatividad, meticulosidad, y la identidad Mexicana * Las ideas más locas que pueden imaginar, y posiblemente crear, los meat designers * Consejos para futuros fundadores de empresas de biotecnología Episodios similares: * Yadira Tejeda - Cofundadora @ CellAgCanada * Cai Linton - CEO & Cofounder @ Multus Media * Alan Perlstein - CEO @ California Cultured This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Christina Agapakis - Creative director @ Ginkgo

55 min

In this episode: * What does it mean to be a creative director at a synthetic biology company? * Christina’s story in science * Why synbio is more mainstream than “we” think * Anecdotes of the GMO sticker * Skills and mindsets for synbio * What needs to change in order to grow an abundant future with synbio Links * Christina’s twitter * GROW magazine * Ginkgo Bioworks * Sofia’s Twitter This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Mark Belan - Scientific illustrator

48 min

Mark (@markbelan) holds a Bachelors in Arts & Science, a Masters in Geochemistry and Astrobiology, as well as a Masters in Biomedical communication. Before becoming a freelance scientific illustrator featured by Nature, he did research in astrobiology which could be useful to find life on other planets. In this episode, we dive into different aspects at the intersection of art and science: what they mean to him, finding balance between beauty and functionality, we briefly touch on neurodesign, and discuss thoughts on hot topics like AI-generated images and Comic Sans. Science communications and design shape the perspective of the general public around new research; I think it’s an essential skill for all of us to develop. I LOVED chatting with Mark about this, hope you enjoyed the episode too :) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Ignacio Vargas - Product head @ TurtleTree

48 min

TurtleTree es una startup de proteínas alternativas para productos lácteos en Singapore. Antes de unirse a ella en una etapa temprana, Nacho estudió y trabajó en el Tec de Monterrey y tuvo experiencia en Nestlé y Grupo Herdez en México. Espero que este episodio sea de especial ayuda para gente empezando una carrera en biotecnología, que busca alternativas de trabajo poco convencionales. * Te recomiendo otro episodio en Español: Ana Paula Acevedo sobre empezar una startup de biotecnología en la universidad. * Puedes checar más contenido de biotecnología en mi Substack y contactarme en Twitter o LinkedIn. * Recuerda que este episodio está disponible en mi canal de YouTube, Apple Podcasts y Spotify. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Victor Angel-Mosti - Fundador de omica.bio

38 min

Omica es un biobanco nacido en México, con la misión de traer medicina de precisión a América Latina. Previo a ello, Victor empezó MariMori, una empresa dedicada al descubrimiento de nuevos biomateriales. En este episodio, hablamos de los retos y oportunidades de los emprendimientos biotecnológicos en la región, así como la trayectoria de Victor desde estudiante de ingeniería biomédica en la universidad de Boston, hasta hoy. Si te interesa el bioemprendimiento, tal vez quieras checar mi artículo (pronto en Español): A call for the decentralization of (biotech) innovation. Puedes encontrarme en Twitter @Sofiasbio — hablemos de startups de biotec!! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Elliot Hershberg - Genomics PhD @Stanford, research analyst @NotBoring

38 min

Worship growth in the biological sense--Elliot Hershberg is best known for his Substack publication "The Century of Biology" where he shares insights on interesting preprints in the genomics field and recently thoughts on biotech through the VC lens too. He is currently studying a genomics PhD at Stanford university and is a research analyst at NotBoring, a media and venture capital firm that has invested in tech companies including Substack itself. In this episode: The biopunk vision Thoughts on the funding-publishing academia problem Elliot's research at Stanford The story behind the Century of Biology and where it's going next From academia to VC in the life sciences Thanks for listening and sharing! Find me on Twitter @SofiasBio for more bioengineering ;) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Christopher Reynolds - Founder and CEO @EdenBio

42 min

Christopher is the founder and CEO of EdenBio, a startup building a Machine Learning platform to help biotech startups have higher yields in precision fermentation. In this episode: How to face the recession as a biotech startup All about EdenBio Rock-paper-scissors in the biotech startup environment Why some biotechs scale better than others Will biology be predictable one day? Follow me on Twitter @SofiasBio for more biotech updates! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Irfan Tahir - New Harvest fellow and PhD biomaterials researcher

31 min

"Keep all of your fundamentals strong and for sure you'll find a place in cell ag". Irfan is currently a Ph.D. candidate and New Harvest Fellow at the Engineered Biomaterials Research Laboratory at the University of Vermont where he is tissue engineering cultured meat on plant-based scaffolds. In this episode: from mechanical engineer to tissue engineer Irfan's research in plant-based scaffolds fundamental vs applied research why plastic is so great that biomaterials haven't fully replaced it yet Find me on Twitter @Sofiasbio for more bio stories! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Subaita Rahman - Cofounder @NucleateDojo

33 min

"Talk to as many people as you can and don't be afraid to reach out. Naturally they'll become your mentors because they'll see you grow"--Subaita Rahman, cofounder of Nucleate Dojo and the Dojo House (the global community for biotech undergrads and the first-ever co-living house for young scientists). In this episode: Reverse-engineer your path to be a biotech founder The biotech environment in Toronto Why Subaita founded BioDojo (now Nuclete Dojo) with her friends Find me on Twitter @SofiasBio for more updates on what I'm building, creating, and learning. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Cai Linton - CEO & cofounder @ Multus Media

31 min

"You can work on incredibly interesting and difficult challenges, make money, and have a fulfilling career while improving people's lives and the planet's life. So what's stopping you from joining this movement?"--Cai Linton, CEO and cofounder of Multus Media, UK-based startup accelerated by IndieBio NY in 2020. In this OBio episode: Insights from Cai's previous work experience in academia research and at an IP law firm How Multus Media uses Machine Learning to optimize the development of their growth media Advice for aspiring biotech founders Find me on Twitter @SofiasBio for more biotech content. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Yadira Tejeda - Cofundadora @CellAgCanada

51 min

Yadira es una científica Mexicana que estudió su doctorado en inocuidad alimenticia en Canadá. Hace unos años, se adentró a la industria de agricultura celular y fundó Cell Ag Canada. Ahora es la directora de colaboraciones en New Harvest, una organización de agricultura celular, sin fines de lucro, reconocida internacionalmente. En este episodio: Breve introducción a la agricultura celular La historia de Yadira Retos en la industria Ideas locas Links mencionados en el episodio: Bistro In Vitro - menú de alimentos hechos a través de agricultura celular Self Made - queso hecho con bacterias del microbioma humano Bite Labs - carne de celebridades, hecha a través de agricultura celular This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Alan Perlstein - CEO @California Cultured

47 min

"Be more conscientious of how our buying choices could make people's lives better and impact the world"—Alan Perlstein, CEO and founder @CaCultured, @indbio SF21. In this OBio episode: Alan as a founder Lessons of a biotech CEO Patenting Ethics of cellAg This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Jake Wintermute - Synbio evangelist @Ginkgo

49 min

"Stay humble, biodesigners"—Jake Wintermute Jake is a synthetic biology teacher and researcher currently based at the CRI in Paris, France. Outside of studying antibiotics and the human microbiome, his interests range from wood as the perfect biomaterial, to making biotech more accessible. As I’m interested in scicomms, Jake’s charismatic tweets and synbio jokes really caught my attention. Plus, I couldn’t help my curiosity about his recent role as a synbio evangelist at Ginkgo ;) In this episode: elegance in science what the first-ever synbio evangelist does at Ginkgo Bioworks bringing biotech to the mainstream what makes a good scientist and a great biotech entrepreneur This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Zimri T. Hinshaw - The future of biomaterials @BuchaBio

47 min

Zimri is the CEO and founder of Bucha Bio, a biotech startup growing biomaterials using bacterial nanocellulose and plant-derived proteins. They were part of Indiebio, have raised over 250k, and are working on expanding their library of biopolymers. In this episode: Zimri’s story as a founder All about BuchaBio Scaling up a biomaterials startup This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Amy Li - Decoding Decoding the World

1 hr 20 min

IndieBio is the place where entrepreneurship meets science, founders from diverse backgrounds connect, and solutions to the world’s biggest problems come to life. Arvind Gupta is the founder of Indiebio and Po Branson is the managing director. They both wrote the most creative book I’ve ever read: Decoding the world, on the science of our future. In this episode: Why microbes are so cool The scientific method applied in daily life Other main takeaways from the book Follow Amy on Twitter @Amyli0 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Dariia Dantseva - Biohacking @Yanelab

30 min

"Take responsibility and do biohacking"—Dariia Dantseva Dariia is a biohacker and founder of the Yanelab—the first and only DIY bio lab in Ukraine. She has been part of the CDC biohacker group, a trio of biohackers who, among other things, created a DIY corona vaccine for themselves (and it worked!). Her experience includes building a microinjection machine, genetically modifying bacteria in all sorts of ways, culturing human cells, and even creating a battle between bacteria and human immune cells ;)) In this episode: Her story as a biohacker A summer @TheOdin The spiritual side of science This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Rahul Rana - Author of Making moonshots

32 min

"So many things to be solved, so many things to be done, LET'S GO MAKE SOME MOONSHOTS"—Rahul Rana Raul is a GenZ VC, author of "Making Moonshots". During 2020, he worked at Lux capital, a fund investing in highly disruptive science and technology ventures, namely, moonshots. His mission is to incubate as many moonshot startups as possible as an investor and builder. Rahul is also interested in improving the academia system, bridging science fiction and science fact, as well as working in policies that will solve big problems in the world. In this episode: · Rahul's story pre and post Making Moonshots · Playing the great online game · Knowing enough about a subject without being an expert · Rethinking the scientific journal industry This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Ana Paula Acevedo - Stevia hecha con hongos

46 min

"Si queremos llegar a los objetivos de la agenda 2030 y tener algo sustentable, la biotecnología es la respuesta" Ana Paula es cofundadora de RebX, una startup que busca crear el futuro de los endulzantes de Stevia aprovechando residuos agroindustriales. Ella ha sido parte de comunidades como iGEM, Allbiotech, y ha fundado su propio congreso de biotecnología, llamado Biogénesis. Junto con Andrés Moreno y Rodrigo Ferrer, el equipo está participando en la aceleradora de empresas de iGEM: EPiC! En este episodio: · La historia de Paula como bioemprendedora · Inspirarte de las patentes de otros y usarlo a tu favor · La importancia de hacer comunidad This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Steven ten Holder - Longevity startup @YC

52 min

"We're standing in the shoulders of giants who are making it more likely that within our lifetimes we will be able to live longer"—Steven ten Holder  @steventen is the co-founder of Acorn Biolabs, a company that stores your stem cells so you can have a brighter future. Before that, he studied a bioengineering undergraduate degree at Waterloo, where he also participated in iGEM, the synthetic biology competition. He then joined YC, grew his startup, and now a director @theksociety, a world-class program for future innovators. In this episode: · The iGEM experience · What has made Acorn a successful biotech startup · The YC experience for a biotech startup This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Race Against the Clock ft. Seth Peachey

41 min

"We wanted to move away from startup competitions and instead throw a massive welcome party to the bio-economy for everyone"--Seth @sethpeachey is a former startup founder, bitcoin super-enthusiast, and has a lot of experience in business development, especially in SaaS used for employee engagement. He is currently co-leading Race Against the Clock (RAC), an event organized by Synbiobeta and sponsored by Ginkgo Bioworks that aims to bring together future biotech founders who are (indeed) racing against the climate change clock. In this episode: · What Race Against the Clock is about · The importance of networking in the biotech industry · Cultivating mentorship relationships This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

This is OBio

12 min

"It's time to grow" In this episode: · CEOs of unicorn companies, researchers from around the world, biohackers, and founders · Balance between going technical, understanding, and making biotech truly exciting · Academia and industry · Cell ag, synbio, longevity, gene editing, AI, bioinformatics, quantum biology, and more This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Nanotechnology in a nutshell ft. Carlos Sanchez

32 min

Carlitos is a 16-year-old nanotech researcher and climate action enthusiast. In this episode: Craziest applications How to get started on nanotech Carlos' projects Get in touch with Carlos Twitter LinkedIn This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Startups and the unconventional path ft. Sigil Wen

42 min

Sigil is the CEO and co-founder of BitSwap, a platform to buy and sell Bitclout for Etherum, raising funds at a 10 million dollar valuation! In this episode: What taking the unconventional path means Learning how to learn The future of Bitclout Startups vs projects Living the "startup life" Get in touch with Sigil: Website Twitter LinkedIn ------------------------------ Follow us @2045Podcast on Twitter & Instagram too! :) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Taking climate action with biotech ft. Adara Hagman

39 min

Adara is a creative disruptor on a mission create a more sustainable future through design and circular systems. In this episode: Sustainability in a nutshell The sustainable future of food Why fashion is a big problem (the way it's done today) Microbial fuel cells to create energy and clean water Advice for youth who want to help solve this problem Resources Adara recommends Work on climate Ellen Macarthur foundation Circular design and biomimicry Connect with Adara LinkedIn Website Twitter @astro_adara This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Exponential biotechnology ft. Guido Putignano

43 min

Guido is the CEO of Yealthy: a startup fostering discoveries to enhance human potential through exponential technology. He is also a futurist, entrepreneur, and Chief Exponential Officer. In this episode: creating bioplastics with people from XPRIZE, quantum biology to cure diseases, using VR and blockchain for biotech research + Guido's top tips on leadership and productivity. Connect with Guido on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guido-putignano/ Follow him on Twitter @GuidoPutignano Follow the 2045 Podcast @2045Podcast on Instagram and Twitter This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

'Til the Heat Death of the Universe

47 min

Main takeaways from Ray Kurzweil's book: The Singularity is Near. In this episode - Why the podcast is called 2045 - Predictions for the XXI century - Why most futurists are wrong - The 3 revolutions: genomics, nanotechnology, robotics - How to thrive in the singularity This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

LightIR: detecting cancer with light ft. Aaryan Harshith

23 min

Aaryan is the founder of LightIR, a system to detect cancer during surgery. He is only 15 years old and he is an activator at The Knowledge Society. In this episode: How LightIR works Product development Patents for your inventions Being interested vs being committed to something Follow the podcast @2045Podcast on Twitter and Instagram. Follow Aaryan @AaryanHarshith on Twitter too! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Biohacking is not a crime #2 ft. Josiah Zayner

36 min

Josiah is a leader in biohacking, CEO and founder of The Odin (https://www.the-odin.com), a company that is democratizing bio engineering. In this episode: Cellular agriculture Mental models to innovate Why ideas are worthless Reverse engineering DNA with Machine Learning The future of biotech Follow us @2045Podcast on Twitter and Instagram :) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Jo Zayner - Biohacking is not a crime

30 min

CEO of the-odin.com, mad pirate king of biotech. Josiah Zayner is a leader in the biohacking movement. He has experience in modifying his gut microbiome, genetically modifying himself with CRISPR, creating a coronavirus vaccine, and culturing cells... all DIY and @ home! What you can learn from this episode How and why he started a biotech startup Why and how he started his biotech startup Why medicine continues to be primitive Outcomes of creating a coronavirus vaccine at home Follow Josiah on Twitter @4LOVofScience This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Blockchain & ML ft. Alishba Imran

32 min

From learning about blockchain, to how Machine Learning can be used to exponentially accelerate the testing of batteries, problem solving frameworks, and much more... Learn more about Alishba and reach out to her on her website: https://alishbaimran.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Drug discovery 101 ft. Seyone Chithrananda

37 min

Seyone is an 18-year old working at the intersection of machine learning and biochemistry, with an impressive background (including working for Fortune 500 companies and interning at a lab at the University of Toronto). 2045 is made for curious people who want to learn about the future, so previous knowledge is not required at all ;) Get in touch with Seyone! Personal website: https://seyonechithrananda.com/about LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/seyone-chithrananda-a5974915b/ Twitter: @SeyoneC This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Microfluidics and bio-nanotech #2 ft. Ivonne Lomelí

13 min

Check out the first episode to get more context. Feel free to check out Ivonne's YouTube channel as well: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClgPVl_yPDqMqbCv_xC2hfQ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Microfluidics and bio-nanotech #1 ft. Ivonne Lomelí

36 min

Microfluidics, synthetic biology, research, and startups. This is only half of the episode. Stay tuned for more! Reach out Ivonne @IvonneLomeliL on Twitter and Ivonne Lomeli on LinkedIn :) Follow @2045 Podcast on Instagram and Twitter for more! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Biocomputing #2 ft. Ammielle Wambo & Anna Heck

32 min

Check out Pt.1 if you haven't yet! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

Biocomputing #1 ft. Ammielle Wambo & Anna Heck

26 min

Anna Heck and Ammielle Wambo share with us everything they know about a mind-blowing technology between the worlds of tech and biology. Is this the end of computing as we know it? Connect with Anna! https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-heck-8310081b8/ Connect with Ammielle! https://www.linkedin.com/in/ammielle-wambo-becker/ Follow us @2045Podcast on Instagram and Twitter ;) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com/subscribe

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