Biofounders

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 would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com

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 episode is definitely for the biocreatives, whether you’re into branding or storytelling, or you’re simply curious to learn how it’s like to work at the intersection of art and science.
We talked about why branding can sometimes feel like therapy for scientists, fears of B2B and B2C biotech companies in their storytelling, what questions she would ask if she was leading a biotech magazine today, what biotech is missing these days, new branding formats, and the Oscillator ethos.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com

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 would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biofoundershq.com

>FASTA: weekly short reads of the global biotech ecosystem | Papers and patents, acquisitions and bankruptcies, biotech philosophy | Read in under 5 min | Follow on LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Instagram | Versión en Español
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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biopunk.life/subscribe

>FASTA: weekly short reads of the global biotech ecosystem | Papers and patents, acquisitions and bankruptcies, biotech philosophy | Read in under 5 min | Follow on LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Instagram! | Versión en Español
1. Astra Zeneca's at-home flue vaccine
2. Holmes' return
3. Influencer marketing for MRI scans
4. Novo x Replicate to target obesity with RNA
5. Believer meats update
6. Debut raises $20M for AI-designed beauty products
7. Glowing succulents
8. How China will win in BCIs
9. Brain stimulation bands for ADHD
Drop me a line on Twitter, LinkedIn or Substack @SofiasBio if you're interested in sponsoring more Biopunk content.


This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.biopunk.life/subscribe