Data in Biotech

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Paul Finn, Chief Scientific Officer at Oxford Drug Design, for a conversation on what it actually takes to find a drug molecule that works not just on paper but also in the lab, in the cell, and, ultimately, in the clinic. Paul brings four decades of experience across what became GSK, Pfizer, and a series of Oxford-area spinouts and...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Arvind Rao, Professor of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics at the University of Michigan, for a discussion on the gap between what biomedical AI can do and what it can reliably be trusted to do in clinical practice. Arvind's research sits at the intersection of computational oncology and AI governance and his lab works acros...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Sadegh Salehi, Director of Research and Principal Scientist at Overjet, to explore what rigorous model evaluation actually looks like when the stakes are clinical.  Overjet builds FDA-cleared vision models that detect and quantify dental disease across billions of X-ray images from thousands of practices - a data problem with a stag...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Jesse Johnson, founder of Merelogic, a software consulting firm specializing in data infrastructure for biotech organizations.  Jesse brings a rare perspective to the conversation: having built data systems at Google where engineers control the data collection function end to end, before moving into biotech, where the biology does w...

This week, we're delighted to be joined by Markus Gershater, Chief Scientific Officer and CoFounder of Synthace - a digital experiment platform built for high-performance life science R&D teams to help them run more powerful experiments and accelerate scientific progress.  Host Ross Katz speaks with Markus on what’s broken about: What’s broken about how laboratories across the globe run biolog...

This week, we're delighted to be joined by Michelle Wiest, Director of IVD Biostatistics at Freenome - a high-growth biotech company that creates tools to help prevent, detect, and treat disease. Host Ross Katz speaks with Michelle on the use of biostatistics in the field of diagnostics, what biases can corrupt diagnostic tests and how to catch them early, the different types of data sets that are...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Kevin Brown, co-founder of Standard BioModel, to explore one of the most ambitious projects in biomedical AI, building a multimodal foundation model that represents the full complexity of a patient across time.  Drawing on a career spanning brain-computer interfaces, computer-aided diagnosis at Siemens Healthineers, and oncology dat...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, Ross Katz sits down with Robert Abel, Chief Scientific Officer of the Platform at Schrödinger, to explore how physics-based computational modeling is transforming drug discovery.  Robert unpacks why machine learning alone isn't enough to navigate the vast complexity of chemical space - an estimated at 10⁶⁰ possible drug-like molecules - and how integrating atomi...

In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz sits down with Ben Locwin, Vice President at Reliant Life Sciences, to explore the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence in biotechnology.  Join us as we discuss why nearly every biotech claims to use AI but few actually do, examine successful applications like AlphaFold, and explore the challenges of implementing AI across drug developmen...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , Ross Katz sits down with Kyle Smith and Jacob Mayer from Aprecia Pharmaceuticals to explore how 3D printing is transforming pharmaceutical manufacturing. They dive into the unique binder jetting process, in-cavity printing, and how real-time data and automation are enabling agile, scalable, and precise drug production. Discover how Aprecia's approach is changin...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , host Ross Katz sits down with James Yoder, Founder and CEO of OpenBench, to unpack a radical new approach to early-stage drug discovery. James shares how OpenBench's "success-driven" model shifts risk away from biotech partners by only charging for validated hits. They dive deep into computational screening, molecular modeling, and the company's evolving tech s...

Brant Peterson, Vice President & Fellow at Valo Health, joins Data in Biotech to explore how his team leverages real-world data, genetic insights, and machine learning to de-risk drug discovery. From building causal DAGs to identifying patient subtypes in neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s, this episode dives deep into a patient-first, data-driven approach to biomedical innovation. Wh...

Ander Tallet, co-founder and COO of Dash Bio and CEO of DigitalRadius, joins Ross Katz to discuss transforming the traditional CRO model through automation, transparency, and productization. Drawing on deep experience from Moderna, Science Exchange, and his leadership roles in digital transformation, Ander shares how Dash Bio is slashing turnaround times, improving data quality, and simplifying pr...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , Ross Katz chats with Mitra Mosharraf, Chief Scientific Officer at HTD Biosystems, about how AI and machine learning are revolutionizing nanomedicine. They explore the use of AI in drug discovery, formulation, manufacturing, and clinical development, highlighting how data-driven strategies are improving safety, reducing costs, and enabling more personalized ther...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , Ross Katz chats with Jaidev Chakka, Principal Scientist at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, about how 3D bioprinting and AI are reshaping pharmaceutical manufacturing. They explore the development of custom scaffolds for tissue engineering, the integration of gene delivery systems, and how data-driven approaches are enabling smarter, more scala...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , Ross Katz sits down with Callie Celichowski and Isa Kupke from Veloxity Labs to discuss how their CRO leverages speed, precision, and innovation to support drug development. Learn how they use mass spectrometry, cloud-based infrastructure, and hands-on client partnerships to drive rapid, high-quality bioanalytical insights that support everything from preclinic...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , host Ross Katz sits down with Eshani Galermo, Staff Scientist at SCIEX, to explore the next generation of mass spectrometry in pharma and biopharma. Eshani explains how innovations like the ZenoTOF 8600 are redefining sensitivity, selectivity, and workflow efficiency in bioanalytical chemistry. Discover how high-resolution accurate mass (HRAM) systems are unloc...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , Ross Katz chats with Wesley Tatum, Principal Engineer at Serán BioScience, about the intricacies of formulating low-solubility drug products. They explore the science behind amorphous solid dispersions, how data informs formulation choices, and why balancing performance, manufacturability, and stability is critical in modern drug development. What you'll learn...

Dr. Anil Kane, Global Head of Technical & Scientific Affairs at Thermo Fisher Scientific, joins Ross Katz to discuss how AI, machine learning, and digital tools are reshaping drug development. From predictive modeling for formulation to digital manufacturing efficiencies, discover how data-driven approaches are reducing time, cost, and complexity in pharma innovation. What You'll Learn in This...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , host Ross Katz sits down with John Liberty, Senior Bioanalysis Technical Sales Consultant at Thermo Fisher Scientific. They dive deep into how Watson LIMS™ supports regulated bioanalysis workflows, the evolving role of lab automation, and how Connect Enterprise aims to unify biotech digital ecosystems. What you'll learn in this episode: >> Why Watson LIMS...

Discover how biotech and healthcare teams are fast-tracking research and development through AI and high-performance cloud infrastructure. Ross Katz sits down with Hugo Shi of Saturn Cloud and Ilya Burkov of Nebius to explore scalable, secure solutions for GPU-heavy AI workloads. From compliance to cost savings, this episode unpacks what it takes to innovate at scale in life sciences. What You'll...

Robin Rohm, CEO and Co-Founder of Apheris, joins Ross Katz to explore how federated learning is unlocking secure, cross-company collaboration in pharma. Discover how Apheris is enabling biopharma leaders to train cutting-edge co-folding models without sharing sensitive data, why AlphaFold 3 wasn’t enough, and what OpenFold 3 means for the future of AI in drug discovery. ​​ What You'll Learn in Thi...

What if biotech teams could automate the most information-intensive parts of bringing a drug to market? In this episode of Data in Biotech, host Ross Katz speaks with Convoke co-founders Alex Telford and Maged Ahmed about building an AI-native knowledge acquisition and curation system for biopharma. Learn how they're transforming clinical research, regulatory writing, and competitive intelligence...

Dr. Aliza Apple, VP of Catalyze360 AI/ML at Eli Lilly, joins Ross Katz to unveil TuneLab—a first-of-its-kind federated learning platform accelerating preclinical drug discovery. Learn how Lilly’s billion-dollar models are empowering early-stage biotechs, the science behind federated learning, and what this means for the future of pharmaceutical R&D. ​​ What You'll Learn in This Episode: >&g...

In this episode of Data in Biotech , host Ross Katz talks with Jesper Ryge, Director of Computational Biology at Merck Germany. Jesper shares his journey from neuroscience labs to leading computational teams, offering deep insights into disease modeling, target discovery, and multi-omics integration. Discover how AI and spatial transcriptomics are shaping the future of pharma R&D. ​​ What You'...