Raising Health

The holy grail of company building is finding product-market fit. But what most people don’t tell you is that once you’ve found it, product-market fit brings its own set of challenges, particularly when it comes to scaling rapidly and hiring the right executives at the right time. Drawing from their extensive experiences, a16z cofounder Ben Horowitz and Databricks cofounder and CEO Ali Ghodsi sit...

When Greg started out in science, he heard other researchers referring to certain targets as “undruggable.” In response, he’s devoted his life to drugging the undruggable, cofounding the field of chemical biology along the way. After a robust career founding multiple biotechs and serving as the cofounder, chairman, and CEO of FogPharma, he is the newest venture partner at a16z Bio + Health. Join G...

After his own health scare, Jeffrey got obsessed with how MRIs work—and decided that they were too unscientific to really track human health over time. In response, he built a new kind of imaging, creating a “digital twin” that can be tracked over time. And if health can be tracked over time, in theory it could eventually become as forecastable as the weather. Join Jeffrey and Vijay as they talk a...

AI has the potential to save the world — that’s the thesis of Marc’s most recent article, linked below. This episode was recorded right after Marc published his article, live from a16z Bio + Health’s first summit. Join Marc and Vijay as they talk about how AI can save the world, and where it can go wrong. Additional reading: Why AI Will Save the World   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. Se...

AI is not just a sci-fi concept anymore; it's being woven into the fabric of healthcare, revolutionizing everything from research to patient care. It has the potential to create more streamlined and efficient processes. The challenge now is how we adapt and regulate this ever-evolving technology, while ensuring safety and trust. Amy Abernethy, former Principal Deputy Commissioner at the FDA and no...

In this episode, taken from a live a16z event, Bio + Health general partner Vineeta Agarwala moderates a panel of UCSF faculty founders, including Michelle Arkin, Jimmie Ye, and Natalia Jura (full bios below). Together, they discuss fundraising, the decision to stay in or leave  academia after founding a company, and their tips for managing the IP process.  Michelle Arkin is a professor of pharmac...

Today’s episode is with Mark Cuban, founder of multiple businesses, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, one of the sharks on Shark Tank, and cofounder of the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. He is joined by Vijay Pande, founding partner of a16z Bio + Health.  Together, they talk market forces in healthcare, the importance of trust to patients, and Mark’s ideas to tackle the Gordian knot that is Ameri...

Today’s episode is a cross-post with the a16z podcast. It features founders—Chris Severn, Florian Otto, Andrew Adams, Jade Chan, Jimmy Chen, and Fay Rotenberg—chatting with a16z podcast host Steph Smith, about how they're trying to reinvent the healthcare system, using fintech. Additional reading: https://a16z.com/healthcare-meets-fintech/ https://a16z.com/2023/02/07/healthtech-x-fintechs-biggest-...

Today’s episode is with Greg Meyers, EVP and Chief Digital and Technology Officer at Bristol Myers Squibb (or BMS). He is joined by a16z Bio + Health general partner Jorge Conde. Together, they talk about how AI could transform drug discovery and development at a large biopharma company—and how a company might have to adapt to harness AI; modalities they’re excited about; and Greg’s do’s and don’t...

Healthcare payments are difficult, confusing, and opaque. But Julie and David discuss the ways that technology could change that for the better, and where they see the greatest opportunity for founders to solve big challenges. Additional reading: https://a16z.com/healthcare-meets-fintech/ https://a16z.com/2023/02/07/healthtech-x-fintechs-biggest-prize/ https://a16z.com/2022/06/01/payvidors-unbundl...

In this episode, a16z Bio + Health investment partner Becky Pferdehirt chats with Robbie Majzner, an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at Stanford, and co-founder of Link Cell Therapies. Together, they discuss Robbie's recent paper published in Nature . The paper outlines a new approach to develop logic gated intracellular network, or LINK CAR T cells, as...

Today’s episode is with Magi Richani, founder and CEO of Nobell Foods. She is joined by a16z Bio + Health general partner Vijay Pande. Together, they talk about the details of engineering plants to create the future of food, why Nobell started with soybeans to produce their cheese, and her dream of finding a cheese pizza—with Nobell cheese—at any pizza shop across the country. Hosted by Simplecast...

This is a crossover episode with The Bioverge Podcast, hosted by Neil Littman. Neil is joined by Vineeta Agarwala, general partner at a16z Bio + Health. Together, they chat about Vineeta's dual role as a clinician and investor, the adoption curve of digital therapeutics, how Vineeta thinks about platforms and a modular, engineering-driven approach to biotech, and much more. Hosted by Simplecast, a...

Today’s episode is with a16z’s American Dynamism team: Katherine Boyle and David Ulevitch. Katherine is a general partner focused on national security, aerospace and defense, public safety, housing, education, and industrials. David is a general partner focused on companies promoting American dynamism, as well as enterprise and SaaS companies. They are joined by a16z Bio + Health general partner V...

Today’s episode is with Sean Duffy, cofounder and CEO of Omada Health. He is joined by a16z Bio + Health general partner Julie Yoo and investment partner Jay Rughani. Together, they talk about Sean’s three rules of partnerships, how Omada plans for large-scale implementation, and how Sean thinks about structuring the economic model of the partnership. This episode was recorded as part of our resea...

This week, we’re releasing two episodes about all things channel partnerships. Today’s episode is with Florian Otto, cofounder and CEO of Cedar. He is joined by a16z Bio + Health general partner Julie Yoo.  In today’s episode, Florian and Julie talk about how Cedar began engaging with channel partners, what happens when things go wrong, and how the Cedar team is structured to implement and nurture...

In this episode, Daphne Koller, founder and CEO of insitro—as well as the co-founder of Coursera, a MacArthur Award winner, and a former professor in the department of computer science at Stanford University—chats with a16z Bio + Health founding partner Vijay Pande.  Together, they talk about Daphne’s career journey, how Daphne thinks about the last few decades of progress in AI, and how insitro l...

Today marks the reboot of our journal club series, so you can look forward to seeing these episodes as part of our regular feed.  This episode is a scientific deep dive on recent research published by Ben Cravatt, Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the Scripps Research Institute and co-founder of a diverse suite of chemoproteomic companies such as Vividion and Belharra Therapeutics, and G...

In this episode, a16z Bio + Health general partner Julie Yoo chats with Bassett Healthcare Network president and CEO Tommy Ibrahim. Together, they talk about Tommy's journey from practicing physician to health system leader, the challenges facing rural healthcare today, and how Tommy thinks about partnering and integrating with digital health entrepreneurs as a hospital executive. Hosted by Simple...

In this episode from the archives, originally published in February 2021, Jennifer Doudna, who won the 2020 Nobel Prize for the co-discovery of CRISPR-Cas9 with Emmanuelle Charpentier, chats with Vijay Pande, general partner at a16z Bio + Health. Together, they discuss  the future of biology, whether discovery itself can be engineered and industrialized, and how biology can shape our future. Hoste...

In this episode, Jorge Conde, general partner at a16z Bio + Health, talks with Josh Mandel-Brehm, founding CEO of CAMP4. Together, they talk about how CAMP4 focuses on regulatory RNA (and what that means), how Josh thinks about platform companies, and what he’s learned as the founding CEO of the company. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collec...

In today's episode, Sam Corcos, CEO and cofounder of Levels Health, chats with Vijay Pande, general partner at a16z Bio + Health, about how Sam cofounded Levels, how to decide who becomes CEO if you have multiple cofounders, Levels’ approach to company culture and meetings, and how Sam thinks about the complicated world of healthcare regulations. Additional reading: Levels' public investor updates...

In this episode, Kurt Adams, CEO of Optum Financial, chats with Daisy Wolf, investment partner for a16z Bio + Health, and Marc Andrusko, investment partner for a16z focused on fintech, about Optum Financial, how consumers might interact with fintech while seeking care or participating in healthy behaviors, and what a fintech-integrated version of the healthcare experience could look like. Addition...

In this episode, Joe Lonsdale, founder and managing partner at 8VC, joins Vijay Pande, founding partner of a16z Bio + Health, and Olivia Webb, editorial lead. Together, we talk about what factors lead to innovation vs stagnation, monopoly power in healthcare, and policy ideas to incentivize change, growth, and dynamism. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information...

In this episode, Julie Yoo, general partner, and Jay Rughani, investment partner at a16z Bio + Health, talk to Kate Ryder, founder and CEO of Maven; Amanda Rees, cofounder and CEO of Bold Health; and Bill Porter, VP and GM, International, of Butterfly Network, about their B2C2B go-to-market motion. This episode was originally recorded in late 2021, but it's still really relevant to builders, espec...