Angel Invest Boston

The loss of two grandmothers to cancer propelled the daughter of an entrepreneurial family, Stephanie Culler, to a Ph.D. at Caltech and eventually to founding Persephone Microbiome. The VC-funded startup seeks to use gut bacteria to increase the success of cancer therapies. Persephone is also launching a probiotic for infants. Fascinating chat with a brilliant and articulate scientific founder. Highlights: ·       Sal Daher Introduces Stephanie Culler, Ph.D. Co-Founder of Persephone Microbiome ·       Persephone’s Business Model Is to Partner with Big Pharma to Develop Products Based on Its Platform ·       A Probiotic for Babies and Infants Is Coming in Early 2024 ·       Results from the Largest Study in the US of Infant Gut Microbiome Were Unsettling ·       Causes of Insufficiencies in the Gut Biome of Babies ·       “Upwards of 80% of cells of our immune system is in our gut.” ·       “...if you have a good microbiome, you're much more likely to respond to treatment.” ·       “We are wet lab and

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Fiza Shaukat founded Patient First.AI to make a difference in the healthcare systems in areas outside the US, such as Pakistan. She decided to create a platform which would allow patients to keep their healthcare data on a digital health card. This card would make the check-in process much faster and efficient.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights:   Sal Daher Introduces Fiza Shaukat "...How PatientFirst.AI is creating value for patients in places where right now there's no really easy way except for a wad of notes, a notebook, to keep track from visit to visit..." "... You see all the digitization happening over there, but why don't you have the same seamless experience within healthcare? That's what we want to enable with this digital health card. They'll go at a clinic and they scan their digital health card or a QR code, and as soon as they scan that in, they basically are checked in..."

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Yousof Naderi, professor at Northeastern University, is co-founder of DeepCharge, which is commercializing a new technology for charging batteries without cables. Intriguing look at how our lives could change as our devices are untethered.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights:   Sal Daher Introduces Yousof Naderi What DeepCharge is Solving "... In a case of the wireless charging, DeepCharge has selected and carefully from the beginning are working in a non-radiative technology, which means it's just coil by coil..." How DeepCharge Came About "... Also, there is this piece of sustainability that we can't go through all that, but we think that working with enterprise is really going to help us in our mission, also, to build a wire-free sustainable future..." "... Now, to go to the next level, we feel that this is a right timing to look at the strategic investor and partner that can stay, share

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   The deep experience Carolina Alarco has gained in the biotech industry now informs her work as an advisor to startups and as an angel investor. Her incisive contributions at Walnut Ventures made me eager to learn more about her story and approach.    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Carolina Alarco SYTE.bio and What it is Solving SYTE.bio Founders' Backgrounds Why Invest in SYTE.bio? Verbina Latinos in Bio "... I do want to say that Latinos in Bio will be raising awareness of some lack of representation of Latinos in the industry..." Carolina's Background "... I came up in the '90s. I came to study a graduate degree in International Management Harvard..." Advice to the Audience   Topics: angel investing strategies, biotech, discovering entrepreneurship

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Chris Selland works at Squark.AI, a startup company that uses AI and machine learning with customer data from things such as games and delivery services to help with predictions of delivery time.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Chris Selland Squark AI and What It's Solving "... All of those types of predictions is essentially what we do with the model. Now, we do have some other customers using us for other purposes. For instance, a very large package delivery firm is using us, actually, for prediction of packages that might be late..." "... This, I think, highlights really the importance of networking and staying in touch with people that you've worked with successfully. Make sure that you stay in touch with them because you will have that twice annual conversation that you might have with someone that you worked two companies back with..." Squark in the G

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Mike Nolan is an angel investor specializing in machine learning. As an officer in the Air Force he trained fighter pilots on F-15s. Mike relates the opportunities offered by graduate work at MIT both professionally and in investing. Fun chat with a buddy from Walnut and a listener to the podcast.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Mike Nolan Piction Health and Machine Learning "... we don't frequently see companies that are on the bleeding edge of the academic research or the bleeding edge of what's going on and the top presentations at conferences and so forth, but that's okay..." The Capabilities of Machine Learning In the Health Field Mike Nolan's Background "... You got to picture this beautiful country, the White Sands, New Mexico, close by, and so forth, and here's this chimp running away from this 10-mile-long sled track..." "... They're highly creative people in a highly regimented situation. They are people who think in very creative ways, and so forth, and they h

What founders and investors in startups need to know about the history of bankruns and how to protect themselves from them in the future. Here's the text on which my talk was based: Historical Perspective on SVB’s Failure for Investors & Founders  This is Sal Daher of the Angel Invest Boston podcast. Prior to becoming an investor in tech startups, I spent decades as a banker and trader involved with the distressed debt of countries. My experience came in handy recently in allowing me to reassure the startups in my portfolio with deposits at SVB that the FDIC would have no option but to make all depositors whole.  This piece aims to explain why the business model of banks and past government decisions precluded any other options. It also points to ways that founders can manage deposit risk. While it bothers me to see well-off people bailed out by the taxpayer, it is the necessary if imperfect course of action until we make structural changes to hold bank management more accountable. Why was I so certain i

A common sports injury left Rick McMullen incapacitated. His search for recovery led to the founding of Alleviate, a platform for physical therapy that is finding a lot of satisfied users. Thanks to Bryanne Leeming for introducing Rick to me. ·      Sal Daher Explains Why He Came Off the Sidelines to Invest in Alleviate ·      Rick McMullen, Co-Founder of Alleviate, Has the Ideal Background to Build Such a Company ·      Investing from a Self-Directed IRA Is High-Burden ·      The Problem Alleviate Is Solving ·      People Often Quit Before Physical Therapy Begins to Work ·      College Athletes Have a Lot of Support; When They Graduate There’s Nobody to Advise them on Recovering from Injuries ·      Alleviate Aims to Fill the Gap in the Delivery of Physical Therapy in the US ·      “With all of these conditions, you’ve got to do the work [to get better].” ·      Atomic Habits by James Clear ·      Alleviate Is Getting Traction ·      Alleviate’s Revenue Is Cash-Flow Positive ·      Product Retu

Fintech founder and angel Aidan Yeaw discusses building and investing in companies such as NODE40 and Unruly Studios. Great chat with a Walnut colleague. Highlights: ●      Sal Daher Introduces Aidan Yeaw ●      NODE40 ●      NODE40 Founding Story ●      Unruly Studios ●      "... The other component to it is that they're programming, but they're doing physical movement, physical exercise, large motor, physical exercise, running around, jumping up and down, and so forth because kids are too sedentary..." ●      How Aidan Came to Angel Investing ●      "... There's an ecosystem of small-scale venture capitalists that are growing, but the opportunities are so numerous, and the venture capitalists are so few, that they're an excess of opportunities, and a lack of funding, a lack of capacity to address this..." ●      CoolSculpting ●      Aidan's Career Journey in Fintech ●      Advice to the Audience Topics: fin tech, angel investing strategies, crypto Title: Founder & Angel

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Jay DeVivo’s angel investing ranges far from his insurance background. Here we discuss his involvement with startups such as Hubly Surgical, FleetNurse, and ApprentiScope. Fun chat with a lively guest.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights:   Sal Daher Introduces Jay DeVivo Hubly Surgical "... The advantage for Hubly is that doctors don't need to learn any new skills. It's pressing a button and in fact, there'll be a wider swath of clinicians that'll be able to use it than can use the current hand crank drill..." FleetNurse "... See, that's the thing with Angel investors. They may be new to Angel Investing, they're not new to business..." ApprentiScope How Jay DeVivo Came to Angel Investing "... It's really tough as an investor because you're not controlling things. You're along for the ride..." Jay's Career Journey "... Later on, I did some strategy work for larger companies as well. I starte

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Leen Kawas PhD, managing general partner at Propel Bio Partners, invests in life science companies such as Persephone Biosciences and Inherent Bio that promise immediate benefits for humanity. An uplifting chat with a dynamic VC and founder.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Leen Kawas What Propel Bio Partners Does Persephone Biosciences "... It's a pipeline for probiotics. They're starting with infant probiotics..." "... is anybody else working in the space of microbiome for babies? I haven't seen this..." Inherent Bio "... That's what Inherent is working on. They have identified an epigenetic signature that has the ability to better predict pregnancy outcome with men..." "...What is the profile of the kind of company that you find attractive in public markets now...?" Advice to the Audience Leen Kawas' Immigrant Story "... I want to tell entrepreneurs that are out t

Artist K. Woodman-Maynard discusses her gorgeous graphic novel interpretation of The Great Gatsby, the business of being a graphic artist and other engrossing matters. A delightfully different interview with a charming guest. Highlights include: Sal Introduces K. Woodman-Maynard, Creator of The Great Gatsby Graphic Novel “Color is gorgeous. The drawings are extremely expressive and interesting… the style of the period is displayed.” “…I think it's a good way to get people who might not otherwise read The Great Gatsby, the prose book, interested.” Cashflow from a Graphic Novel Is Inconsistent – Good to Have Steady Income from Graphic Design “…it was very painful for me to cut out specific lines, because I love those lines.” “I'm in complete agreement that you shouldn't dismiss somebody's whole life's work just based on certain philosophies. It's a balance.” “…it started by a very intense deep reading of the text…” “The whole book took about 1500 hours. That's actively time tracked hours.” “…the first thing fo

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Paul Hartung returns to talk about how to fund promising biotech and life science companies. He continues his conversation from his previous episode discussing his past experience with angel investing.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Paul Hartung "... Tell me the story of the first syndicated angel funding here in New England..." "'... there's a bunch of guys like you and me who've been successful in business, who are starting to get together.' He said, 'I just joined a group called Launchpad...'" "... I was CEO from the start and chairman, the president and secretary and [laughter] and all the offices..." "... The story here is that technologies are coming out of labs that are amazing, that are just astonishing, that could do things that couldn't be done 10 years ago by any stretch of the imagination. It's not one-off, they're multiplying. The cost of developing th

Sascha Deri and Lindsay Becker were interviewed by co-host Ben Littauer and me about the equity crowdfunding campaign this fascinating rocket company based in Brunswick, Maine is doing on WeFunder. They are targeting the a growing niche of sending small non-human payload into space. They are doing this with a non-toxic rocket fuel that is friendly to the envidonment. As of this writing they had already passed the million dollar mark at WeFunder. Check them out here: https://wefunder.com/blushiftaerospace

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   What if automation could help patients better follow their prescriptions? Natalie Park and Saumya Rawat met at MIT and are co-founders of Pharmesol which seeks to do this.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Martin Aboitiz Introduces Natalie Park and Saumya Rawat What Problem Pharmesol is Solving Pharmesol's Product and What it Does Pharmesol's Business Model Fee-For-Service vs. Value-Based Payments What Makes Pharmesol Marketable? "... I think ideal profile of a customer would be an integrated delivery network. What that means is that they have both a health system as well as a health plan..." Why Not AI? "... Pharmesol is a clinical automation company, and we're solving the problem of lack of clinical capacity and challenges with workforces at provider organizations..." "... These people, they know what they're talking about. They're trained. Graduate degree, they're a doctor of pharmacy.

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Finding a less noxious way to sterilize medical devices is the goal of CL Tian, winner as MedTech Innovator ’22. She founded Phiex to commercialize a sterilant that allows devices to sterilize themselves in the presence of light. Industry is listening to this compelling founder.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces CL Tian What Problem Phiex is Solving "... The moat is how do you deliver it without using capital equipment, with plastic packaging material as the delivery system, and how do you deliver it when it's activated by light? Our materials, once they see ambient light, start to release a sterilant..." “... I don't think I mentioned, but the amount of devices that are sterilized with this cancer-causing technology's half of the industry. That's 20 billion devices in the US a year. There's no alternative for most of those devices…” CL Tian's Background How CL Tian C

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Paul Hartung is an angel investor involved in the life sciences field. Here, he discusses how he helps build companies such as Leuko, Clairways, Verisense, and others in the MedTech space.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Paul Hartung Leuko Labs "... Something dark goes through, that's a red blood. Something light goes through, that's a white blood cell. Then they count that, and then it can come up with immunocompromised, or low leukocyte count, or normal leukocyte count..." Upcoming Milestones for Leuko Clairways "... That's an area of great interest for me is academic founders in the life sciences, taking their technology from the lab into the clinic, or into the market. It requires understanding the technology, and it also requires understanding the market..." Verisense Xander "... Well, he's basically creating a software that interprets the voice of the person w

Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More   Founder, entrepreneur, and angel, Richard Lane, explains his experience investing in companies such as Alice’s Table and The Jitterbug phone.   Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.   Highlights: Sal Daher Introduces Richard Lane "... The founder is in the business of discovering new territory, terra incognita. The angels and the board members are in the business of making sure that she doesn't run aground on well-known shoals..." Alice's Table "... She was helping women who were very much into floral arrangements to teach in-person classes in floral arrangement, and how to make a really beautiful floral arrangement. What her business did-- basically, she helped these women to run events. The women would use those tools in their network..." "... As an angel investor board member, I go in and I say, "Are you on schedule? Great. Everything's good? I don't care about that. I'll look at that later. Tell me what

MIT Media Lab alum Alex Westner has glasses that show captions to hearing-impaired people during real-time conversations. His approach is to refine existing technologies to deliver an excellent experience in one use case. Loved the focus and his dedication to detail. Highlights: Sal Introduces Alex Westner, Sound Technologist & Founder of Xander – Glasses with Captions for the Hearing-Impaired Xander Seeks to Assemble Existing Technology into a Great User Experience XanderGlasses Are Great on Privacy Because Nothing Is Recorded Xander’s Speech Recognition Is Built on Kaldi, the same Opensource Platform Alexa Uses Xander Trims Features of Augmented Reality Devices to Focus on It Use Case Maybe There’s an Annual $200 Million Market for XanderGlasses XanderGlasses Are Certainly Cooler than Hearing Aids (Faint Praise!) Xander’s Go to Market Approach What If Google Gets into the Business? Alex Westner’s Entrepreneurial Journey An Easter Egg for Raul Alex Westner’s Parting Thoughts Topics: software, product T

Which Founding Teams Succeed? Are Founders Born or Made? Can Innovation Be Crowdsourced? How Many Jobs Do MIT & Stanford Add to the Economy? Blockchain for the Supply Chain? Chuck Eesley, Stanford's Startup Prof Addresses These Questions and More. This timeless interview is being relaunched to make available the wise and affable words of Professor Chuck Eesley. HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: Introduction Professor Charles Eesley Bio The Traumatic Founding Experience Shivang Dave, PlenOptika & Entrepreneurs in Poor Countries How Chuck Eesley Ended Up at MIT Studying with Ed Roberts The Economic Impact of MIT & Stanford: Millions of Jobs Created & Trillions in Economic Activity “And the other big takeaway is that we had been looking at the impact of these universities in too narrow of a way previously.” Robust Finding: Larger Teams Do Better; Startups Tend to Have Teams that Are Too Small Chuck Gets a Great Idea for Research While Hiking with a Friend Cooperative vs. Competitive Comme