Good Energy, Better Health with Casey Means

Over the next three episodes, we’re going to talk about why Medicaid matters, and the potential for technology to make it easier for enrollees to access and utilize the program. Our first guest is Mark Smith, MD, Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCSF. He was the founding President and former CEO of the California HealthCare Foundation from 1996-2013, which is where he began his work to improve Medicaid. He experienced Medicaid from a provider perspective when he began his residency during the early days of the AIDS epidemic in San Francisco in the 1980s. In this interview, he is joined by a16z Bio + Health venture partner Will Shrank, MD. Together, they discuss Mark's time at CHCF, how Medicaid works, and how founders can potentially partner with the Medicaid program. In future episodes, we’ll also hear from Marta Bralic Kerns, founder and CEO of Pomelo Care, and Nikita Singareddy, cofounder and CEO of Fortuna Health. Both companies are directly working with Medicaid patients to make their lives easier.

Vijay Pande, PhD, founding partner of a16z Bio + Health, joins Derrick Harris, host of the AI + a16z podcast. Together, they discuss how computer science has subsumed biotech.

Casey Means, MD, a Stanford-trained physician, cofounder of Levels, and author of the new book Good Energy, joins Vijay Pande,  PhD, founding partner of a16z Bio + Health.Together, they discuss the downsides of physician specialization, the rising tide of chronic illness in the U.S., and how tracking biomarkers might allow people to determine the best nutrition options for their unique physiology. Casey's book is available here.

Greg Meyers, EVP and Chief Digital and Technology Officer at Bristol Myers Squibb, or BMS, joins Jorge Conde, general partner at a16z.This is a follow-up to their 2023 episode, where they discussed how biopharma can adapt to AI. Now, they revisit the conversation to see what’s changed and what hasn’t.Together, they chat through tech as a competitive differentiator for large companies, generative AI for drug development, and what Greg and BMS look for in potential partners. They also highlight the importance of being agile and adaptable while navigating the changing landscape of biotech, providing valuable insights for founders.

Michael Crackower, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer of Ventus Therapeutics, and Jason Burch, PhD, join Vineeta Agarwala, MD, PhD, general partner at a16z Bio + Health.Together, they talk about how Ventus approaches drug discovery and why they believe we’re in the early stages of small molecule innovation. Specifically, we’ll hear about the ReSOLVE platform, which enables the drug hunting team to more accurately design and iterate on small molecular compounds for therapeutic applications. They also talk about the current candidates in the pipeline and how they’re able to go from idea to IND in record time. 

Bowen Liu, PhD, investing partner, and Surya Ganguli, PhD, venture partner, join Vijay Pande, PhD, general partner of a16z Bio + Health.Together, they detail different methods through which AI could assist drug development, the opportunity for AI to flag new targets and compounds for scientists to investigate, and the science fiction-sounding notion of developing a foundation model that untangles biology.This is an in-depth conversation from three AI experts and biologists, so we’ll also publish the transcript alongside the episode on our website if you want to follow along. 

Bruce Levine, PhD, the Barbara and Edward Netter Professor in Cancer Gene Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania, joins Jorge Conde, general partner, and Ginger Liau, partner at a16z Bio + Health.Bruce talks about how his time working in a lab at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia inspired him to work on translational therapies. Together, they also discuss barriers to access for cancer therapeutics and how the fight against cancer is progressing.Additional disclosures for Bruce include:Scientific Advisory Boards: Avectas, Capstan (Chair), Immuneel, Immusoft, In8bio, Ori Biotech, Oxford Biomedica, ThermoFisher Pharma Services, UTC Therapeutics. Scientific Advisor: Kite. Past: Akron, VycellixCo-Founder and equity holder: Tmunity Therapeutics (acquired by Kite), Capstan TherapeuticsBoard of Directors: Alliance for Cancer Gene TherapyConflict of interest is managed in accordance with University of Pennsylvania policy and oversight.

In this episode, a follow-up to our episode Grand Challenges in Healthcare AI, Julie Yoo and Vijay Pande, a16z general partners, answer audience questions about AI applications in healthcare.Together, they dive into cost and implementation challenges, the data landscape, and what the patient experience might look like.If you liked this episode, listen to Grand Challenges in Healthcare AI here or wherever you get your podcasts.

John Crowley, President and CEO of Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), joined Jorge Conde, general partner at a16z Bio + Health.Together, they talk about John’s entry into biotech and his time as a founder, all motivated by his determination to discover and develop a treatment for his children, who have Pompe disease.They also talk about John’s priorities as head of BIO and how that could translate into policy.

Lawrence Ingrassia, author and journalist, joins Vineeta Agarwala, general partner, and Kris Tatiossian, editorial lead at a16z Bio + Health. Together, they discuss Larry's recently published book, A Fatal Inheritance: How A Family Misfortune Revealed A Deadly Medical Mystery. In the book, Larry recounts the story of the p53 cancer suppressor gene, also known as the “guardian of the genome.” Mutations in this gene, which can be inherited, remove a natural tumor defense, making it more likely for an individual to get cancer during their lifetime.He tells the story of the search for this gene and the scientists who unlocked the mystery of high familial incidences of cancer, Drs. Li and Fraumeni. He also shares a more personal aspect of the story: many members of his family inherited Li-Fraumeni Syndrome and suffered from multiple cancers themselves.