How one couple used IVF and genetic screening to protect their child from hemophilia

Today we’re joined by Urologist and Microsurgeon Dr. Turek, internationally recognized as the authority on male fertility and sexual health. He is the founder of The Turek Clinic, is former endowed chair professor of the University of California, San Francisco, and inventor of sperm mapping for the treatment of severe male infertility. As a master microsurgeon, he popularized the no scalpel vasectomy and has among the highest published vasectomy reversal success rates.Dr. Turek's influence extends well beyond the clinic doors. His career has been dedicated to reshaping how we talk about men's health. This commitment is evident through his numerous research publications, global talks, and notable accolades, including a special invitation to the White House, as well as a prestigious NIH grant, and as an advisor to the NIH and Centers forDisease Control and Prevention. Join us as Dr. Turek discusses the most important factors contributing to male fertility, how to improve sperm health, how sperm changes as a man ages, and why sperm matter far more than we realize.Learn more about Dr. Turek and The Turek Clinic: https://www.theturekclinic.com/

Today’s guest is Fidji Simo, CEO and Chair of Instacart. Before Instacart, Fidji was the Vice President and Head of Facebook. She currently serves on the Board of Directors at OpenAI and Shopify. She co-founded the Metrodora Institute, a health center and research institute specializing in treating complex medical conditions, and is the president of The Metrodora Foundation.Fidji and I discuss her journey from growing up in a small town in France and being the first in her family to graduate high school, to being the CEO of a multi-billion dollar public company. She explains her strategic vision for Instacart, how to get the best advice from your Board of Directors, and how she’s navigated her own chronic condition alongside a fast-growing career.You can learn more about and support the Metrodora Institute here:https://www.metrodora.co/

Today I am joined by Sam D’Amico, Founder and CEO of Impulse Labs. Sam and his team have created the Impulse Cooktop- the most powerful and precise stove ever made due to its integrated battery, which doubles as a grid scale energy solution.Sam and I discuss his long history working on hardware related technology like AR and VR headsets with Google Glass and Oculus, how he got the idea to revolutionize the stove, hardware company business models and supply chains, and his thoughts on how AI will shape the hardware world in the next 5 years. If you’re interested in cutting edge technology, hardware, or even cooking, you won’t want to miss this episode!You can learn more about Impulse Labs and Sam here:Website | Impulse LabsLinkedIn | Sam D’Amico

Today I am joined by Sarah Guo, founder of Conviction, a venture capital firm that makes early-stage investments in technology startups. She was previously a General Partner at Greylock.Sarah and I talk about the rapid advancement of AI technologies, where she sees valuable being created, and which areas may be oversaturated. She notes some of the challenges to come for AI firms as they reach physical, technological, and data processing limits, and shares her thoughts on the role of human productivity in the coming years as AI technologies become more prevalent in the workplace.We also discuss becoming a mom, her views on balancing work and parenting, her philosophical approach to raising young humans in the age of AI, and so much more.You can learn more about Sarah at her website:https://sarahguo.com/

Today our guest is Michelle Valentine. She is the Co-founder and CEO at Anrok. We cover lots of ground, discussing her experience founding Anrok and how it compares to her prior career as an investor (with a few investing tips discussed). She also shares her experience using Orchid and how it was a critical part of her eventual path to parenthood.

Today our guest is Dr. Amber Cooper. Dr. Cooper is Chief Medical Officer-Genomics and Laboratory Sciences, and Medical and IVF Practice Director at Kindbody in St. Louis. She is also one of Orchid's Medical Advisors. First she gives us a crash course on IVF and debunks a popular misconception about it. Then we talk about how egg quality changes over time, what egg freezing is, how many eggs someone should freeze based on how many babies they’d like, and what excites her about the future of IVF.

Today our guest is Dr. Roohi Jeelani. She is board certified Reproductive Endocrinologist and Infertility Specialist at Kindbody, and one of Orchid’s Medical Advisory Board members. Dr. Jeelani shares her path to becoming a fertility doctor, and how, due in part to her own PCOS diagnosis, she became the patient herself as she sought fertility treatments to have her first and third child. Dr. Jeelani also debunks myths surrounding birth control, miscarriages, and breastfeeding, and shares her advice for others on their fertility journey. 

Today our guests are Brandon Schram & Aimee Gupta, who opted to use IVF and genetic screening to reduce their future child’s risk of hemophilia, a blood clotting condition that runs in Aimee’s family. They share their IVF journey, as well as how beneficial genetic testing became for them when they later discovered their daughter had a rare genetic mutation that was causing her to have seizures as an infant. We also talk about the stigma that IVF can have and how to overcome the common feeling of guilt for passing on genetic mutations to your children.

Today we speak with Dr. Holly Pederson, Staff Physician and Director of Medical Breast Program at the Cleveland Clinic and associate professor at Cleveland Clinic, Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Pederson explains the genetics of breast cancer, the differences amongst available testing, and who should seek out testing. We also talk about how results from genetic testing can help inform your family planning, and Dr. Pederson shares how critical it is for patients to advocate for themselves when seeking out testing. 

Today we are joined by Julia and Kevin Hartz, Co-Founders of Eventbrite. Julia is now Eventbrite’s CEO and Kevin is a Co-Founder and General Partner of A*. Julia and Kevin join us today to talk about how they built Eventbrite, how they built their family at the same time with the birth of their two daughters, and how they are planning to expand their family more than a decade later with the help of Orchid’s embryo screening. We also talk about their parenting philosophy, how that may change for their future children, and the advice they have for people who are thinking about having children.