How to Go From Scientist to Biotech CEO | Laura Hsieh

Hi, and welcome to the BioFounder GPS podcast, where we demystify and democratize the business side of going from zero to one in biotech and life sciences.

I'm your host, Vadim Chapel.

Today, I'm very excited to introduce our very first Founder Spotlight and welcome Laura Shea, co-founder and CEO of Tipping Point Biosciences, which is pioneering new therapies for diseases of chromatin dysfunction.

As co-founder, Laura has helped to develop the company's core technology while at UCSF, spun the platform out into Tipping Point, raised more than $2 million in pre-seed funding, has won multiple pharma-sponsored Golden and Platinum tickets, and recently closed an oversubscribed $4.5 million seed round.

Now, I've been fortunate in getting to know Laura both as an early mentor and as an investor in Tipping Point and have been grateful to see this journey unfold firsthand.

But the reason I was most excited to have Laura on isn't just because of those milestones.

It's because in my view, she exemplifies the scientist to CEO journey that so many founders in our community are navigating.

And she was incredibly open about what that journey actually required behind the scenes.

So on this episode, we talk about what it takes to spin out a company from a university, how to operate as a CEO while still leading the science, how to choose the right first indication for a platform technology, how to navigate raising capital from pre-seed through seed rounds, how to build relationships with pharma, and what Laura would do differently if she were starting again today.

I'm incredibly grateful to Laura for being so candid and sharing so much of her experience.

I think this conversation will be especially valuable for any scientist who is building a company or considering taking that first step.

So with that in mind, let's get into it.

Hi, and welcome to the BioFounder GPS podcast, where we demystify and democratize the business side of going from zero to one in biotech and life sciences.

I'm your host, Vadim Chapel.

Today, I'm very excited to introduce our very first Founder Spotlight and welcome Laura Shea, co-founder and CEO of Tipping Point Biosciences, which is pioneering new therapies for diseases of chromatin dysfunction.

As co-founder, Laura has helped to develop the company's core technology while at UCSF, spun the platform out into Tipping Point, raised more than $2 million in pre-seed funding, has won multiple pharma-sponsored Golden and Platinum tickets, and recently closed an oversubscribed $4.5 million seed round.

Now, I've been fortunate in getting to know Laura both as an early mentor and as an investor in Tipping Point and have been grateful to see this journey unfold firsthand.

But the reason I was most excited to have Laura on isn't just because of those milestones.

It's because in my view, she exemplifies the scientist to CEO journey that so many founders in our community are navigating.

And she was incredibly open about what that journey actually required behind the scenes.

So on this episode, we talk about what it takes to spin out a company from a university, how to operate as a CEO while still leading the science, how to choose the right first indication for a platform technology, how to navigate raising capital from pre-seed through seed rounds, how to build relationships with pharma, and what Laura would do differently if she were starting again today.

I'm incredibly grateful to Laura for being so candid and sharing so much of her experience.

I think this conversation will be especially valuable for any scientist who is building a company or considering taking that first step.

So with that in mind, let's get into it.