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"If you really want to understand biology, you need to be able to represent it in the computer. If you can’t model it, you can’t really predict its behavior”

In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Michael Antonov, Co-Founder of Oculus and Founder & CEO of Deep Origin, returns for the fourth installment of his series to share how his vision for holistic biological simulation evolved from Formic Labs into Deep Origin.

Michael discusses the challenges of building a unified R&D platform for biotech, the current suite of Deep Origin’s products, and how the company is making advanced drug discovery tools accessible to organizations of every size. He also dives into the company’s philosophy, the lessons learned from previous ventures, and what’s next as Deep Origin continues to scale its impact on the life sciences sector.

Key topics covered:

The Evolution from Formic Labs to Deep Origin: Transforming a bold simulation vision into a focused biotech platform.
Building a Unified R&D Platform: Tackling integration hurdles to streamline biological modeling.
Deep Origin’s Product Suite: Delivering cutting-edge, accessible tools for drug discovery and research.
Company Philosophy & Culture: Fostering innovation, impact, and research-driven teamwork.
What’s Next for Deep Origin: Productizing novel tools, deepening partnerships, and expanding access.

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Subscribe to the Podcast:

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Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thebiotechstartupspodcast

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Find our guest, Michael Antonov, at these links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelantonov/
Website: https://www.linkedin.com/company/deep-origin/

Find our host, Jon Chee, at these links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee

Learn more about Excedr:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/

Website: https://www.excedr.com

Intro & Outro Songs Created by OkKyojin, Owned by Excedr:

Website: https://flow.page/kyojin

Resources & Articles:

AlphaFold: https://alphafold.ebi.ac.uk/

Balto AI Assistant: https://www.deeporigin.com/balto-ai-assistant-for-drug-discovery

Companies, Universities, & People mentioned:

Deep Origin: https://deeporigin.com/

Scaleform: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaleform_GFx

Benchling: https://www.benchling.com/

BioSim: https://biosim.pt/

eMolecules: https://emolecules.com/

Enamine: https://enamine.net/

Garegin Papoian: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garegin-papoian-9472a85/

Matt Shlosberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dshlos/

Ashot Papoyan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashot-papoyan-066b403/

Henk Campher: https://www.linkedin.com/in/henkcampher/

Jonathan Karr: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonrkarr/

Benjamin Siranosian: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bsiranosian/

Natalie Ma: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nataliejingma/

Tiago Luchini: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiagoluchini/

Brendan Iribe: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendaniribe/

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:14 Formic Labs and Deep Origin Origins

08:33 Early Team and Status Quo Disruption

17:56 Challenges in Biotech Tool Ecosystem

19:06 Deep Origin's Product Suite Overview

24:31 Target Customers and Accessibility

28:24 Company Philosophy and Fundraising

34:53 Future Plans and Productization

38:45 Shout Outs and Supporters

39:25 Advice to Younger Self

41:08 Closing Remarks and Thanks

41:40 Outro

The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.

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