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Part 1 of 4.
My guest for this week’s episode is Barbara Alcaraz Silva, Executive Director of Early Stage Life Sciences and Healthcare, Startup Banking at J.P. Morgan. She is also a former scientist-entrepreneur whose graduate studies focused on Telomeres and DNA Repair. Barbara has worked with many startups, including co-founding her own company, BioChron. While at the Manos Accelerator, she worked as an advisor for Biotech and Medtech companies, providing mentorship in business, fundraising, and capital, and offering guidance to startup companies. Additionally, Barbara worked as a Senior Investment Fellow at Life Science Angels, investing in up-and-coming biotechs and managing investor relationships.
After her time at Life Science Angels, Barbara became the Director of Early-Stage West Coast Life Science and Healthcare banking at SVB and is currently the Executive Director of Early Stage Life Sciences and Healthcare, Startup Banking at J.P. Morgan, where she is leading the national life sciences and healthcare practice. Barbara’s dedication to building a strong community in the biotech space and her expertise in science, management, and investing make her conversation one that founders don’t want to miss.
Join us this week and hear about:
- Barbara’s immigrant journey and how her upbringing played an important role in her lead-up to becoming a scientist-entrepreneur.
- Her path from community college to UC Irvine, where she gained essential lab experience, secured a research position in Plant Biology.
- Her travels abroad to the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
Please enjoy my conversation with Barbara Alcaraz Silva.
Find Our Guest, Barbara Alcaraz Silva, at these links:
Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links:
Social & Website
Enriched Notes
Topics Mentioned:
Timestamps:
00:28 Intro
02:24 Episode starts, Barbara's adolescence and immigrant upbringing, the start of community college in Orange County
10:08 Professors and classmates who built bonds and inspired the pursuit of science and chemistry, the struggle of learning English
15:31 Moving from the academic realm to industry and the cultural adjustments of becoming a project manager at Sanitor Corporation
19:58 The bumpy transfer from community college to UC Irvine and the unexpected love of biology
25:39 Lab experiences at UC Irvine, the opportunity of being a part of the Minority Science Program
31:03 Doing research abroad in Mexico at UNAM
35:46 Next steps after Mexico research and applying to grad school
37:18 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.
