Navigating Funding Challenges in Deep Tech

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Part 1 of 3. 

My guest for this week’s episode is Grant Aarons, Co-Founder and CEO of FabricNano, a London-based biotech whose mission is to transform industrial chemical processes using cell-free biomanufacturing. FabricNano empowers users with the world's most advanced, flexible, and easily scalable biocatalyst platform. With clients ranging from startups to multinationals like Sumitomo Chemical Company, FabricNano provides highly stable and performant biocatalysts to enable profitable production of sustainable and biobased chemicals. FabricNano's approach starts with novel immobilization engineering for enzyme stabilization, followed by budget-conscious protein engineering and process engineering to reach their clients' targets for commercialization of their new biochemical production process. Before FabricNano, Grant was a Research Analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and while pursuing his PhD at the London Business School, became an Entrepreneur In Residence at Entrepreneur First, an international business accelerator that has created over 300 companies worth over $10 billion. Grant's diverse experience gives him a unique perspective on the startup ecosystem that everyone can benefit from.

Please enjoy my conversation with Grant Aarons.

Find Our Guest, Grant Aaron, at these links: 

00:28 Intro

2:29 Episode starts, early days, growing up in upstate New York and New York City’s influence on Grant’s career path

5:42 Decision to attend The Cooper Union and study engineering

7:38 Undergrad experience with physical and chemical labs, courses about new inventions

11:45 The value of diverse work experiences in coding, mechanical electrical plumbing (MEP), and economics, experience as an Android developer

17:28 The challenges of a slow feedback loop in engineering and its impact on his career choice

19:10 Experiences and opportunities at The New York Federal Reserve Bank, the opportunity to attend research presentations and being employed as a research analyst

23:39 How times of uncertainty and stress at The Fed led to innovation, new tools, new models

25:53 The purpose of the Federal Reserve Bank and its goals to keep inflation in check and keep unemployment low

30:02 The current state of the economy, coming off zero, and its impact on deep tech and innovative technology businesses

34:29 Benefits of deep tech embracing capital dependency with capital intensity and efficiency

37:02 Outro

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Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/

Enriched Notes:

The Cooper Union https://cooper.edu/welcome

Federal Reserve Bank of New York ​​https://www.newyorkfed.org/

Mechanical Electrical Plumbing

What is debugging?

Tappan zee Bridge Replacement Project

DSGE Model-Based Forecast

https://www.newyorkfed.org/research/staff_reports/sr554.html#:~:text=Dynamic%20stochastic%20general%20equilibrium%20 

New York Fed Nowcast

Equipment Leasing vs. Traditional Financing https://www.excedr.com/resources/equipment-leasing-vs-traditional-financing 

Loan Covenants 101 for Startups https://www.excedr.com/resources/loan-covenants-and-their-effects

Lease Financing vs. Debt Financing https://www.excedr.com/blog/lease-financing-vs-debt-financing 

What Is an Operating Lease? https://www.excedr.com/blog/operating-lease 

Ben Bernanke https://www.federalreservehistory.org/people/ben-s-bernanke

Christopher Sims https://jrc.princeton.edu/people/christopher-sims

Domenico Glannone https://www.linkedin.com/in/domenico-giannone-55755b45/ 

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.