Insightful Investor #76 - Jeff Huber: Innovation, Google, GRAIL, Triatomic
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Jun 24, 2025 Jeff Huber, founder of Triatomic Capital and former Google SVP, dives into his journey from building Google Maps to founding GRAIL, a company focused on early cancer detection. He shares how his upbringing shaped his resilience and curiosity in tech. Huber discusses the challenges of leading innovative teams and the importance of scientific rigor in biotech. He outlines Triatomic’s mission to back century-defining companies and emphasizes the exciting, underappreciated opportunities in biotech and next-gen computing.
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Portfolio Approach To Continuous Innovation
- Google maintained a portfolio mindset: 70% core, 20% new, 10% moonshots to sustain continuous innovation.
- Successful projects migrate into the core while new 10% bets replace them to keep evolving.
Personal Loss Fueled Grail's Launch
- Jeff's wife Laura was diagnosed with late-stage cancer which profoundly motivated his work in early cancer detection.
- Two months after her passing he launched Grail to commercialize liquid biopsy early-detection technology.
Methylation Made Tests Actionable
- Adding methylation sequencing let Grail not only detect cancer but predict tissue of origin, making tests actionable.
- Actionability was crucial to move from proof-of-concept to clinically useful product.