Vital Signs with Jacob Effron and Nikhil Krishnan

Ep 53: Cradle CEO Stef van Grieken on the State of AI x Bio and Selling SaaS to Pharma

Dec 3, 2024

Stef van Grieken, Co-founder and CEO of Cradle, spearheads AI innovations in protein engineering for drug development. They delve into the rapid growth of Cradle, fueled by a $100M funding round, and discuss the complexities of AI's integration into drug discovery. Stef highlights the challenges of selling SaaS to pharma and the critical need for effective lab automation. With insights into future trends, he explores what the next 25 years hold for biotechnology and the evolving landscape of AI-driven drug development.

53:07

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Episode guests

Stef van Grieken

AI Summary

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

AI in drug development is evolving but remains in its infancy, with significant room for improvement and reliability in various applications.

Cradle Bio's innovative platform streamlines protein design, enhancing productivity and enabling tailored experimental setups for diverse therapeutic focuses.

The future of drug discovery is anticipated to involve shorter turnaround times and improved data generation, empowering smaller biotech firms to thrive.

Deep dives

AI's Current Role in Protein Development

AI is still in the nascent stages of improving protein development, with the speaker humorously noting it feels akin to 'GPT 0.2'. The main focus areas for AI include metagenomics and interpreting large datasets to better understand diseases and treatments. It has begun to influence various stages of drug development, from hit identification to lead optimization. While significant progress is being made, there's still a long way to go in terms of reliability and understanding the full potential of AI in this field.

Intro

5min

Milestones in AI Development: A Comparative Analysis

2min

Innovations in Protein Development

19min

Navigating SaaS in Pharma

6min

AI Meets Biotechnology: Advancements and Challenges

9min

The Future of Drug Discovery: Trends and Innovations

3min

Navigating Bio and AI Industries

9min

Jacob sits down with Stef van Grieken, Co-Founder & CEO of Cradle. Cradle has raised over $100M from investors like IVP and Index Ventures to build and expand their AI-enabled protein engineering platform. They discuss how Cradle plans to use their new Series B funding, what’s been happening in AI bio, the technical underpinnings of Cradle’s platform, and more.

[0:00] Intro
[0:22] Cradle Bio's Rapid Growth and AI Innovations
[0:53] The State of AI in Drug Development
[1:15] Challenges and Opportunities in AI Biospace
[2:21] Cradle Bio's Approach to Biologics Development
[3:11] AI's Role in Hit Identification and Lead Optimization
[7:42] Cradle Bio's Software and Customer Base
[10:33] Inside Cradle Bio's Lab and Data Strategy
[24:10] Future Directions and Protein Modalities
[26:21] Navigating the Pharma SaaS Market
[28:48] Challenges in Adopting New Protocols
[30:15] Software vs. Service Companies
[31:47] Gaps in Drug Development
[33:46] Advances in AI and Bio
[41:28] Future of Drug Discovery
[44:18] Advice for Aspiring Bio Entrepreneurs
[48:03] Quickfire

Out-Of-Pocket: https://www.outofpocket.health/

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