The Biotech Startups Podcast 🧬 Noam Solomon - Immunai - Part 1 | Attending Undergrad at 14 Year Old | How Mathematics Can Make You a Lone Wolf | The Difference Between Noam’s Two PhDs | The Resilience Required for Entrepreneurship
Aug 12, 2024
31:45
As a podcast listener, you can redeem exclusive discounts with a growing list of biotech vendors and get $500 off your first equipment lease by using promo code “TBSP” on https://www.excedr.com/rewards.
Part 1 of 4.
My guest for this week’s episode is Noam Solomon, CEO and co-founder at Immunai, a pioneering biotech company that is comprehensively mapping and reprogramming the immune system with single-cell biology and AI to power new therapeutic discoveries, accelerate drug development, and improve patient outcomes.
Prior to co-founding Immunai, Noam had a career in both industry and academia. Noam has a double PhD in math and computer science and served as a postdoctoral researcher at MIT and Harvard. Noam also worked as an algorithms developer, consultant, and head of data science in several high-tech companies in Israel. Noam's extensive background in math, computer science, AI, and machine learning gives him a unique depth of experience that founders can learn from.
Join us this week and hear about:
- Noam's early years and how his upbringing shaped his high standards and competitive spirit which led him to excel in the world of academia
- His unique experience of starting university at the age of 14
- His early love for mathematics
- His pursuit of multiple PhDs in math and computer science
- The importance of resilience, critical thinking, and creativity needed as an entrepreneur
Please enjoy my conversation with Noam Solomon.
Timestamps:
00:28 Intro
02:11 Episode starts, upbringing in Israel with high family standards, the push into education and STEM
05:58 Becoming an undergraduate at 14 and the attraction to math, the enjoyment of finding creative solutions with sets
10:03 Mentors and professors who were inspirational, those who helped drive the inspiration of education
12:32 Determining next steps after undergrad, being drafted into the Army and decision to be a mathematician
14:43 Software engineering in the Army
16:16 Decision to pursue PhD in math and methodical science, Fermat's Last Theorem
18:48 Experience in grad school and the difficulties with solitude, how these skills benefitted being a CEO of a startup
21:35 Determining what to do after the PhD, postdoc, letting go of a childhood dream
23:46 Another PhD focused on computer science, more of a collaborative experience
27:32 Skill sets that were acquired during and finishing his postdoc in math
30:45 Outro
Find Our Guest, Noam Solomon, at this link:
Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links:
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Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Enriched Notes:
Topics Mentioned:
Harvard University https://www.harvard.edu/
Immunai https://www.immunai.com/
Equipment Leasing for Laboratories https://www.excedr.com/leasing
Biotech Startup Support https://www.excedr.com/resources-category/biotech-startup-support
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.