IDEA Collider: Innovation & Asymmetric Learning in Pharma

From the Amazon description: Pharmaceutical breakthroughs such as anti­biotics and vaccines rank among some of the greatest advancements in human history. Yet exorbitant prices for life-saving drugs, safety recalls affecting tens of millions of Americans, and soaring rates of addiction and overdose on pre­scription opioids have caused many to lose faith in drug companies. Now, Americans are demanding a national reckoning with a monolithic industry. Pharma introduces brilliant scientists, in-corruptible government regulators, and brave whistleblowers facing off against company exec­utives often blinded by greed. A business that profits from treating ills can create far deadlier problems than it cures. Addictive products are part of the industry’s DNA, from the days when corner drugstores sold morphine, heroin, and cocaine, to the past two decades of dangerously overprescribed opioids. Pharma also uncovers the real story of the Sacklers, the family that became one of America’s wealthiest from the success of OxyContin, their blockbuster narcotic painkiller at the center of the opioid crisis. Relying on thousands of pages of government and corporate archives, dozens of hours of interviews with insiders, and previously classified FBI files, Posner exposes the secrets of the Sacklers’ rise to power—revelations that have long been buried under a byzantine web of interlocking companies with ever-changing names and hidden owners. The unexpected twists and turns of the Sackler family saga are told against the startling chronicle of a powerful industry that sits at the intersection of public health and profits. https://www.posner.com/pharma/ https://www.amazon.com/Pharma-Greed-Lies-Poisoning-America/dp/1501151894

PureTech Health is an advanced, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines targeting serious diseases that result from dysfunctions in the nervous, immune, and gastrointestinal systems (brain-immune-gut or the “BIG” axis), which together represent the adaptive human systems. PureTech Health is at the forefront of understanding and addressing the biological processes and crosstalk associated with the BIG axis. By harnessing this emerging field of human biology, the Company is pioneering new categories of medicine with the potential to have great impact on people with serious diseases. PureTech Health is advancing a rich pipeline that includes multiple post human proof-of-concept studies and pivotal stage programs. PureTech’s rich research and development pipeline has been advanced in collaboration with some of the world’s leading scientific experts, who along with PureTech’s team of biopharma pioneers, entrepreneurs and seasoned Board, identify, invent, and clinically de-risk new medicines. With this experienced team pursuing cutting edge science, PureTech Health is building the biopharma company of the future focused on improving and extending the lives of people with serious disease. Ms. Zohar created PureTech Health, assembling a leading team to help implement her vision for the Company. Ms. Zohar has been recognized as a top leader and innovator in biotechnology by a number of sources, including EY, BioWorld, MIT’s Technology Review, the Boston Globe, and Scientific American. She sits on the Technology Development Fund Advisory Board at Children’s Hospital Boston, is an Editorial Advisor to Xconomy, and is on the Board of Advisors of Life Science Care 

25 Visions for the Future of Our Species We now have the tools to transform ourselves and our species. Greater health and longevity, enhanced brains, and engineered fertility are in the works. What’s just over the horizon is even more astonishing. We call this the neobiological frontier. The book is a collection of 25 essays, interviews, and works of fiction and art offering a big-picture perspective on the profound changes made possible by the merging of biology and technology. The book brings together today's smartest and most creative inventors, thinkers, and scientists to tell us their vision of the future. This book is a 2020 time capsule for future humans. Neo.Life: 25 Visions for the Future of Our Species covers these powerful new biotechnologies and ideas in non-technical language, with beautiful full-color images and a fresh design by National Design Award winner Jennifer Morla. This book makes a compelling foundation for the discussions we’ll be having about these technologies for years to come, and as one observer said, it is definitely coffee table worthy, no matter which planet that table is on. Meet George Church, one of the most prodigious bioengineers of our time, in conversation with Ramez Naam, a computer scientist, clean tech investor, and science fiction author. George maintains a list of genes that could be edited to make humans healthier or more suited to future environmental conditions, including life off-planet. He’s also got an idea to send a single-cell biological probe to faraway worlds that could be programmed to beam information back to Earth. Consider neuroscientist David Eagleman’s ideas about how embryo selection could change the way we parent our children. Dive into an imagined future with inventor Danny Hillis as he guides you through the possibilities and pitfalls of designing your child from scratch using gene editing technology. Will you “supersize” them, or give them an extra appendage? If you bestow a color or pattern, keep in mind that it might be trendy today but look dated 10 years from now. Discover filmmaker and artist Lynn Hershman Leeson’s ideas about identity in her antibody-as-art project that will change how you think about life-science technologies. Hear from Osh Agabi, the Swiss-Nigerian roboticist-neuroscientist who’s built a brain on a chip, literally blending silicon and neurons. He envisions using his technology to allow us to connect our consciousnesses together in a sort of giant empathy web. Read Juan Enriquez, who has been thinking and writing about self-directed evolution for a long time. In his creative brief, he imagines a future with a far greater diversity of human species, and considers the implications. Ponder the risks and ethical implications of this new frontier with CRISPR scientist and film producer Samira Kiani, who outlines the safety checks she’s developing to control gene edits. And hear from biosecurity policy expert Megan Palmer, who shares how her experiences led to social responsibility programs for synthetic biologists. BOOK DETAILS Designed by Jennifer Morla Hardcover, 7 3/4 x 9 3/4 inches 160 pages, 25 color illustrations Smyth sewn, with silver Litho foil-stamped cover Contributors: Oshiorenoya Agabi, Christina Agapakis, Siranush Babakhanova, Seth Bannon, George Church, Emma Conley, Zoe Cormier, Zack Denfeld, Heather Dewey-Hagborg, David Eagleman, Juan Enriquez, Kristen Fortney, Joel Garreau, Daisy Ginsberg, Danny Hillis, Samira Kiani, Cathrine Kramer, Becky Lyon, Hannu Rajaniemi, Lux Alptraum, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Ramez Naam, Megan Palmer, Nicola Patron, Robert Plomin, Steve Ramirez, Sissel Tolaas, Bowen Zhao, Changle Zhou.

Chapter-by-chapter discussion, covering:opium/ heroinantibioticscontraceptive pillvaccinesand more...Find more by Thomas Hager here: https://www.thomashager.net 

Dr. Jeremy M. Levin is Chairman and CEO of Ovid Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:OVID), a company whose mission is to bring treatment to patients with rare neurological conditions. Dr. Levin is concurrently the chairman of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). Prior to founding Ovid, Dr. Levin was president and CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., (TLV: TEVA) Before Teva, Dr. Levin was member of the executive committee Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY). In that capacity he was the architect of and implemented the String of Pearls Strategy, which transformed Bristol. Dr. Levin joined BMY from Novartis (SWX: NOVN) where he was global head of strategic alliances. He has served on the board of directors of various public and private biopharmaceutical companies and is currently on the board of directors of Lundbeck (OMX: LUN). Dr. Levin was voted as one of the twenty-five most influential biotechnology leaders by Fierce Biotech and one of the top three biotechnology CEOs in 2020 by The Healthcare Technology Report. He is the recipient of the Albert Einstein Award for Leadership in Life Sciences and the B’nai B’rith Award for Distinguished Achievement. He has practiced medicine at university hospitals in England, South Africa, and Switzerland. Dr. Levin earned his bachelor’s degree in zoology and a master’s degree and doctorate in chromatin structure, at the University of Oxford, and thereafter his medical and surgical degrees from the University of Cambridge where he won the Kermode Prize for his work on Captopril. Authors of individual chapters HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES Vicki L. Sato, Stelios Papadopoulos, Sam Waksal, Bill Sibold, Frederick Frank Q&A with a Biotech Pioneer, Brook Byers, Sol Barer PERSONAL PERSPECTIVES Michelle McMurry-Heath, Andy Plump, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Karen Bernstein, Ron Cohen, Samantha Du, Cedric François THE VIEW FROM INSIDE COMPANIES George Scangos, John Young, Stéphane Bancel, Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, John V. Oyler, Paul Hastings, Christi Shaw, John Maraganore, Rachel King, Richard Pops, Deborah Dunsire BROAD LESSONS Kenneth I. Moch, Quita Highsmith, Luke Rosen, Sylvia Wulf, Philip Miller, Alex Zhavoronkov and Evelyne Bischof LEADERSHIP Jeffrey M. Solomon, Julie Louise Gerberding, Jeff Berkowitz, James Greenwood INVESTOR PERSPECTIVES Nina Kjellson, Bruce Booth, Alexander Karnal, Mark Lampert, Geoff Porges LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Peter Kolchinsky, Yaron Werber, Jeff Kindler, Otello Stampacchia

The books Annie recommends:Maria KonnikovaThe Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win Philip Tetlock, Dan GardnerSuperforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction Don A MoorePerfectly Confident: How to Calibrate Your Decisions Wisely

Peter on Twitter: https://twitter.com/peterkolchinskyThe book's website: https://peterkolchinsky.com/bioLink to the Katherine Eban discussion: 

Deborah Waterhouse, CEO ViiV Healthcare Deborah was appointed to GSK’s Corporate Executive Team on 8th January 2020. She became Chief Executive Officer of ViiV Healthcare on 1st April 2017. ViiV Healthcare is majority owned by GSK, with Pfizer Inc. and Shionogi Limited as shareholders. In this interview, we discuss cultures of innovation, innovation in the business model, purpose-driven innovation and more Deborah joined GSK in 1996 and was most recently the Senior Vice President of Primary Care within the company’s US business, prior to which she led the US Vaccines business. She brings a wealth of experience to GSK having lived and worked in Europe, Asia Pacific and the USA, and a strong track record of performance in both specialty and primary care. Deborah led the HIV business in the UK before heading the HIV Centre of Excellence for Pharma Europe, and held international roles as General Manager of Australia and New Zealand and Senior Vice President for Central and Eastern Europe.

For more on JLABS, go to https://jlabs.jnjinnovation.com/JLABSNavigator#/As Global Head of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS (JLABS), Melinda Richter fosters the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies external R&D engine and supports the innovation community by creating capital-efficient commercialization models that give early stage companies a big company advantage. By providing infrastructure, services, educational programs and networks in global hotspots, JLABS is the best place to start a company working in healthcare, with a specific emphasis on Johnson & Johnson’s sectors: consumer, medical device and pharmaceuticals.Prior to joining JLABS, Melinda was Founder and CEO of Prescience International, an award-winning firm dedicated to accelerating research to the patient. Melinda founded Prescience after she had a medical emergency that left her questioning the efficiency and efficacy of the healthcare system. With the tenacity and resolve of a patient looking for a better solution, she set out to create a better model, which now forms the basis for JLABS’ operational infrastructure. Prior to starting Prescience, Melinda held posts across a variety of functional areas with a global corporation, Nortel Networks, in locations such as Research Triangle Park, New York, Toronto, London, Hong Kong and Beijing before arriving in San Francisco. She also initiated, raised capital and secured large corporate deals for several companies in both the life science and technology space. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Saskatchewan in Canada and a MBA from INSEAD in France. Melinda is an active board member and Treasurer of the California Life Sciences Association (CLSA). 

In an archive recording, from 2015, the author of one of the best pharma-related books of the past decade, Clifton Leaf, gives us an insight into The Truth In Small Doses, Why We're Losing the War on Cancer-and How to Win It. (In this case, archive means that we thought we had lost the file, and then found it in a place we didn't expect!) Clifton, now Editor In Chief at Fortune Magazine, remains one of the most interesting voices in healthcare