Business Trip

Jacob Robinson, an entrepreneurial scientist and CEO of Motif Neurotech, discusses the future of mental health treatment through innovative neuromodulation implants aimed at depression. Joined by Brom Rector of Empath Ventures, they unveil how these minimally invasive devices could revolutionize psychiatry, offering alternatives to traditional drug therapies. The conversation touches on ethical considerations, challenges of accessibility, and the differentiation between Motif and Neuralink. They also explore the transition from academic research to innovative entrepreneurship in the neurotechnology space.

In part 2 of a 2-part series, Greg and Matias explore microbial therapeutics for mental health with Dr. Christopher Reyes, biophysist, serial enterepreneur, and founder of Bloom Science. Dr. Reyes' research on leveraging microbes to treat neurological conditions began at UC San Francisco.He is now translating his microbiome research into startups targeting epilepsy, ALS, and even anxiety and depression. We discuss the science behind how gut microbes may influence neurotransmitters and mood. Dr. Reyes gives an insider perspective on the challenges of standardizing microbial therapies when each person has a unique microbiome fingerprint.We explore the regulatory landscape and future of microbial therapies for mental health. Dr. Reyes shares his experience navigating intellectual property, licensing deals, raising capital, and designing clinical trials to bring microbiome innovations to market. Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

Dr. Phil Strandwitz, Founder of Holobiome, discusses the gut-brain connection and pioneering microbial therapies. Trillions of gut bacteria influence neurotransmitter activity, mood, and cognition. Imbalances in the microbiome may underlie mental health issues. Startups like Holobiome aim to develop microbiome-based treatments including fecal transplants. Lifestyle changes like diet, prebiotics, and probiotics can support gut health. This conversation will change how you think about the gut-brain connection.

Stanford University is one of the leading universities in psychedelic science, focusing on understanding how psychedelics work in the body. This is part 3 of a 3-part series, where we will explore groundbreaking discoveries via leading Stanford researchers who are revealing the significance of psychedelic science in modern research. We conclude the series with Carolyn Rodriguez.Carolyn Rodriguez is Associate Dean at Stanford University School of Medicine and a psychiatrist at the Palo Alto VA. As Director of the Rodriguez Translational Therapeutics Lab, she leads studies on severe mental illness. Her clinical trials pioneer rapid-acting treatments for OCD and related disorders demonstrating ketamine's efficacy in reducing OCD symptoms. She now plans placebo-controlled studies of MDMA and other psychedelics, unlocking their therapeutic potential for OCD.Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

Boris Heifets, an assistant professor at Stanford's School of Medicine, discusses his research on the effects of ketamine on patients with depression under anesthesia. He also explores the impact of different environments on the effects of psilocybin in mice and reflects on the hype cycle of psychedelics.

Psychedelics have long been known to induce altered states of consciousness. But there are many other techniques that can also expand our awareness - from meditation and breathwork to exploring dreams, prayer, light and sound. In this episode, Greg speaks with Scott Britton about the emerging startup landscape around tools for expanding consciousness.Scott is an entrepreneur who now writes a newsletter called Consciousness ∞ The Doorway to Human Evolution He also hosts a podcast called EvolutionFM.This special episode is a deeper dive into Greg & Scott’s recent article about the consciousness startup ecosystem.In this episode, we discuss:VC-backable business models in psychedelic medicineHardware devices that induce deeper meditation and lucid dream statesBreathwork: app vs. in-person experiences Prayer apps attracting huge investmentStartups using sound, light, and visuals to catalyze altered statesIntegrating ancient wisdom into modern consciousness-expanding techCredits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

Stanford University is one of the leading universities in psychedelic science, focusing on understanding how psychedelics work in the body. In this 3-part series, we will explore groundbreaking discoveries via leading Stanford researchers who are revealing the significance of psychedelic science in modern research. We start the series with Robert Malenka.Robert Malenka is a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University with over three decades of experience in preclinical neuroscience research. His primary focus is on the study of psychoactive drugs, including psychedelics, and their potential therapeutic applications. In addition to his academic role, Malenka is a founder and deputy director of the Wsai Neurosciences Institute at Stanford.Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

Psychedelic Science 2023, Learning Man, MAPS Burn...whatever you want to call it...was a magical conference organized by MAPS.12k people made the pilgrimage to Denver to discuss psychedelic science, culture, business, art, spirituality, and more.Rick Doblin called this the "Psychedelic 20's" and this event felt like a watershed moment.Luckily, Greg brought his microphone and recorded his experience for a special episode of Business Trip.Guests include Zach Haigney, Myriam Barthes, Lauren Taus, Hamilton Morris, and many more…Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

What does it take for a traditional VC to fund a psychedelic company? In our latest episode, Matias takes us behind the scenes of a panel discussion at the Psychedelic Therapeutics & Drug Development Conference in San Francisco, CA. Matias talks with VCs at firms with $100M+ fund sizes: Anne Dwane, a partner at Village Global, Amanda Way, principal at Jazz Venture Partners and Dana Watt PhD, principal at Breakout Ventures.In this episode, we discuss: (1) How VCs identify and evaluate a strong founding team, (2) Evaluating scientific, technical, and market risk, (3) The pros and cons of platforms vs. asset companies, (4) How to position a psychedelic company in the broader biotech ecosystem.Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank

In our latest episode, Greg and Matias engage in an insightful discussion with Dr. Bryan Roth, the Michael Hooker Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine, and the founder of the Roth Lab.Dr. Roth’s lab is on the cutting edge of researching the interaction between brain cell receptors and compounds like LSD and psilocybin. Their findings have the potential to revolutionize the treatment of psychiatric disorders, potentially creating new forms of psychedelics that offer the therapeutic benefits without hallucinations or other side effects.In this episode, we discuss (1) the therapeutic effects of psychedelic and non-hallucinatory compounds, (2) the transition from animal model studies to human trials and (3) the journey of turning deep academic research into viable commercial entities.Credits: Created by Greg Kubin and Matias SerebrinskyHost: Matias Serebrinsky & Greg KubinProduced by Jonathan A. Davis,  Nico V. Rey & Caitlin NerFind us at businesstrip.fm and psymed.venturesFollow us on Instagram and Twitter!Theme music by Dorian LoveAdditional Music: Distant Daze by Zack Frank