The Bits in Bio Podcast

Reinventing Drug Formulation: AI, Automation, and Self-Driving Labs with Pauric Bannigan

Pauric Bannigan, co-founder and CSO of Intrepid Labs, is building one of the first AI-native platforms for drug formulation, combining machine learning, robotics, and experimental science to tackle one of pharma’s most complex bottlenecks. We discuss why drug formulation remains a critical but underexplored step in drug development, and how Intrepid’s “self-driving lab” integrates AI-driven decision-making with automated experimentation to accelerate formulation design. From academic research in pharmaceutical chemistry to founding an AI-first biotech company, Pauric shares lessons on building at the intersection of machine learning, robotics, and drug development, scaling interdisciplinary teams across computation and experimental science, and transforming formulation from a manual bottleneck into a data-driven system.

Building Scientific Superintelligence: AI Science Factories and the Quest to Drug the Undruggable with Molly Gibson

Molly Gibson, Origination Partner at Flagship Pioneering, has co-founded some of the most ambitious AI-native life sciences companies of the last decade, including Generate Biomedicines, Lila Sciences, and most recently Expedition Medicines, where she serves as CEO. We discuss the Flagship model of company origination, how Lila Sciences is building AI Science Factories where AI runs the scientific method autonomously, and how Expedition Medicines is using AI and quantum chemistry to crack the undruggable proteome. From her PhD studying antibiotic resistance in preterm infant microbiomes to founding multiple AI-bio companies, Molly shares hard-won lessons on separating AI hype from real platform value, building cross-disciplinary teams, and what computer scientists need to understand before becoming biotech founders.

Infrastructure for Pharma: Lessons from $2.5B in Research Procurement with Chris Petersen

Chris Petersen, co-founder and CTO of Scientist.com, joins us to share lessons from almost two decades of building the world's leading research services marketplace for pharmaceutical R&D. We discuss pivoting from building a CRO lab to creating a B2E marketplace platform facilitating $2.5B in research procurement, the critical architectural decisions along the way, and deploying AI to streamline workflows for nearly all top 30 pharma companies. From a legendary Paul Blart Mall Cop rescue in the early days to recent acquisition by GHO Capital Partners, Chris shares hard-won insights on building for enterprise, hiring through community, and finding opportunities hidden in Excel spreadsheets.

How AI-Driven Cell Therapy is Rewriting Regeneration with Frank Li

Frank Li, founder and CEO of Stately Bio, joins us to unpack how AI-driven, label-free live-cell imaging is unlocking real-time insight into cell state and redefining what’s possible in regenerative medicine. We discuss his journey from co-founding a mobile payments startup through roles at Palantir, Google Brain, and Calico, to building Stately Bio’s ML imaging platform, and how surprising predictive power emerges when you stream and analyze living cells at scale. From three years in stealth to a $12M seed round, Frank shares lessons on bridging tech and biotech, building a world-class technical team, and applying AI to one of biology’s most complex frontiers.

Redefining the Undruggable Through Proximity with Armand Cognetta

Armand Cognetta, founder and CEO of General Proximity, joins us to explore how proximity medicine is revolutionizing drug discovery by targeting proteins once considered impossible to drug. We discuss the evolution beyond PROTACs, being a solo bio-founder in Y Combinator, and Armand's journey from imposter syndrome to raising $16M and winning a $3M ARPA-H grant. From nearly running out of money to building breakthrough platform technology, Armand shares hard-won lessons on fundraising, team building, and maintaining startup speed in an industry known for decade-long timelines.