Welcome to a very special episode of Labnotes!

For our 50th edition of the show we recorded LIVE from the Future Health Expo at the University of New South Wales, diving into the world of spinouts and deep tech investment with a panel of three guests from the Venture Capital and Angel Investment sector.

Join us to hear how Alejandra Romero (Main Sequence Ventures), John Kurek (UniSeed) and Mian Bi (Australian Medical Angels) find, fund and foster big ideas and entrepreneurial researchers emerging from Australian universities.

GUESTS :

Alejandra Romero https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandra-romero1/

Dr Mian Bi https://www.linkedin.com/in/mian-bi/

Dr John Kurek https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kurek-ba19a54/

UNIVERSITY OF NSW : https://www.unsw.edu.au/

FUTURE EXPO SERIES : https://www.innovationcommunity.unsw.edu.au/futures-expo-series

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

Until recently you might have called James a typical scientist, working away in the labs of the University of Melbourne to understand the way that muscle tissues develop and how new therapies might improve the lives of patients.

But in 2019 his career took a dramatic turn when a curiosity about culturing meat as an alternative to farming livestock brought James to the attention of George Peppou and Tim Noakesmith. The co-founders of Vow were on the hunt for a Chief Scientist as one of their first employees, and James fit the bill perfectly.

What has followed is a fabulous case study in the transition from research scientist to start-up executive, and a ride well worth following.

GUEST : Dr. James Ryall https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-ryall/

VOW : https://www.vowfood.com/

INNERVATION LAB : https://innervationlab.com.au/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris

What does it take to be an effective entrepreneur?

Mark Swinnerton is the founder and CEO of the energy storage startup Green Gravity, but he comes to this role with a tremendous depth of skills earned over two decades rising through the ranks of one of Australia’s largest companies, BHP.

It's a personal resource that Mark draws on daily as he builds a team to help tackle the climate crisis. And while Mark is not an academic himself, he has made a point of deeply engaging with university partners to validate the technical, social, and economic foundations of his energy storage solution, ultimately shaping this promising idea into the world-beating technology Mark knows we need.

GUEST : Mark Swinnerton https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-swinnerton/

GREEN GRAVITY : https://greengravity.com/

BHP: https://www.bhp.com/

EON LABS : https://www.eonlabs.org/

HOST : Dr. Leo Stevens https://www.linkedin.com/in/leostevensinc/

MUSIC : Purple Planet Music https://www.purple-planet.com Mixed by Dr. Nat Harris