638. Are You Ready for the Elder Swell?
In the U.S., there will soon be more people over 65 than there are under 18 — and it’s not just lifespan that’s improving, it’s “healthspan” too. Unfortunately, the American approach to aging is stuck in the 20th century. In less than an hour, we try to unstick it. (Part three of a three-part series, “Cradle to Grave.”)
SOURCES:James Chappel, professor of history at Duke University.
Katy Fike, co-founder of Aging 2.0 and managing partner of Generator Ventures.
Kristen Fortney, co-founder and C.E.O. of BioAge.
Celine Halioua, founder and C.E.O. of Loyal.
Kyla Scanlon, economic commentator.
Andrew Scott, professor of economics at London Business School.
RESOURCES:In This Economy?: How Money & Markets Really Work, by Kyla Scanlon (2024).
Golden Years: How Americans Invented and Reinvented Old Age, by James Chappel (2024).
The Longevity Imperative: How to Build a Healthier and More Productive Society to Support Our Longer Lives, by Andrew Scott (2024).
EXTRAS:"Off Leash," by The Freakonomics Radio Network (2022).
"Are You Ready for a Glorious Sunset?" by Freakonomics Radio (2015).
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How to Build a Biotech with Celine Halioua at Loyal
This episode is brought to you by Warp. Don’t let payroll and compliance hold your startup back: visit https://joinwarp.com/peel to get started and receive a $1000 gift card when you first run payroll.
Celine Halioua is the founder and CEO of Loyal, a biotech company developing medicine to help dogs live longer and healthier lives. And dogs are just the start - Celine thinks Loyal could one day do the same for humans.
She takes us inside what it’s like to build a biotech company from scratch. We talk through how Loyal’s longevity drugs work, the process of getting FDA approval, her biggest mistakes as a founder, how to approach building in a new market, lessons learned failing to raise her Series B, why rate of growth is all that matters in hiring, and almost not starting the company in the first place.
Timestamps:
(00:00) Preview
(03:30) How a longevity drug works
(06:08) Predictions around longevity
(08:26) Why Celine cares so much about not failing
(12:05) Differences between biotech and software startups
(14:15) Sizing a new market
(16:53) Why biotech startups are more dilutive early on
(20:22) Getting FDA approval
(22:57) Why its hard to prove longevity drugs actually work
(24:48) The reason Loyal started with dogs
(25:27) How Loyal’s drug slows aging
(33:42) Working on longevity to increase free will
(34:25) Culture shock at Oxford and dropping out of her PhD
(37:22) What makes Josh Koppelman a good VC
(39:44) Celine’s two biggest mistakes as a founder
(42:39) Why rate of growth is the best indicator of success but the hardest to predict
(45:33) Self awareness & how being a CEO is both fun and miserable
(48:11) How Laura Deming convinced her to start Loyal
(50:18) Finding the science behind Loyal
(54:21) Deciding it was the right path to start a company
(56:30) Lessons from failing to raise a Series B initially
(1:02:18) Why Silicon Valley can build 10x more deep tech startups
(1:04:05) Doing big things that improve the world
(1:04:50) What Celine looks for in startups
Where to find Celine:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/celinehalioua
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/celinehh/
Celine's Website: https://www.celinehh.com/
Where to find Turner:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TurnerNovak
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/turnernovak/
Newsletter: https://www.thespl.it/
Next Unicorns: Developing drugs to extend dog lifespans with Loyal CEO Celine Halioua | E1799
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Today’s show:
Loyal CEO and Founder Celine Halioua joins Jason to discuss developing drugs that delay dog aging (10:19), lessons learned as a solo founder (49:34), and much more!
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Time stamps:
(0:00) Loyal CEO Celine Halioua joins Jason
(1:43) The human dream of achieving life extension
(4:37) Celine’s background
(8:48) Fount - Get $500 off at https://fount.bio/twist
(10:19) Why Celine decided to start with a focus on dogs
(16:43) Wegovy, Ozempic, and the category of drugs that Loyal is developing
(20:44) Breaking down how the drugs work and the consequences of selective breeding
(24:21) LinkedIn Jobs - Post your first job for free at https://linkedin.com/unicorn
(25:36) Stem cell therapy and the placebo effect
(33:29) Environmental factors to consider in drug development
(37:05) The path to commercialization
(39:27) Catalog - Get $1200 off right now at https://trycatalog.com/twist
(40:56) Staying intellectually curious and the path to commercialization continued
(46:11) Hitting Series A milestones with less than $500K of the original $5M raised in seed round
(49:34) Lessons learned as a solo founder
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Follow Celine: https://twitter.com/celinehalioua
Check out Loyal: https://loyalfordogs.com/
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Read LAUNCH Fund 4 Deal Memo: https://www.launch.co/four
Apply for Funding: https://www.launch.co/apply
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Great recent interviews: Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland, PrayingForExits, Jenny Lefcourt
Check out Jason’s suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
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Follow Jason:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jason
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis
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Follow TWiST:
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartups
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekin
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