🧬 Video Games & a Whim Led Me to Microsoft | Javier Tordable (1/4)
July 20, 2026
In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Jon Chee sits down with Javier Tordable, founder and CEO of Pauling AI, a company building the first fully autonomous drug discovery platform that enables scientists to go from a research idea to validated drug molecules in days, not years. Named after Linus Pauling, the only person in history to win two unshared Nobel Prizes, the company reflects Javier's conviction that first principles engineering can be applied to one of science's most consequential problems.
🧬 The Biotech Startups Podcast is powered by Excedr—helping life science startups accelerate R&D and commercialization with founder-friendly equipment leasing. Skip the upfront costs, stay lean, and focus on breakthrough science.
As a TBSP listener, you can get exclusive perks through Excedr's partner network—special savings, promotions, and more. Explore these offers today: https://www.excedr.com/partners
"I think so many of us started playing video games as young adults or as teenagers. And that leads you to a path where you think, well, how does this work?"
In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Jon Chee sits down with Javier Tordable, founder and CEO of Pauling AI, a company building the first fully autonomous drug discovery platform that enables scientists to go from a research idea to validated drug molecules in days, not years. Named after Linus Pauling, the only person in history to win two unshared Nobel Prizes, the company reflects Javier's conviction that first principles engineering can be applied to one of science's most consequential problems.
Before founding Pauling AI, Javier spent sixteen years at Google, rising to staff engineer and serving as technical director in the office of the CTO, partnering with companies like Nintendo, Ubisoft, and Electronic Arts. In Part 1 of this four-part conversation, Javier traces his early years in 1990s Spain, where a love of video games sparked a self-taught journey into programming, a father who taught high school mathematics planted a deep love of the discipline, and a chance encounter with a university poster led to a Microsoft internship that permanently redirected his career.
Key Topics Covered:
- Early Years in Spain: How a childhood curiosity for science and engineering set the foundation for a career in technology.
- Video Games as a Gateway: How playing classic LucasArts adventures and Nintendo 64 games sparked a self-taught journey into programming.
- Self-Taught Programming: Navigating the early internet in 1990s Spain to learn Visual Basic and game development without formal instruction.
- The Golden Age of Gaming: How the late 90s explosion of creative, risk-taking game development shaped a generation of technologists.
- Gaming Skills in Modern Tech: How resource management and optimization instincts from games like StarCraft translate to managing AI agents today.
- A Father's Influence: How a high school math teacher parent planted a deep love of mathematics that underpinned a career in computational science.
If you enjoy The Biotech Startups Podcast, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing it with your friends. Thanks for listening.
Subscribe to the Podcast:
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-biotech-startups-podcast/id1679591994
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PSL162R2s0zOwU5913Zv4
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thebiotechstartupspodcast
Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/
Find our guest, Javier Tordable at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtordable
Website: https://www.pauling.ai/
Find our host, Jon Chee, at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee/
Learn more about Excedr:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/
Website: https://www.excedr.com
Intro & Outro Songs Created by OkKyojin, Owned by Excedr:
Website: https://flow.page/kyojin
Resources & Articles:
Operating Lease: https://www.excedr.com/blog/operating-lease
Molecular Biology: https://www.excedr.com/blog/what-is-molecular-biology
NDA Process: https://www.excedr.com/blog/new-drug-application-process
IND Application: https://www.excedr.com/blog/ind-application-process
FDA Drug Approval: https://www.excedr.com/blog/fda-drug-approval-process-guide
Companies, Universities, & People Mentioned:
Google: https://www.google.com
Microsoft: https://www.microsoft.com
Pauling AI: https://www.pauling.ai
Nintendo: https://www.nintendo.com
Linus Pauling: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linus_Pauling
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
04:18 Childhood in Spain & Early Interests
06:14 Parents Supportive of Gaming Habit
07:37 First Computer & Golden Age of Gaming
11:40 StarCraft Skills & Agent Management
13:34 Self-Taught Programming & Early Internet
15:14 Father's Influence & Love of Mathematics
17:54 Spotting the Microsoft Internship Poster
19:03 Applying on a Whim Before Deadline
20:11 Only Spanish Hire at Microsoft
24:14 Early Microsoft Experiences & Career Pivot
25:14 Outro
The Biotech Startups Podcast gives you a front-row seat to the business and science of building a biotech. Hosted by Jon Chee, CEO of Excedr, the show features honest conversations with founders, execs, and investors about their work, their companies, and how they got there. From scientific breakthroughs to startup lessons, each episode explores what it really takes to grow a life science company—from pre-seed to IPO.