🧬Michael Chen - Nuclera - Part 1 | Influence of a Data-Driven Family | Do the Dishes in a Lab | NIH-Oxford Cambridge Scholarship Program | What Got Us Here Won’t Get Us There
November 4, 2024
Part 1 of 2: Jon Chee hosts our latest guest, Michael Chen, the Co-Founder and CEO of Nuclera, a biotech company that focuses on bringing rapid protein access to other labs. Michael is a seasoned scientist and entrepreneur who brings his rich background and insights to our podcast.
Before becoming the Co-Founder of Nuclera, Michael did extensive research as an undergrad student at both Georgia tech and Emory and eventually got his Ph,D in Chemistry from the University of Cambridge. Having worked under some of the leading scientists in their field Michael also has 9 scientific publications to his name. His past experiences both at the lab bench and as a CEO make these episodes ones you don’t want to miss.
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Part 1 of 2: Jon Chee hosts our latest guest, Michael Chen, the Co-Founder and CEO of Nuclera, a biotech company that focuses on bringing rapid protein access to other labs. Michael is a seasoned scientist and entrepreneur who brings his rich background and insights to our podcast.
Before becoming the Co-Founder of Nuclera, Michael did extensive research as an undergrad student at both Georgia tech and Emory and eventually got his Ph,D in Chemistry from the University of Cambridge. Having worked under some of the leading scientists in their field Michael also has 9 scientific publications to his name. His past experiences both at the lab bench and as a CEO make these episodes ones you don’t want to miss.
Join us this week to hear about:
- The influence of growing up in a data-driven family
- Learning to do the damn dishes in the lab
- Getting into the NIH Oxford Cambridge Scholarship Program
- Learning that what got us here won’t get us to where we need to be
- Differences between lab work in the UK versus the US
Please enjoy Jon’s conversation with Michael Chen!
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Enriched Notes
Topics Mentioned:
Emory University
Nicholas Hud: Origins of Life Research: https://www.storycollider.org/stories/2016/1/4/nick-hud-the-origin-of-life
Witchweed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striga
Rhizosphere: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhizosphere
NIH Oxford Cambridge Scholars Program: https://oxcam.gpp.nih.gov/
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture: https://www.iita.org/
How Core Lab Support Science Research: https://www.excedr.com/blog/core-labs
What is Tech Transfer?: https://www.excedr.com/blog/what-is-tech-transfer
What Type of Equipment is Used in Chemistry Research: https://www.excedr.com/blog/what-type-of-equipment-is-used-in-chemistry-research
Top Biotech Cities: https://www.excedr.com/blog/top-cities-for-biotech
Biotech Startup Support: https://www.excedr.com/resources-category/biotech-startup-support
People Mentioned:
Nicholas Hud: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-hud-754a7517/
Timestamps:
00:49 Intro
02:44 Growing up in a technical, data-driven family and other early life influences
06:24 Choosing appearances over function in elementary school
09:52 Family background of Jon Chee and how the Bay Area influenced Excedr
11:34 How researching crop science sparked an interest in scientific research
16:27 The secret of getting access to Emory's labs via Georgia Tech
18:02 Learning to "Do the damn dishes" in the lab at Georgia Tech
23:00 Getting his PhD through the NIH Oxford Cambridge Scholarship Program
29:01 Challenges and culture shock of doing research in Nigeria
32:57 Lessons of resilience entrepreneurs can learn from having limited resources
36:31 Running a startup is like spinning lots of plates
40:15 "What got us here won't get us there" and knowing when it's time to spend
45:49 What it was like working in labs in the UK versus the US
48:08 Differences between the UK and US Ph.D tracks
52:11 Outro
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