The Biotech Startups Podcast
🧬 Oguzhan Atay - Part 2 | From Immigrant to Biotech Innovator | Battling Deportation with Nobel Laureate Support | Building a $140M Prenatal Testing Empire
February 13, 2025
Part 2 of 2: Our guest today is Oguzhan Atay, Co-founder & CEO of BillionToOne. BillionToOne is a precision diagnostics company that quantifies biology to create powerful molecular diagnostics. They work to improve disease detection by counting molecules with their proprietary molecular counting platform. They place patients at the forefront of everything they do and are currently applying their proprietary technology to non-invasive prenatal screening and liquid biopsy. Oguzhan holds a Ph.D. from Stanford in Systems Biology, where he implemented machine learning algorithms and mathematical models to solve specific problems in cellular biology and developed a data-driven mathematical framework to simplify the analysis of complex biological networks. He also has a degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton, as well as minors in Computer Science, Physics, and Applied Mathematics. Oguzhan not only combines deep technical expertise with visionary leadership, but he also has an incredibly inspirational immigrant journey, which makes this series a must-listen for first-time founders, scientists, and industry leaders alike.
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Part 2 of 2: Our guest today is Oguzhan Atay, Co-founder & CEO of BillionToOne. BillionToOne is a precision diagnostics company that quantifies biology to create powerful molecular diagnostics. They work to improve disease detection by counting molecules with their proprietary molecular counting platform. They place patients at the forefront of everything they do and are currently applying their proprietary technology to non-invasive prenatal screening and liquid biopsy.

Oguzhan holds a Ph.D. from Stanford in Systems Biology, where he implemented machine learning algorithms and mathematical models to solve specific problems in cellular biology and developed a data-driven mathematical framework to simplify the analysis of complex biological networks. He also has a degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton, as well as minors in Computer Science, Physics, and Applied Mathematics.

Oguzhan not only combines deep technical expertise with visionary leadership, but he also has an incredibly inspirational immigrant journey, which makes this series a must-listen for first-time founders, scientists, and industry leaders alike.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

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Find Our Guest, Oguzhan Atay, at these links: 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/oatay/ 
https://billiontoone.com/ 

Find Our Host, Jon Chee, at these links: 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee
https://www.excedr.com

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Podcast Website: https://www.thebiotechstartupspodcast.com/ 

Enriched Notes: 

Topics Mentioned:
BillionToOne https://billiontoone.com/ 
Y Combinator https://www.ycombinator.com/ 
Common Mistakes Biotechs Make & How to Avoid Them https://www.excedr.com/blog/common-business-mistakes 
How to Fund an R&D Startup https://www.excedr.com/resources/rd-startup-funding-first-steps 
Guide to the Venture Capitalist Decision https://www.excedr.com/resources/guide-to-the-venture-capitalist-decision-making-process 

People Mentioned:
David Tsao https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidtsao/
Jim Collins https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_C._Collins 

Timestamps: 
00:00 - Intro
02:28 - The origin of BillionToOne and early challenges
06:48 - Y Combinator's role and initial funding struggles
12:24 - Meeting co-founders and pivoting based on market needs
17:17 - Realizing the importance of the problem in the United States
24:11 - Building physical infrastructure and scaling operations
32:04 - Company culture, hiring philosophy, and growth strategy
38:55 - Expanding into oncology and future product lines
46:40 - Plans for going public and becoming a generational company
53:42 - Shoutouts to supporters and overcoming immigration challenges
59:34 - Advice to his 21-year-old self: keeping an open mind
01:02:51 - Outro

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