Putting the “Tech” in Biotech: An Unconventional Path to Building a Therapeutics Company, with Federico Paoletti, PhD

Federico Paoletti, co-founder of Exogene, founded his biotech company immediately after finishing his PhD, which led to a steep learning curve and many valuable lessons he now shares with other founders. He and his co-founder learned to operate like a tech startup inside biotech: validate the market before the product, iterate fast, and let customer discovery shape the platform thesis. He shares how a tough SF fundraising trip reframed their pitch from an asset-only story to a bigger, platform-driven vision that fits the right investor audience. We dig into non-dilutive funding tactics, using a success-fee grant writer, building a lab-in-the-loop data flywheel without overhiring, and hiring senior talent creatively with part-time plus equity to reach milestones without burning runway. We also cover the founder mindset: asking “dumb” questions to accelerate learning, leveraging mentors who understand both tech and biotech, tracking macro signals to time raises, and pushing back on default VC expectations when they don’t serve the company’s stage.

• Exogene – Unlocking curative TCR-based therapies
• Connect with Federico on LinkedIn

Connect with us!

Link In with Carina

Subscribe here:

• Apple
• Spotify
• Google Podcast
• RSS feed

Learn more about Recruitomics Consulting

Check out our reading list

Download our free startup resources guide to grow your biotech efficiently

If you're on the job market, visit the Collaboratory Career Hub

00:00 Founder arc and why market-first beats tech-first in biotech

06:30 The SF trip that reframed the story: asset vs. platform, and pitching the right investor

2:45 Building a non-dilutive funding stack: six UK grants, early platform revenue, friends-and-family as match

18:10 Success-fee grant writer playbook and how non-scientist reviewers evaluate

22:00 Hiring to milestones: part-time senior talent + equity, geo-distributed team to extend runway

27:30 Mentors who span tech and biotech, and the cadence that compounds

31:40 Founder mindset: ask “dumb” questions, iterate in public, push back on default VC expectations

36:20 Watching macro signals (e.g., NVDA) to time raises and plan runway