🧬 100 Discovery Interviews Built a $3M Biotech Launchpad at Berkeley | Darren Cooke (Part 4/4)

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In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Darren Cooke, Interim Chief Innovation & Entrepreneurship Officer and Executive Director of the Life Sciences Entrepreneurship Center at the University of California, Berkeley, reveals how 100 discovery interviews turned a $3 million campus experiment into a powerhouse for biotech innovation. 

He shares the creation of Berkeley’s flagship fellows program, the launch of speed teaming and venture grants, and how simple ideas like fostering connection and collaboration transformed campus culture. Darren also reflects on the leadership of Chancellor Rich Lyons and offers candid lessons on perseverance, mentorship, and the art of “showing up.”

Key topics covered:

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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/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ddcooke/

Website: http://berkeley.edu/

 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonchee

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/excedr/ 

Website: https://www.excedr.com

Website: https://flow.page/kyojin 

How UC Berkeley Became an Unexpected Leader in Entrepreneurship and Startups: https://iande.berkeley.edu/StartupCampus

Startup Campus (How UC Berkeley became a leader in entrepreneurship) https://a.co/d/5pCg83q 

Berkeley SkyDeck Demo Day: https://skydeck.berkeley.edu/tag/demo_day/

Bakar Faculty Fellows Program: https://bakarfellows.berkeley.edu/

QB3 Speed Teaming program: https://qb3.org/event/bio-startup-speed-teaming/

UC Berkeley: https://www.berkeley.edu/

Haas School of Business (UC Berkeley Haas): https://haas.berkeley.edu/

Venture Capital Fund: https://tinyurl.com/29dnsjpb

Berkeley SkyDeck: https://skydeck.berkeley.edu/

QB3 (California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences): https://qb3.org/

Bakar Labs: https://bakarlabs.berkeley.edu/

Rich Lyons: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rich-lyons-30332b1/

David Kirn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidkirnmd/

Tobias Schmid: https://www.linkedin.com/in/taschmid/

Paul Alivisatos: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-alivisatos-4b313b6/

Ariel Notcovic: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariel-notcovich/

Justin Reese,: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-reese-3419b24/

Hannah Weber: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-weber001/

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:01 Darren’s Berkeley Faculty Journey

03:03 The $3 Million Startup Experiment

05:24 Launching the Fellows Program

08:43 The I-Corps Mindset Shift

10:25 Signature Berkeley Showcase Event

11:51 Speed Teaming for Startup Connections

14:17 Haas & Life Sciences Cross-Campus Partnerships

17:18 Startup Success Story: Reese & Weber

20:10 Berkeley’s Shift Toward Entrepreneurship

24:45 Chancellor Lyons’ Impact & Venture Fund

27:38 Scaling Programs and Entrepreneur in Residence

32:24 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.