John Ho

Excited for DCVC portfolio co Alta Resource Technologies to emerge from stealth! The design space of biology is many orders of magnitude larger than inorganic chemistry, and Alta uses it to massively reduce the cost of extracting rare earth metals. https://lnkd.in/g_q5UwRF

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AI and Med Tech in Focus   AI System Developed to Identify Pathology in Tissues Engineers at Washington State University have developed an AI tool that uses images of human and animal tissue to detect abnormalities faster and more accurately than people. The AI algorithm was trained using images from past studies that involved kidney, testes, ovarian, prostate, breast and lymph node abnormalities. The new model detected disease in minutes—current processes take humans several hours and require specialized teams to check each other’s work. It was also found to be more accurate, sometimes detecting instances that humans had missed. The engineers designed the system to handle the processing load of the high-resolution gigapixel images by breaking them down into smaller tiles but still retaining the overall context of the tissue sample—akin to the zoom feature on a microscope or phone camera. Aside from getting diagnostic results more accurately and quickly, the new system also shows promise in epigenetics (the study of molecular processes that change gene behavior without changing underlying DNA). Epigenetic researchers can perform analyses and get results that used to take a year or more in just a couple of weeks. VC Investors are always adjusting their "Play Book" with a variety of options for investing. Mikal Ventures is one of those alternatives, offering curated solutions to real world problems. Reach out if you have questions on how we can be of assistance and bookmark https://mikalventures.com/ for additional insights and information.

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I'm so excited to continue supporting Prolific Machines, Inc., and the incredible Deniz Kent, PhD ,Max Huisman, and Declan Jones. Today's cellular biology processes are incredibly expensive, inefficient, imprecise, and sometimes purely ineffective. These processes are used from everything from making antibodies to treat diseases, to fermentation used to make high-value nutritional proteins in baby formula, to whole cuts of cultured meat. Prolific has developed a biology platform that leverages light to guide cell behavior and optimize performance over time using AI. By combining light, bioengineering, hardware, and AI in fundamentally new ways, Prolific can help pharmaceutical, nutritional, and therapeutics companies get to market faster, less expensively, and more efficiently — ultimately in hopes of helping improve outcomes — a mission any of us can get behind. Mark Cuban Peter T. Frederick Blackford Cooper Rinzler David Adelman Darco Capital Breakthrough Energy Michael Schulson Kevin Love Tobias Harris Breyer Capital Charles Besser Brennan Besser Lettuce Entertain You Restaurants https://lnkd.in/ea2TqdQk

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If you work in tech transfer this is a good read-in on how our diligence tech can assess and evaluate assets with minimal inputs. The best way to learn more is to see it live! Reach out to me directly to learn more!

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🧩 One thing we've noticed with #VentureIQ technology is how well it can distill and communicate complex technical material 🧩 Whether it's a #deeptech venture, a novel #AI application, or even a patent submission, we can quickly distill the business and strategic implications for investors...and sometimes even the founders/PIs themselves! 🤯 Based on our work so far, the tech can handle a wide array of research areas and technological sectors -- anything from blockchain algorithms to vaccine development. It handles the nuance of the field, the specific terminology, and extracts the key concepts which matter for venture-building. 🤓 To demonstrate, I took a patent I helped write with Eric Laber on reinforcement learning. I ran it through #Ventureiq to build a commercial assessment (key differentiators, target markets). Then for fun I had #NotebookLM make a podcast out of it. I've uploaded the result it here (DM me if you'd like the actual report): https://lnkd.in/eiTejsny This is more than just automation or streamlining operations - it's about unlocking clarity and insight when it was previously unattainable, and the ability to do it over and over again no matter the sector or vertical. Interested in more info? DM me so we can chat.

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Berkeley SkyDeck is offering cash, resources, and critical introductions for admitted startups to its next cohort. Founders, review Darren Cooke’s great summary for health startups and other multi-stakeholder startups to convey your value proposition to potential investors and partners. I would like to add: Please include the data showing how you have validated your value proposition by talking to many, many decision makers. You must validate the key aspects of your business model with customer data to attract the key resources and partners you need to go from vision to reality. You can do this! 💪🏼 Go Bears 🐻! #startups #venturecapital #innovation #entrepreneurship | University of California, Berkeley | University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business | UC Berkeley Innovation & Entrepreneurship

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This is just incredible. Neal Ghosh's demonstration of how #VentureIQ takes deeply technical and complicated content across a range of industrial use cases and ages/stages through an AI-generated conversational podcast (a la #notebookLM) is really mind-blowing. Check out his post, below, and if you haven't seen VentureIQ, yet, let's get you set up to learn more. You can visit VentureIQ.ai or DM any of us over here to book a demo!

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At R7, we felt it was kind of silly for scientists to spend millions of hours per year, manually counting spores in a petri dish. We partnered with Reshape Biotech last year to provide a full-stack automation platform capable of streamlining everything from plate filling to diagnostics, slashing time-to-market by 10x and cutting costs by up to 70%. 🌟 Vision 🔬 : To build a new generation of lab equipment – and the infrastructure behind it – so that scientists and technicians can dramatically accelerate their work. Carl-Emil Grøn Magnus Madsen

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Positive news for US manufacturing - TSMC’s Arizona facility is doing better than expected. Bloomberg reports the site is producing chips at 4% higher yields than similar Taiwan facilities. That’s big, especially for those of us who wondered if this complex manufacturing would fly stateside. After a couple of production delays, TSMC just came back and crushed expectations. This extra 4% yield is proof we can make this happen right here in the U.S. This isn’t just a win for TSMC - it’s a win for all of us banking on the CHIPS Act to reshape the global semiconductor map. High yields mean we’re not just manufacturing but doing it with some serious efficiency. And if that doesn’t help build momentum for more US-made chips, I don’t know what will.

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I spent many weeks researching the story of Robin Zeng and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (or CATL) -- the powerful and politically divisive battery maker that commands the largest global market share (and growing) Zeng's story is nothing short of the classic rags to riches narrative we all worship, yet...there are many useful lessons to learn on how/why certain industrial policies succeed via the CATL/Robin Zeng lens These lessons are all the more timely given what is happening to Intel, Stellantis, Northvolt. In my view, CATL could not have existed without China's exclusionary subsidies. Robin Zeng started CATL as a spin out from TDK Corporations, because TDK was Japanese, thus wouldn't qualify for gov't subsidies. Yet, that's not the end of the story. CATL still had to compete with 200+ domestic companies, like BYD etc. Favorable treatment was also removed after a few years, foreign battery companies were invited back into China (LG, Samsung, Panasonic), so CATL had to prove its worth. Yes, it got a leg up initially, but wasn't coddled and protected indefinitely Robin Zeng was also a rare breed...read my story on why. What can we learn from this? Industrial policy works in 3 steps: 1. Subsidize/protect/spur new startups 2. Stop protection, invite competition 3. Hopefully you get a Robin Zeng (or Wang Chuanfu) among your population who is as talented (and paranoid) as Andy Grove to rise above the ashes Agree? Disagree? Either way, I hope you give my telling of the Robin Zeng story a read. It deserves to be told properly. https://lnkd.in/eXXt5mna

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AI in Focus  Wearable Camera Detects Injectable Drug Administration Errors Collaborative researchers from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Washington, Makerere University and Toyota Research Institute have developed a wearable camera that uses AI to detect injectable drug administration errors. The system used video data sets from cameras strapped to doctors’ foreheads in different operating rooms with different backgrounds and lighting conditions and focused on the physicians’ hands. Then using deep learning, they trained the algorithm to detect visual clues like vial and syringe shape, label color, and font size to determine what the drug was. Currently, errors happen when a wrong vial is used or the drug label in the syringe is incorrect (vial swap errors) or when the label is correct, but the clinician administers the wrong drug (syringe swap errors). Hospitals use bar codes to prevent these errors, but in high pressure situations, these safeguards sometimes are forgotten. Approximately 1.2 million patients experience errors in injectable medications annually, at a cost of about $5 billion. Using the AI camera system, vial swap errors were detected in 99.6% of cases where they occurred and syringe swap errors in 98.8% of cases.  The next step is for researchers to incorporate the new system into smart eyewear that can provide visual or auditory warnings before a drug is delivered. Further, the new system provides opportunities for automatic documentation of drug injection information and reduced manual record keeping. VC Investors are always adjusting their "Play Book" with a variety of options for investing. Mikal Ventures is one of those alternatives, offering curated solutions to real world problems. Reach out if you have questions on how we can be of assistance and bookmark https://mikalventures.com/ for additional insights and information.

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Open AI GPT-4o announced yesterday, fascinating. Omni modal, one mind with text, image, video 2x faster 50% cheaper 5x higher rate limits AI is moving so fast. I'm thinking about what it means for manufacturing and enterprise data. Used another of my favorite software tools Loom to record a quick 'Opinion' while watching some of their Youtube video demo, showing it reading a temperature variation chart and acting as a simple data analyst. What do you think GPT 4o and the direction implies for enterprise data stacks and manufacturing AI? My takeaway - we need to rethink data architectures from 'how do I design for crazy busy humans' to 'how do I design for AIs with near infinite time to read charts and reports and finally summarize/interact with humans'. Reflecting on how much human-work goes into defining the simplest possible red/yellow/green KPI from a mountain of data, like getting everything into MQTT for a final OEE score. We do so much to help a human make a decision spending 10 seconds or less glancing at a final graph or number. When instead imagine using those 10 seconds the human has to be able to ask/interact with an AI that can have read 1000's of graphs/reports in advance, built on rich contextualized data, just to best answer your question. Wow. https://lnkd.in/eSgZAbjx

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Most folks engage with us early in their product development process. Much of the time, we are a great fit for the manufacturing but NOT the product development. Naturally, we look to lean on our network and make introductions to product development firms. The innovators inevitably ask us -- How do we choose the right Product Development firm for our project? (that will be another post for another day. go talk to 3-5 firms, in different places, at different sizes, and see who you like) The NEXT question folks ask is -- How much will this cost? ($100,000 - $1,000,000 is a canned answer) Ok, really though, hourly rates range from $75 to $500+, why the disparity—and how do you decide what’s right for you? Again, SUPER high level. Every project is different. BUT, at a glance... Here’s a quick breakdown: 1️⃣ Hourly Rates Vary by Expertise: Small firms/freelancers: $75–$150/hour Mid-sized firms: $150–$300/hour Large, specialized firms: $300–$500+/hour The differences are often due to experience, location, tools, and risk management. I am also seeing more firms do away with hourly and swap to a monthly retainer or per-project / per-stage fee structure. 2️⃣ How to Decide What Fits Your Needs: Low Budget (<$50k): Startups and simple designs? Freelancers or small firms can work great. Mid-Range Budget ($50k–$150k): For balancing expertise and cost, mid-sized firms are ideal. High Budget ($150k+): Complex, regulated projects? You’ll need a full-service partner. 3️⃣ Find Your Perfect Match: Define your goals: What stage are you in—ideation, prototyping, or scaling? Evaluate portfolios: Look for firms with experience in your product’s niche. Start small: Test with a limited-scope project before committing to the full journey. Maybe toe in the water with a feasibility study. 4️⃣ Domestic vs. Overseas Firms: USA-Based Firms: Offer closer collaboration, reduced communication gaps, and a better understanding of local compliance requirements. Ideal for high-touch projects or when speed to market is critical. Overseas Firms: Typically more cost-effective but may involve longer lead times, language barriers, or timezone challenges. Best suited for well-defined projects with clear deliverables. 💡 Pro Tip: Don’t overlook mid-sized firms for their mix of efficiency and expertise, especially for scaling production or optimizing designs for manufacturing. What questions do you wish you could ask a PD firm? I am toying with the idea of an interview series... Throw some questions in the comments that you'd like to have answered by subject-matter experts.

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#TBThursday … In 2010 Tony Fadell co-founded Nest Labs to reinvent thermostats. Based on the founder’s pedigree and press coverage I figured Nest would be an active patent filer. By November 2011 it was approaching 18 months since the date of founding, so any patent applications filed around that time would soon be published. A search of USPTO databases found nothing. OK ... that was just fine because it gave me room to have some fun. What technology would be disclosed in the first patent application?    I wrote “In terms of hardware there is likely a micro-controller with embedded memory for code, maybe some stand-alone memory ... sensors and communications integrated circuits. At first glance this seems to be a pretty standard kit for data collection and control...   What about software or methods of operation? Like the old analogue thermostats, the Nest thermostat takes a minimum of inputs. The Nest website suggests there are two. A heat to temperature and a cool to temperature. Once these are entered the thermostat learns, which is where it becomes interesting. One might envision “A System and Method for Controlling Temperature” incorporating the two temperature settings and data collected during operation thereof.”   In April 2012 the USPTO database started to light up. US 2012/0065783 or “Thermodynamic Modelling of Enclosures” was the first published application. It turned out I was not too far off in my earlier thinking. Within a short time, there were 20+ published applications. They were busy inventing and protecting!   https://lnkd.in/ekbPMBCh #patents #nestlabs #ipmart #ipstrategy

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Excited to announce our investment in Alta Resource Technologies alongside Leonardo Banchik (Voyager Ventures) with participation from Orion Resource Partners, Overture Ventures, and WovenEarth Ventures. Rare earths are critical in products from magnets to ceramics and it's important for the US to develop its own supply chain. While the US has some of the best rare earth resources, separating them has historically proven expensive and environmentally unfriendly. Alta through it's computationally designed and optimized proteins allows the US to bring back rare earth production with a cleaner, lower capex, and lower opex solution - and that's just the beginning. Congrats to Nathan Ratledge and the entire Alta team. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gbGnAJn3

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Excited to announce Frist Cressey Ventures' investment in Qualified Health and privileged to partner w/ SignalFire, Healthier Capital, Town Hall Ventures and others!   Healthcare costs are increasing at a faster rate than ever before, with the US spending nearly twice as other wealthy countries and still ranking bottom in outcomes. It's a story you've all heard - - US healthcare is known for astronomical inefficiencies, waste, workforce supply constraints, fragmented access, appalling patient experiences, and driving patients and businesses into debt.   Yes these problems present opportunities. But opportunities are limited to the system's appetite for change, desire and incentive to try something new and the innovation available. At FCV we believe we've hit the trifecta with Generative AI. Generative AI has given us truly transformational tools in the toolkit and the healthcare ecosystem is demanding to absorb its benefits. This perfect collision of supply and demand means healthcare is poised for big change.   Generative AI is everywhere, it's buzzy, it dangles hope and opportunity. But many things need to be true for the Gen AI transformation in healthcare to take hold, such as but not limited to:   💡 Patient lives and data need to remain safe: We believe in a highly regulated and human life-touching sector such as healthcare we must ensure Gen AI can drive to unrivalled savings and improvements in the quality of care WHILE not putting patient lives or data at risk.   💡 Systems need to own their utilization of Gen AI: We believe systems will use some hybrid of external partners and homegrown solutions but importantly will want full control of data provisioning and utilization as well as the ability to solve an unlimited number of nuanced issues and not cookie cutter algorithms.   💡 Costs need to be looked at on an enterprise level: We believe the speed of innovation in Gen AI means costs will continue decreasing dramatically but at an enterprise level this will still not be a small detail. Systems will want the ability to understand costs and delegate as needed for the outcomes desired at the organizational level.   Enter Qualified.   We knew when we met Justin Norden, MD, MBA, MPhil and team we were standing in front of changemakers. These individuals have lived and breathed the true application and implementation of Generative AI far before we were asking ChatGPT to write our emails. In fact, if you’ve ever driven in a Waymo you’ve benefited from past products this team has built.   Qualified Health is on a mission to enforce governance in Gen AI, allow systems to rapidly build for their needs, monitor and make decisions for all GenAI (homegrown and external) and accelerate the value the sector can glean from these new technologies.   Huge shout out to William T., Tommaso Auerbach and Jamie Kuntz for their hard work!

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Are you developing a medical device or digital health? Come learn about regulatory and legal impacts and how design for manufacturing is critical to your startup's success.

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Last week, I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion on navigating FOAK in climate tech at the Greentown Labs Summit in Boston (which had >600 people!!). Here’s a quick rundown of what was shared by Katherine St. James of Spring Lane Capital, Paris Smalls, PhD of Eden GeoPower, and Hannah Friedman of Planeteer Capital: 🌱 What is the definition of FOAK? We discussed how the term can be controversial - it's almost too general because it doesn't identify what kind of "First" FOAK refers to - first team project? First geography? First of a technology in a sector? First time for the integration of a system? It's also too specific because it has the word "first" in it, which can be anathema to later stage / project finance investors. 💰 Partnerships for Funding FOAK Projects We discussed how important it is to build a blended capital stack & use off-balance sheet capital for a project so you're not using the most expensive equity dollars to fund an infrastructure project with low-ish IRR. We also talked through being creative about using corporate partners to provide in-kind services or ink some agreement (at least an LOI) to attract this funding. 🏛 Role of Government We talked about how government capital is seen by investors & how it can be catalytic for FOAK. Government capital can provide validation that a startup has passed a rigorous diligence process by a third party - and incentives like grants or credits can help improve returns for the first project- but it's important to be doing this in conjunction with getting customer validation and to be able to present line of sight to competitive economics without concessionary capital. 👥 Advice for FOAK startups The panelists offered some very specific pieces of advice for startups going through FOAK: how to get creative with things like revenue sharing agreements or convertible notes, getting smart with project development early on (like with DeveloperU), being careful about using FOAK too liberally with certain investor groups, getting the right commercialization / FOAK talent in and around you early Huge thanks to the panelists and the team at Greentown Labs (Jill Kirkpatrick, Julia Travaglini, Aisling Carlson, etc you rocked it!!) for hosting this discussion on bridging the FOAK gap. Also immensely enjoyed the rest of the agenda. Check out the full recap & videos here: https://lnkd.in/d9ApYe9Y #ClimateTech #FOAK #ClimateFinance #ProjectDevelopment #GreenTech #CleanEnergy

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Adam Keating discussing how AI is going to change manufacturing and how CoLab Software is helping them make that transition with ReviewAI

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