🧬 The Borrowed Computer That Built Oculus - An Unlikely Biotech Journey | Michael Antonov (Part 1/4)
🧬 The Biotech Startups Podcast is powered by Excedr—helping life science startups accelerate R&D and commercialization with founder-friendly equipment leasing. Skip the upfront costs, stay lean, and focus on breakthrough science.
As a TBSP listener, you can get exclusive perks through Excedr’s partner network—special savings, promotions, and more. Explore these offers today: https://www.excedr.com/partners.
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42:16
🧬 The Secret to Biotech Success: Time, Tools & Teamwork | Bogdan Knezevic (Part 4/4)
"It's not about avoiding failure. It's about avoiding every scenario where you look back and say, ‘I could have done this differently and we wouldn't be here.’"
In this episode, host Jon Chee talks with Bogdan Knezevic, co-founder and CEO of Kaleidoscope, about how smart R&D infrastructure decisions can make or break biotech startups. Bogdan shares his journey from scientist to founder and explains how Kaleidoscope empowers teams to harness their data, streamline collaboration, and extend their runway.
The conversation spotlights real-world examples of how operational efficiency and the right tools create compounding advantages, why time is the true currency in biotech, and how accelerating drug development can have a profound impact for patients. Bogdan also reflects on the importance of learning by doing and paying it forward in the entrepreneurial journey.
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43:48
🧬 Purpose-Driven Innovation: Building Teams to Solve Biotech Problems | Bogdan Knezevic (Part 3/4)
"Until you experience a thing, you don’t know a thing. That’s something that bothers me a lot with the investor world-unless you’ve done it, you don’t really know what the grind feels like."
In this episode, Bogdan Knezevic, co-founder and CEO of Kaleidoscope, unpacks how hands-on experience-from the grind at Frequency Therapeutics to launching the Rhodes Incubator-shaped his passion for biotech startups and team building.
He shares the pivotal role of serendipity and authentic networking at Creative Destruction Lab and Entrepreneur First, which ultimately set the stage for founding Kaleidoscope. Bogdan dives into the challenges of innovating biotech R&D infrastructure, the importance of collaboration, and why tackling meaningful problems drives his mission in a rapidly evolving industry.
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35:50
🧬 Letting Go to Level Up: Oxford, Identity, & Tenacity in Biotech | Bogdan Knezevic (Part 2/4)
"If you think you're above whatever-taking out the proverbial trash or doing the proverbial dishes or the laundry, whatever-that's when a company is cooked."
In this episode, Bogdan Knezevic shares his journey from undergrad in Calgary to winning a Rhodes Scholarship and pursuing a PhD at Oxford, reflecting on the personal motivations, cultural shifts, and tough choices that shaped his path-including stepping away from elite swimming and ultimately realizing academia wasn’t for him. He opens up about the isolating yet magical environment of Oxford, the challenge of redefining his identity, and the gritty realities of working in early-stage biotech, emphasizing the importance of humility and hands-on work for startup founders.
The conversation offers a candid look at how self-discovery, setbacks, and a willingness to “do the dishes” can shape a leader’s growth in biotech.
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34:16
🧬Immigrant Grit & Athletic Discipline: Building a Biotech Legacy | Bogdan Knezevic (Part 1/4)
"You have to do what you have to do to get to where you want to be, and work under the constraints you have. That means swallowing your ego and just realizing that's just the reality of it. You have to grind away if you're going to hit that success."
In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Bogdan Knezevic, co-founder and CEO of Kaleidoscope, shares how his family’s escape from war-torn Serbia to Canada forged his relentless work ethic and sense of purpose. He recounts adapting to a new culture, the foundational support of family and mentors, and how his passion for science and math flourished in Canada’s diverse schools.
As an elite swimmer and academic standout, Bogdan learned discipline and balance, skills that now drive his mission to make scientific research more collaborative and impactful. The conversation highlights his commitment to paying it forward by building supportive ecosystems in science and business for future generations
The Biotech Startups Podcast by Excedr features weekly conversations with founders, scientists, and investors driving biotech innovation. Host Jon Chee dives into the challenges of building biotech startups, from pre-seed to IPO. New episodes every Monday and Thursday.
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