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    Angel Invest Boston

    In the Decade of Biotech when there will be myriad opportunities to invest in angel-scale biotech startups. After decades of angel investing, I am focusing on the life science side of my portfolio and invite other angels to do the same. Here's why: https://www.labcoatventures.com/why-we-are-focused-on-early-stage-biotech/ I’m Sal Daher, host of the Angel Invest Boston Podcast. After immigrating to Boston as a child and attending Belmont High School, I studied engineering at MIT and Stanford. Decades of work in international finance followed. During that time, I invested in a handful of ventures founded by friends and acquaintances. Now, I’m a member of Walnut Ventures and MIT Angels and spend most of my time as an angel investor. Startups in my portfolio include: SQZ Biotech, Gelesis, Akili Interactive, Vedanta Biosciences, FineTune Learning, Concrete Sensors, Squadle, doDoc, Pixability, Mavrck, Viral Gains, Streamroot, XMOS, Alice's Table and others. Exits include: Exos (Microsoft), Rifiniti (KKR) and PIKA Energy (Generac).
    enSal Daher312 Episodes

    Episodes (312)

    Ben Holmes - Growing New Cartilage

    Ben Holmes - Growing New Cartilage

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Growing new cartilage in your knees is a dream about to become reality. Listen to Ben Holmes, PhD, co-founder of Nanochon, to learn about his promising technology. Shoutout to Richard Meiklejohn of M2D2 for the introduction. 

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Ben Holmes
    • What Problem Nanochon is Solving
    • "... That's really what we're looking to do, is offer a solution that can be a much easier, much more cost-effective solution for providers, but also something that can really provide much better short and long-term outcomes for patients, and, ultimately, make the knee replacement obsolete..."
    • The Solution: What it is, and How it Works
    • "... We're seeing much better repair, and we're doing it with something that's an easy-to-use, off-the-shelf product..."
    • What is I-Corps?
    • Future Funding Plans
    • Names and Numbers
    • Ben's Entrepreneurial Journey
    • Advice to the Audience

     

    Topics: biotech, discovering entrepreneurship, founding story

    Angel Invest Boston
    enAugust 30, 2023

    Drew Madson - Young Readers Win Big

    Drew Madson - Young Readers Win Big

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    During COVID, Readlee, Drew Madson’s startup, offered teachers a highly effective way to measure and remedy reading deficits among online learners. This led to the company being acquired by Paper, the tutoring platform. An inspiring interview.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Drew Madson
    • What Readlee is Solving
    • Behind the Scenes of Readlee
    • How Readlee Came to Be
    • "... COVID just highlighted this need that already existed..."
    • "...I highly recommend checking out The Opportunity Atlas. If listeners haven't looked at this, it's an amazing analysis of how certain interventions can actually improve people's ability to make more money over the course of their lives and have more opportunity and flourishing..."
    • "... What are large language models going to do to this space?..."
    • How Drew Developed an Interest in Education
    • Parting Thoughts

     

    Topics: discovering entrepreneurship, founding story, product

    Angel Invest Boston
    enAugust 23, 2023

    David Kessler - #1 Peeve with Founders

    David Kessler -  #1 Peeve with Founders

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Tech founder David Kessler discusses his journey as an angel investor in companies such as CleanFiber, Wasabi, and Hilltop Bio.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University enrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces David Kessler
    • "... This is like a very counterintuitive investment for angel investors, but it was angel-funded..."
    • The Importance of Updates
    • What Hilltop Bio Does
    • "... This is why I want to create infrastructure to help the angels support these academic founders with connections..."
    • Wasabi
    • "... helping founders hone their messaging, hone their presentation..."
    • "... Basically, the question is, what other ways of looking at the world are there and are you flexible enough to say that there are other ideas out there, and you may wind up pivoting into one of those..."
    • How David Kessler Got into Angel Investing
    • "... Start slow, start small, and don't invest alone..."
    • Advice to the Audience

     

    Topics: angel investing strategies, building wealth, product

    Angel Invest Boston
    enAugust 16, 2023

    Salvatore Viscomi - The Hospital at Home

    Salvatore Viscomi - The Hospital at Home

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Salvatore Viscomi, M.D. is CEO of Carna Health, a digital platform that is making it easier for patients with chronic conditions to do tests at home that would normally have to be done in the hospital.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Salvatore Viscomi
    • What Carna Health is Solving
    • "... We connect the device to our platform, we collect the data, we stage the disease, and then we share that information with the patient-provider..."
    • "... The solution is really to bring the testing to the community, identify the 90% of people that don't know they have it, let them know they have it..."
    • "... The devices on their own without connectivity and without a platform are really not a scalable solution for the type of programs that are needed to make an impact on these diseases ... The doctors are connected through a physician portal, and we identify all the people that are being screened..."
    • Carna Health's Business Model
    • "... We don't want our patients, necessarily, who are not feeling well, have medical conditions, to be exposed to other patients and potentially get infected..."
    • "... One of the ways that Carna Health enables hospital home, is that it provides some of that testing in real-time, so patients don't need to go into a laboratory or phlebotomist..."
    • Digital Twins: What Are They?
    • Salvatore's Entrepreneurial Journey
    • Advice to the Audience
    • "... I think our system has been based on being very reactive to disease as opposed to prevention. The truth is that about 80% of longevity is determined by you and your environment and 20% by your genetics..."

     

    Topics: biotech, discovering entrepreneurship, product, robotics/AI

    Angel Invest Boston
    enAugust 09, 2023

    Nick LaRovere and Matt Hawkins - Pryzm.io

    Nick LaRovere and Matt Hawkins - Pryzm.io

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Nick LaRovere and Matt Hawkins co-founded Pryzm.io seeking to simplify the process of buying a home via technology.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Nick LaRovere and Matt Hawkins

    • What Pryzm.io is Solving

    • "... Nick and I are both technical co-founders. We love building things, and so we're really excited to actually have our product in the hands of our early agent partners here in Boston..."

    • "... We take what is previously only agent-facing tooling, and we flip it around so that the consumer can really take charge of their own transaction. They can be empowered to work autonomously..."

    • The Importance of Renter's Insurance

    • "... real estate is a very congested space from technology perspective. What Pryzm is really trying to do is be that foundational information layer that the rest of the real estate experience can evolve from..."

    • "... at Pryzm we are very much aware of where the opportunity for technology to help automate that space is, to understand documentation, to summarize documentation, to frame it, or repurpose it in useful ways that are understandable by somebody who hasn't read a full mortgage before, and that is very much part of the Pryzm experience..."

    • How Pryzm.io Came to Be

    • "... To make not just the entire ecosystem, but especially that consumer, that person who's really the core, the crux of the transaction, to have a better experience..."

    • Parting Thoughts to the Audience

     

    Topics: co-founders, discovering entrepreneurship, founding story, robotics/AI

     

    Angel Invest Boston
    enAugust 02, 2023

    Jina Klapisch - Sal's Weight Coach

    Jina Klapisch - Sal's Weight Coach

    Coach Jina Klapisch who helps Sal Daher keep off 100 pounds is our guest in this episode. Sal and Jina discuss how HMR clients are able to take off and keep off significant weight with no hunger or feeling of deprivation. Check out HMR Weight Loss and Lifestyle Coaching at:

    https://www.hmrnatick.com/about_us

    Highlights:

     Sal Daher Introduces Jina Klapisch

     What Sets HMR Apart From the Rest

     How HMR Works

     "... What you're doing here is helping people discover the things that are easy for them to do repeatedly and make them into habits, and not try to do stuff that's hard, impossible for them..."

       Decision-Free

      Sal's Diet Journey at the Age of Thirteen

      Oprah and HMR

       "... when you're trying to make a very big change in your life, whether it's quitting smoking or quitting drinking, or with food, you need to take a break from that substance ... so that you can see clearly as you lose this weight and start to really figure out who I am as an eater..."

     How Your Environment Can Affect Your Weight

      Outlive by Peter Attia MD

       "... The first half mile that you walk every single day is the golden half mile. The first mile you walk is the golden mile. That is going to add years to your life..."

      Advice to the Audience

      Jina's Background

        "... 80% of weight loss is keeping it off, the hard part..."

      Jina's Parting Thoughts

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJuly 26, 2023

    Staircase Wit: Shake Tech - Left out tech I use for making shakes - here it is

    Staircase Wit: Shake Tech - Left out tech I use for making shakes - here it is

    After recording the full episode titled “Tech & Weight Control” I realized I left out some important technologies I use in making the shakes that support my keeping off 100 pounds. So, here’s a mini-episode with that staircase wit, as the French call it.

    Highlights:

    • ·      Ninja Creami Ice Cream Maker
    • ·      Ninja Bullet & Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus Are Smaller & Cheaper Alternatives
    • ·      Shaker Bottles Are Real Calorie-Savers
    • ·      Acaia Digital Scale

     

    Topic:              Healthy Aging

    Guest:             Sal Daher

    Title:                Staircase Wit: Shake Tech

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJuly 19, 2023

    Tech & Weight Control - Sal Daher reviews the tech that helps him keep off 100 pounds

    Tech & Weight Control - Sal Daher reviews the tech that helps him keep off 100 pounds

    Technology has long conspired against our health by making us fatter, more sedentary and sleepless. However, we can recruit tech as our ally in building healthy habits. Here is a review of the tech that is helping me keep off 100 pounds.

     

    Highlights:

     

    • ·      Tech Can Make Us Less Healthy but It Can Be Good for Us Too
    • ·      Getting Help in Weight Loss Is Really Powerful, You Can’t Do It Alone
    • ·      MyFitnessPal App
    • ·      Noom App
    • ·      Fitbit Charge 4 Tracker + Fitbit App
    • ·      WHOOP Band and App
    • ·      Shoutout to the Great Products from Hoplark
    • ·      Plenity, FDA-Cleared Weight Control Device (Does Not Act Systemically)
    • ·      I used it [Plenity] as an on-ramp for my HMR diet...”
    • ·      Fitbod
    • ·      Life Fitness Elliptical Cross-Trainer
    • ·      NordicTrack Cross Country Exerciser
    • ·      Tonal
    • ·      Bowflex SelectTech
    • ·      $19.99 Chin-up Bar from Amazon
    • ·      Marathon Sports
    • ·      PowerStep Arch Support
    • ·      The Drive: Podcast with Peter Attia, M.D.
    • ·      Huberman Lab Podcast
    • ·      HMR: for When You Are Really Serious About Losing Weight

    Topic:              Healthy Aging

    Guest:              Sal Daher

    Title:                Tech & Weight Control

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJuly 19, 2023

    Sal Daher - Sleep and Weight

    Sal Daher - Sleep and Weight

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Getting enough sleep is important to Sal Daher’s effort to keep off 100 pounds. This short episode discusses how sleep connects with weight and how to improve sleep in support of weight control.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Why We Don’t Sleep Enough
    • Markets & Technological Innovation Are to Blame but the Solutions Need to Come from Individuals and Voluntary Associations, not from Leviathan
    • We Know We Need to Sleep More but the Cards Are Stacked Against It
    • Why Is Sleep So Important to Weight Control?
    • As We Age Our Need for Sleep Does Not Decline but Our Ability to Sleep Does
    • Why I do Early Morning Exercises Outdoors – GoodLux Technologies
    • Huberman Lab Podcast Offers Valuable Tips

     

    Topic: Healthy Aging

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJuly 12, 2023

    Sal Daher - Exercise and Weight

    Sal Daher - Exercise and Weight

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Sal Daher, CFA discusses the role of exercise in his keeping off 100 pounds of body weight with no drugs and no surgery, just good habits for eating, exercising and sleeping. Listen for tips and for encouragement on building your exercise plan.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Why Exercise?
    • How Much Exercise Do I need?
    • Don’t Get Overly Ambitious – Start Slowly but Build Steadily
    • Within Safe Limits Do Try to Get Out of Your Comfort Zone – Here’s Why
    • Think You Can’t Exercise? Listen to These Stories Then, Tell Me You Can’t Exercise
    • No Financial Stake in HMR, Just Immense Gratitude for How Much They Have Helped Me
    • It Matters When You Exercise
    • Short Bouts Build Up
    • Do a Variety of Exercises
    • Zone 2 / Zone 5 Training
    • Exercise Has an Unexpected Side Effect for Me
    • I’ve Never Regretted Exercising

     

    Topic: Healthy Aging

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJuly 05, 2023

    Sal's Travel Diet - How Sal Daher works on keeping off 100 pounds on the road

    Sal's Travel Diet - How Sal Daher works on keeping off 100 pounds on the road

    Nearly two years after starting the effort to take off and keep off 100 pounds, I took a series of trips. Here’s how I coped with the challenges of being on the road and maintaining my weight.

    Highlights:

    • ·      Trips to Napa Valley, Hamburg and San Sebastián Took Me Away from my Usual Supports
    • ·      Travelling Heavy to Napa Valley
    • ·      “…there may be people who can travel and not gain weight. But I’m not one of them. Therefore, I have to do unreasonable things to keep off those 100 pounds.”
    • ·      Traveled Ultra-light to Hamburg – Just Carry-on
    • ·      A Thought about the Effects of Alcohol on Sleep
    • ·      Traveled Medium-heavy to San Sebastián – 23 Days Away Is a Long Time
    Angel Invest Boston
    enJune 28, 2023

    Sal's Diet - Keeping off 100 pounds is mostly about diet. Here's how Sal eats to stay at ideal body weight in his 60s.

    Sal's Diet - Keeping off 100 pounds is mostly about diet. Here's how Sal eats to stay at ideal body weight in his 60s.

    I’m Sal Daher and I’m keeping off 100 pounds of body weight with no drugs and no surgery. I’m doing it by building and reinforcing healthy habits. I eat a lot but do not put on weight. It was not easy to build the healthy habits I practice but it can be done.

    Highlights:

    • ·      Introduction
    • ·      Food Intake Is the Main Driver of Weight Management, Not Exercise
    • ·      Repeatable Changes You Can Live With
    • ·      What I Eat for Lunch Regularly Now
    • ·      My Fat but Fit Delusion
    • ·      Your Longevity Is Up to You, Nature Does Not Care About It
    • ·      I Could Not Change My Habits Alone, Not Even in Singapore
    • ·      I Needed Help to Build and Maintain My New Habits
    • ·      A Cool Mind Trick
    • ·      There’s a Reason They Are Called “Support Groups”
    • ·      Getting Back to Diet – Here’s What I Eat Throughout the Day
    • ·      Breakfast – This One Is for You Ralph Wagner
    • ·      Hydration Is Really Crucial – Always Trying Cool New Drinks
    • ·      Mid-morning Snack – Efficiency Is the Keyword
    • ·      Lunch – See Above – But There’s More
    • ·      Vegetables and Fruits Are My Best Friends
    • ·      Mid-afternoon Snack – My Vitamix Blender Comes in Handy
    • ·      Supper – It’s a Lot of Food So I Try Not to Eat Too Close to Bed Time
    • ·      Evening Snack – The Treat I Look Forward to All Day Long
    • ·      After My Evening Snack, My Probiotic
    • ·      The Biggest Aha! Moment of My Dieting Career
    • ·      Conclusion
    Angel Invest Boston
    enJune 28, 2023

    Layne Sadler - KeyBio

    Layne Sadler - KeyBio

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    Layne Sadler founded KeyBio to help pharmaceutical companies better identify genetic traits in patients that may explain differing responses to cancer treatments. KeyBio’s computational approach promises to add a new dimension to precision medicine, which now looks at the genetics of the tumor, by also incorporating the genetics of the patient to improve outcomes in clinical trials.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Layne Sadler
    • What KeyBio is Solving
    • "... The revenue is solely focused on cancer drug discovery and the reason for that is because that's where all the money is in the pharmaceutical industry..."
    • "... 90% of clinical trials fail and the cost averages around 792 million, spending about a billion dollars to run a trial..."
    • "... I developed this AI platform and I wanted to start collaborating with other principal investigators or heads of labs in the Boston area..."
    • "... The DNA of tumors, over time, it mutates and it becomes very different from the DNA of the host..."
    • Why Layne Chose Entrepreneurship

     

    Topics: biotech, founding story, discovering entrepreneurship

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJune 21, 2023

    Jason Syversen - Cyberwarrior

    Jason Syversen - Cyberwarrior

    Angel Scale Biotech: Learn More

     

    After a career at DARPA, defending America from cyber threats, Jason Syversen founded Siege Technologies which had a great exit. He now focuses on angel investing and philanthropy. Inspiring chat.

     

    Sponsored by Purdue University entrepreneurship, and Peter Fasse, patent attorney at Fish and Richardson.

     

    Highlights:

    • Sal Daher Introduces Jason Syversen
    • What Problem Siege Technologies is Solving
    • "... How do you measure and predict probability of success and collateral damage for a cyberattack? That is actually the technology we end up being acquired for when we sold..."
    • "... I took over 10X Venture Partners, which is an angel group..."
    • SportsVisio and What it is Solving
    • "... That was a really interesting example of you think that this is all figured out even in pro leagues, and yet it really isn't..."
    • Jason's Background
    • "... if you had a choice between being born in a family with trust funds where your parents really don't care about you or being born in a hardscrabble family where the parents do care about you, choose the latter..."
    • "... Human infants need nurturing and then beyond that, and when we're grown, we need a society around us that supports us ... This lack of connection is the biggest problem in America today..."
    • Advice to the Audience

     

    Topics: discovering entrepreneurship, founding story, product

    Angel Invest Boston
    enJune 14, 2023

    Saleh Daher - Losing 100 Pounds - No Drugs, No Surgery

    Saleh Daher - Losing 100 Pounds - No Drugs, No Surgery

    Losing and keeping off 100 pounds is hard. Having done it, Sal wants to convince you that you too can gain control of your weight. No drugs, no surgery, just new habits patiently created and reinforced. Sal’s daughter Grace Daher conducted this frank interview.

    Highlights:

    • Here’s the Story of How Sal Daher Lost 100 Pounds with No Drugs and No Surgery –  You Can Do It Too
    • Sal Introduces His Daughter Grace Daher Who Is Asking the Questions
    • When Sal Was First Told He Needed to Lose Weight
    • A Big 13-Year-Old on a 1,300 Calorie Diet – Misery!
    • Early On It Was Evident that Sal Was Triggered by Food but His Brother William Was Not
    • Sal Became More Active in College but Bad Diet Caused Weight Gain
    • Lost Weight During Summer Break in Brazil – Less Eating More Moving
    • Sal Was Fit in College, But Still Overweight – Did Not Realize the Burden He Was Carrying Around
    • Sal Got Down to His Ideal Body Weight in His Mid 30s Out of Concern for His Blood Pressure
    • Lost the Weight on the HMR Program – No Hunger – More Is Better
    • How the Weight Came Back On – Grace Remembers Sal’s Struggles
    • HMR Program Turns Down Chance to Coach Oprah Winfrey Individually Because They Did Not Have Data to Support that Approach
    • Attending Weekly Support Group Is Essential for Success Long Term – Alcoholics Anonymous Example
    • Grace Was Shocked to See Sal’s Weight Loss After the Isolation from COVID
    • Sal Was Proud to Be Fat but Fit – His Doctor’s Warnings Were Not for Fit People Like Him
    • Being Overweight Has a Lot to Do with Genetics – We Have to Fight Our Genes
    • A Painful Health Event Motivated Sal to Take the Weight Off for Good
    • How the HMR Program Works
    • The First Three Weeks Were Hard – Plenity Helped
    • Maintaining Your Weight Loss Means Acquiring a Whole New Set of Habits
    • The Multiple and Marvelous Benefits of Exercise
    • There are No Magic Pills – Except Exercise
    • The Importance of Human Connectedness in Weight Control
    • Sal’s Regrets for Not Having Taken Off the Weight Earlier
    • Sal Is a Big Supporter of Statins
    • “How are you managing to keep off those 100 pounds?”
    • Committed to a Baseline of 10,000 Steps Per Day
    • Highly Structured Eating
    • Cool Facts About Coffee
    • “Why Is getting sleep so important?”
    • “…you need the support of a coach to help you work out those particulars…”
    Angel Invest Boston
    enJune 07, 2023

    Gloria Kolb, Co-Founder of Elidah - Device to treat urinary incontinence in women

    Gloria Kolb, Co-Founder of Elidah - Device to treat urinary incontinence in women

    With minimal funding, Gloria Kolb and her husband Eric Kolb have created a device to treat urinary incontinence that has received a coveted clearance from the FDA. Elidah, their startup, expects to exceed $3 million in DTC sales this year. I really enjoyed this story of a couple bootstrapping a promising business together.

    Highlight:

    • ·       Sal Daher, CFA Introduces Gloria Kolb, Co-Founder of Elidah
    • ·       Elidah Is Solving Urinary Incontinence in Women – Device Induces Kegel Exercises
    • ·      Just Got FDA Clearance for Overactive Bladder
    • ·       “She only needs to wear it for 20 minutes a day, and then it turns off automatically.
    • ·       Differentiation from Other Devices: FDA Cleared for Incontinence
    • ·       Randomized Control Trial Result: 75% of Women Experienced Statistically Significant Improvement
    • ·       “It drives me crazy that women do wait so long and they don't tell anyone and they just deal with it for a long, long time. I think part of it is they don't think that there's any other good options for them.
    • ·       Seeking FDA Clearance for Over-the-counter Sales, Like Gelesis
    • ·       Medicare Covers the Device
    • ·       About 8,000 Customers Have Purchased ELITONE, Elidah’s Device
    • ·       “You have shocked me. I'm not easily shocked. That airline magazines will not talk about urinary incontinence.
    • ·       “It's not quite the razor blade model. It is definitely about the treatment kit, which cost the $400.”
    • ·      Have Built Sales of $3 MM with Just $750K in Angel Funding Plus $1.8 MM in Grants
    • ·       “A third of women have the issues, over the age of 30, but then you go to over the age of 50 and it's 1 out of 2.
    • ·       “It's actually the number one issue of why people entered nursing homes.
    • ·       “To women out there, I just encourage them to get treated early.”
    • ·       How You Can Help Podcasts Like Gloria’s Be Found
    • ·       Gloria Kolb Studied Engineering at MIT & Stanford, Worked at Johnson & Johnson then Got Her MBA at Babson
    • ·       Wife-and-Husband Founding Team
    • ·       “...over the counter doesn't mean it's less of a product. It is a medical device, regulated product that went through all the hoops.
    Angel Invest Boston
    enMay 31, 2023

    Treating Spinal Fractures Better - Dom Messerli, Founder of Lenoss Medical

    Treating Spinal Fractures Better - Dom Messerli, Founder of Lenoss Medical

    Spinal fractures from osteoporosis cause many to lose their independence. Industry veteran Dom Messerli has a better way of fixing the problem than the risky practice of injecting liquid epoxy into the spine. Using engineered human bone, Lenoss Medical is offering a treatment that is safer, effective and easier to administer than the current standard.

    Highlights:

    • ·      Sal Daher, CFA Introduces Dom Messerli, Founder of Lenoss Medical
    • ·      “Many times, the patients lose their independence when those fractures happen.”
    • ·      Current Standard of Care is to Inject Liquid Epoxy into the Spine – What Could Go Wrong?
    • ·      Liquid Epoxy Can Leak into Blood Vessels and Create Blockages
    • ·      “When it's in the heart, usually what's prescribed is open heart surgery to take out the piece of cured cement out of the heart.”
    • ·      Lenoss Medical’s Solution: Engineered Human Bone Material to Build Up the Weakened Spine
    • ·      Grafting of Same-Species Bone Material Is Decades Old – What’s new Is Applying the Approach to Spinal Fractures
    • ·      “...conducive for new bone formation.”
    • ·      There’s No Donor Matching or Donor Rejection Issue Since No Living Cells Are Implanted
    • ·      Lenoss Medical Was the Subject of Dom’s MBA Degree Project
    • ·      Lenoss Medical Plans to Go to Market Via Distributors Specializing in Products for Spinal Treatments
    • ·      The Argument for Hospitals Is Reducing Risk and Simplifying the Process
    • ·      FDA Approval Process Was Relatively Low-Burden, Human Cell and Tissue Product Pathway
    • ·      Dom Messerli’s Immigrant Story
    • ·      “Eventually, I was affected with the layoff. I was waiting for that day. The next day is when I started Lenoss Medical.”
    • ·      “...I feel we can have a positive impact with these patients with osteoporosis and the spinal fractures. That drives me.”
    Angel Invest Boston
    enMay 24, 2023

    Eric Janszen, Co-Founder & CEO of VirZOOM - Virtual Sport

    Eric Janszen, Co-Founder & CEO of VirZOOM - Virtual Sport

    A miserable New England day had avid cyclist Eric Janszen dreaming of better indoor riding. Together with co-founder Eric Malafeew, he launched VirZOOM which now has 40,000 users on its virtual reality platform with great engagement. Fascinating conversation about virtual games becoming sport.

    Highlights:

    • ·      VirZOOM Gets Grant from Major VR Player for a Joint Development Project
    • ·      Sal Daher Introduces Eric Janszen, Co-Founder of VirZOOM
    • ·      Ongoing Crowdfunding Raise on StartEngine
    • ·      VirZOOM Meets the Challenge of Helping People Enjoy Exercise
    • ·      Technical Co-Founder Eric Malafeew Worked on Big Hits at Harmonix Music
    • ·      VirZOOM Tech Lets Users to Do Cool Things Without Getting Motion Sickness
    • ·      Broke Out of the Limitations Imposed by Being a Bike-Based Platform
    • ·      It sounds like you could actually play Quidditch on this.
    • ·      How the Pivot Came About
    • ·      Where we're heading is 100% without a bike.
    • ·      Making It a Sport Rather than a Game Has Huge Economic Consequences
    • ·      Sal Speculates on the Possibility of VR Sport Slowing Cognitive Decline
    • ·      What gets us up in the morning is all of the reviews that we get from our customers...”
    • ·      Average VirZOOM Customer Exceeds CDC Recommended Weekly Exercise
    • ·      The Cost of Getting on VirZOOM Is Modest: $300 for the Quest Headset & $12 per Month
    Angel Invest Boston
    enMay 17, 2023

    Caleb Wursten, Founder of Worldhaus.co, Fractional Ownership for the Digital Nomads

    Caleb Wursten, Founder of Worldhaus.co, Fractional Ownership for the Digital Nomads

    Caleb Wursten is an entrepreneurial prodigy who paid for college at Babson with a bike rental business. He’s now building a platform to provide digital nomads with fractional ownership of properties in desirable locations. International business executive Jon Aboitiz joined as co-host.

    Highlights:

    • ·       Sal Daher Introduces Co-Host Jon Aboitiz and Caleb Wursten, Founder of Worldhaus.co
    • ·       “The pandemic unlocked this digital nomad lifestyle for millions of people.”
    • ·       Getting Expensive to Be a Digital Nomad as Airbnb Prices Go Up
    • ·       Fractional Ownership vs. Timeshares
    • ·       Owning 1/13 of Properties in Desirable Locations via an LLC
    • ·       “You're addressing a key factor, it seems, which is the cost of living and how to make it even more affordable...”
    • ·       “The first property is a $220,000 condo in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.”
    • ·       Can Choose Between Occupancy or Renting for Income
    • ·       Comparison to Fractional Ownership of Yachts
    • ·       Developers Are Responding to Demand from Digital Nomads with Attractive Designs
    • ·       How Cobu Intersects with Worldhaus
    • ·       “...we wanted it to be simple and scalable, so we can also expand to Portugal and Colombia, Thailand easily...”
    • ·       Examples of Exciting New Communities: Culdesac and Las Catalinas
    • ·       Property Developers Can Be Remarkably Inventive
    • ·       “They don't need to put up with the $3,000 rent for an isolating experience in a hundred-year-old house.”
    • ·       “It's not so much that Gen Z doesn't want home ownership, it's that no one can afford home ownership...”
    • ·       “I was super lucky in that both my parents are small business entrepreneurs...”
    • ·       Caleb Wursten’s Bike Rental Business Paid for Babson
    • ·       “Then in that time I got a couple rental properties, which is also a common theme with digital nomads...”
    • ·       Real Estate Developers Are Already Designing Projects for Digital Nomads
    • ·       “For, let's say $4,000, you can now own a season, an entire season in Bulgaria.”
    • ·       Jon Aboitiz’s Parting Thoughts

    Topics: discovering entrepreneurship, founding story, platform

    Title: Worldhaus.co

    Angel Invest Boston
    enMay 10, 2023

    John Williams - Angel Investor

    John Williams - Angel Investor

    Angel investor John Williams comes from a background of leadership in sales and marketing in Big Pharma. He puts his experiences to work in helping his portfolio companies which include Lenoss Medical, Elidah and Eflex Energy. John’s affable personality made this really a fun chat.

     

    Highlights:

     

    • ·      Sal Daher Introduces Angel Investor John Williams
    • ·      Elidah – Solving Postpartum Incontinence
    • ·      Gloria Kolb of Elidah Embodies Howard Stevenson’s Definition of the Startup Founder
    • ·      Lenoss Medical: Better Treatment for Fractures of the Spine Due to Aging
    • ·      “...a guy who's 63 years old made the cut at the Masters this weekend. They [seniors] have higher expectations...”
    • ·      No More Heart Attacks in 40 Year Olds Thanks to Statin Drugs Controlling Blood Lipids
    • ·      It's also fun to watch pitches. Because you're like, "Wow."
    • ·      Robotic Gloves Keep popping Up in Sal’s Angel Investing Career
    • ·      Eflex Energy: Load Management for Your Home Backup Power
    • ·      I would have been able to manage my energy and my battery for five days with my phone if I had one of these connected digital circuit breakers in my home.”
    • ·      How John Williams Started His Angel Investing
    • ·      Became an Angel Investor but Never Watched Shark Tank
    • ·      Interesting Startups That Have Pitched at Walnut Ventures Recently
    • ·      John Williams’ Parting Thoughts

    Topics: angel investing strategies, management, portfolio

    Angel Invest Boston
    enMay 03, 2023