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The Leading Beyond The Lab Podcast is hosted by Lawrence Rose, one of the Directors at ARTO, a talent solutions agency specialising in leadership roles within the Life Sciences sector globally.
This podcast provides insightful discussions with industry experts, leaders and innovators, shaping the future in drug development and clinical devices. We talk with biotechnology and/or pharmaceutical executives, and find out from them their stories, personal career development and analyse their opinion on how to become successful in this space. We talk on a range of topics including soft skills, oncology, leadership, micromanagement, investment, cardiology, AI, dementia, addiction, hematology, dermatology, and much more.
This podcast applies broadly to all types of connections in the Life Sciences Industry, and aims to educate and inspire those who want to excel in leadership.
Leading Beyond The Lab, a podcast by ARTO Talent - Stats, Episodes and Rankings - My Podcast Data
The Evolution of Medical Affairs in Global Pharma
Episode 37
Thursday, July 16, 2026 • Duration 36:20
What does it really take to transform Medical Affairs from a scientific support function into one of the biggest strategic drivers in pharmaceutical innovation?
In this episode, Vlado Kopernicky, former Senior Vice President of International Medical Affairs at one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, shares how a career that began as a neonatologist evolved into helping shape one of the most significant transformations in the pharmaceutical industry.
From launching medicines across global markets to redefining the role of Medical Affairs, Vlado reflects on the leadership lessons, commercial mindset and organisational changes that supported extraordinary growth.
In this episode, Vlado covers:
03:26 How moving from clinical medicine into pharma changed the way decisions are made and why understanding business became essential.
10:27 Why Medical Affairs has evolved beyond scientific support into a strategic function responsible for accelerating the adoption of innovation across healthcare.
15:26 How Medical Affairs proved its value by measuring impact differently, and why "tell me how you measure me and I will tell you how I behave" changed the conversation.
20:19 Why focus, speed and disciplined decision making become competitive advantages, and the leadership lessons inspired by Steve Jobs' philosophy on prioritisation.
27:43 The career lessons that mattered most, from developing future leaders to recognising that long-term impact extends far beyond individual achievements.
If you're interested in pharmaceutical leadership, Medical Affairs, commercial strategy, innovation, or what it takes to build high-performing global organisations, this conversation offers practical insights from someone who has experienced transformation at the highest level.
Watch the full episode and join the discussion in the comments.
How One AI Platform Is Cutting Years Off Drug Discovery - Yann Gaston-Mathé
Episode 36
Thursday, June 25, 2026 • Duration 51:07
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What does it take to improve a drug discovery success rate of less than 1%? In this episode, Yann Gaston-Mathé explains how AI, robotics, and laboratory automation are being combined to accelerate the development of new medicines and tackle some of the industry's most challenging drug targets.
This week on Leading Beyond The Lab, Lawrence Rose sat down with Yann Gaston-Mathé, CEO and Co-Founder of Iktos, with more than 20 years of experience spanning pharmaceutical R&D, data science, IT, strategic consulting, entrepreneurship, and AI-driven drug discovery.
In this episode, Yann Gaston-Mathé covers:
• How Iktos is tackling the inefficiency of small molecule drug discovery and why overall success rates remain below 1%
• What differentiates Iktos from other AI drug discovery companies by combining generative AI with laboratory automation and robotic synthesis
• The journey from large pharmaceutical organisations into entrepreneurship and the founding story behind Iktos in 2016
• How AI, predictive modelling, robotics and iterative design-make-test cycles are transforming drug discovery workflows
• Why the next frontier for AI in healthcare is improving clinical success rates and reducing development timelines that currently take 8 to 10 years
Yann provides a practical perspective on where AI is creating real value in drug discovery, the importance of combining software with experimental science, and why human expertise remains central to the future of pharmaceutical innovation.
If you're interested in AI, biotechnology, drug discovery, pharmaceutical R&D, laboratory automation, or the future of healthcare innovation, this episode offers valuable insight from someone building and deploying these technologies today.
The Next Generation of Autoimmune Therapies? Inside SciRhom’s IRhom2 Platform
Episode 35
Monday, June 1, 2026 • Duration 56:53
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Can targeting IRhom2 unlock a new generation of autoimmune disease treatments?
This week on Leading Beyond The Lab, Lawrence Rose sat down with Jan Poth and Jens Ruhe of SciRhom, discussing a new therapeutic approach focused on IRhom2 and TACE inhibition in autoimmune disease.
The conversation explored the scientific origins of the company, lessons from failed inflammatory pathway inhibitors, and the challenge of building a biotech platform in one of the toughest funding environments in recent years.
In this episode, Jan Poth and Jens Ruhe cover:
• Why previous TACE inhibitors failed and how targeting IRhom2 could offer a more selective approach to inflammatory diseases
• The scientific breakthrough that convinced the founding team IRhom2 could be druggable despite industry skepticism at the time (Carl Blobel, Hospital for Special Surgery)
• Why combining multiple inflammatory pathways may be necessary to move beyond the efficacy ceiling seen with TNF and IL-6 inhibitors
• How the company secured an oversubscribed Series A after speaking with more than 150 investors over two years, with backing from Wellington Partners, Hadean Ventures, Kurma Partners, Andera Partners, MIG Capital, Bayern Kapital, and HTGF
• The roadmap for S878, expectations for the upcoming Phase I trial in rheumatoid arthritis patients, and the long-term ambition to become the defining company in IRhom2 therapeutics.
This episode offers a detailed look into modern biotech company building, translational immunology, and the realities of advancing a first-in-class therapeutic platform from concept to clinic. If you are interested in autoimmune disease innovation, antibody development, biotech financing, or platform company strategy, this conversation is well worth your time.
We’re Developing The Next Generation Of Parkinson’s Therapies, And Here's How - Brenig Therapeutics
Episode 34
Monday, May 18, 2026 • Duration 01:04:28
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This week on Leading Beyond The Lab, Lawrence Rose sat down with Megan McGill, CEO of Brenig Therapeutics, with years of experience spanning biotech leadership, strategy, clinical medicine, management consulting and neuroscience research.
In this episode, Megan covers:
• Why Brenig Therapeutics is targeting neuroinflammation and Parkinson’s disease through LRRK2 and NLRP3 inhibitors, and how the company is positioning itself within the rapidly evolving neurodegenerative disease landscape.
• How AI and machine learning are being used across medicinal chemistry and drug development at Brenig through investment from Torrey Pines, OrbiMed, New Enterprise Associates, BioGeneration Ventures, to optimise brain penetration, selectivity and safety profiles simultaneously.
• Why Megan believes an MD and PhD background is critical in biotech leadership, combining a deep understanding of disease biology with a real-world understanding of patients and unmet medical needs.
• The realities of building a career in medicine, biotech and leadership while raising children as a single mother, and the leadership lessons around empathy, patience and resilience that came from that experience.
• Why neuroscience investment remains significantly underfunded despite the growing global burden of neurodegenerative disease, and what needs to change across biotech, pharma and venture capital to accelerate progress in CNS innovation.
• Lawrence and Megan also discuss organisations and companies including Eli Lilly and Company, McKinsey & Company, BridgeBio Pharma and the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
Be sure to check out the full episode to hear Megan’s perspective on the future of neuroscience, biotech leadership and the evolving role of AI across drug development.
AI Is About to Simulate Human Biology - Bioptimus
Episode 33
Tuesday, May 5, 2026 • Duration 56:29
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Can AI become a universal simulator of biology, helping predict disease, improve drug success rates, and reshape how medicine is developed?
This week on Leading Beyond The Lab, Lawrence Rose sat down with Jean-Philippe Vert, Co-Founder and CEO of Bioptimus, with decades of experience spanning artificial intelligence, computational biology, academia and big tech, including leadership roles at Google, and work influenced by breakthroughs such as DeepMind’s AlphaFold.
In this episode, Jean-Philippe covers:
• Why Bioptimus is focused on understanding patient biology, not simply designing molecules, and why that could change drug development.
• How AI-powered decision systems could improve translational research, clinical trial design, patient recruitment and disease prediction.
• Why Jean-Philippe left Google to build Bioptimus, and why foundation models for biology may represent a major shift in medicine.
• How partnerships across healthcare systems, pharma and research institutions are helping build the data infrastructure behind biological foundation models, with perspectives shaped alongside leaders including Sarah Teichmann (Professor at Cambridge University) and Caroline Uhler (Professor at MIT)
• What makes AI in biology defensible, from proprietary data partnerships and elite interdisciplinary teams, to support from investors including Edward Kliphuis (Sofinnova Partners), Bpifrance, Cathay Investments.
A thoughtful conversation on AI, biology, and the future of medicine. From lessons learned in big tech to what it takes to build enduring platforms in TechBio, this is a considered discussion for anyone interested in where scientific discovery is heading.
Be sure to check out the full episode.
I Built A Billion-Dollar Company, Lost It All... Then Built Another 5 - Robert Wessman
Episode 32
Tuesday, April 28, 2026 • Duration 01:23:58
What does it take to build not just one billion-dollar company, but seven and start again after losing it all? In this episode, Robert Wessman shares the mindset, discipline and foresight behind building one of the world’s most ambitious biosimilars platforms.
This week on Leading Beyond The Lab, Lawrence Rose sat down with Robert Wessman, Founder and Executive Chairman, with over 25 years of experience spanning global pharmaceuticals, generics, biosimilars and serial entrepreneurship.
In this episode, Robert Wessman covers:
(01:12) Why biologics dominate the future of pharmaceuticals and the urgent need to expand access through biosimilars, with treatment costs reaching up to $100,000 per patient annually
(04:10) Building seven companies including six unicorns, and scaling a global generics business across 80+ countries with over 16,500 employees
(12:32) The seven-pillar framework behind building high-performance culture, including vision setting, team alignment and execution discipline
(18:14) The importance of timing in biotech, and how starting too early or too late in biosimilars can determine success or failure
(38:16) Strategic foresight in action, from anticipating regulatory changes to building one of the largest biosimilars pipelines with over 30 products
This conversation offers a clear, experience-backed perspective on scaling in life sciences, building resilient organisations and making high-impact decisions in complex markets. If you are working in biotech, pharma or leadership, this episode provides practical insights worth applying.
AI Discovering Medicines Humans Could Never Find: James Field - LabGenius Therapeutics
Episode 31
Monday, April 20, 2026 • Duration 47:02
AI is beginning to uncover medicines that humans alone could never design.
This week on another episode of Leading Beyond the Lab, we host James Field, CEO and Founder of LabGenius Therapeutics, a company pioneering the use of machine learning, robotics, and synthetic biology to engineer the next generation of therapeutic antibodies.
With over a decade of experience spanning AI-driven drug discovery, protein engineering, and synthetic biology, James founded LabGenius Therapeutics to rethink how biologic medicines are discovered.
In this episode, James discusses:
- The founding story of LabGenius Therapeutics and how its AI-guided experimentation platform is transforming antibody engineering.
- The companies backing by leading investors including Kindred Capital (Leila Zegna), Lux Capital, Obvious Ventures, M Ventures, and Octopus Ventures, and is guided by industry leaders such as Edwin Moses, the company’s Chairman and a veteran biotech executive.
- LabGenius Therapeutics' collaboration with Sanofi, and how partnerships between biotech startups and global pharma companies are helping translate AI-designed antibodies into real therapeutic pipelines.
- The importance of global scientific conferences such as European Society for Medical Oncology, where breakthroughs in oncology and biologics are shaping the future of therapeutic development.
- The mentors and inspirations that shaped his journey into biotech, from his university lecturers at Imperial College London to industry leaders like Edwin Moses, who now serves as Chairman of LabGenius Therapeutics and has played a key role in guiding the company’s growth.
If you're interested in AI-driven drug discovery, biotech entrepreneurship, and the future of medicine, this episode is one you won’t want to miss.
Will the Drug Work? Engineering a New Future for Oncology - BioCortex
Episode 30
Tuesday, March 3, 2026 • Duration 57:44
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What if we could predict whether a drug will work, before it ever reaches a patient?
This week, in another episode of Leading Beyond the Lab, we host a co-guest episode featuring Nik Sharma, CEO & Co-Founder of BioCortex, a trained neurologist with years of experience spanning clinical medicine, ALS research, academia (Cambridge, NIH) and more. And Muhannad Alomari, CTO & Co-Founder, with over a decade of experience spanning aerospace engineering, AI leadership and physics-based systems modelling.
In this episode, the duo covers:
Why bacteria inside tumours may explain clinical trial variability, how “in silico bridge trials” could reshape oncology development, and how BioCortex plans to translate that science into commercial inflection points, global licensing models, and long-term value creation without taking traditional pipeline risk.
From partnerships with CD BioPharma, they explain how global clinical strategy, particularly leveraging innovation and trial infrastructure emerging from China, is reshaping how oncology assets are advanced and positioned for global success.
They also discuss investor backing from Edward Kliphuis from Sofinnova, Hussein Kanji from Hoxton Ventures and Draper Associates, and how capital discipline combined with deep-tech engineering principles (inspired by Rolls-Royce and even NASA) is shaping a new model for oncology drug development.
They also reflect on visiting leading oncology centres in China alongside HSBC and AstraZeneca, highlighting the sheer scale and speed of patient recruitment, momentum that was clearly visible in multiple back-to-back presentations at ASCO, signalling a structural shift in global cancer innovation.
This is a conversation about speed, probability, biology, engineering, and ultimately, time. Because for patients, time is everything.
To listen to (or watch) the full episode, search “Leading Beyond the Lab BioCorteX” on wherever you get your podcasts, or click on the first link in the comments below.
A Single Injection set to Eliminate Cancer? CEO of Candel Therapeutics - Paul Peter Tak
Episode 29
Tuesday, February 24, 2026 • Duration 01:01:01
What if a single injection could teach the immune system to eliminate cancer, and keep it away?
This week, in another episode of Leading Beyond the Lab, Lawrence Rose sits down with Paul Peter Tak, MD, PhD, FMedSci, President & CEO of Candel Therapeutics, one of the most quietly compelling stories in cancer immunotherapy today.
With over 30 years of experience spanning academic medicine, clinical immunology, rheumatology, oncology, and global pharmaceutical leadership, Paul Peter brings a rare clinician-scientist perspective to biotech leadership. Prior to Candel, he served as Chief Immunology Officer and Global Head of Development at GSK (led by Luke Miels) , where he helped shape immunology and oncology strategy at scale. Paul Peter is also founder and previous chair of the dept of clinical immunology and rheumatology at Amsterdam UMC.
In this episode, Paul Peter covers:
- The mission behind Candel Therapeutics and why viral immunotherapy represents a fundamentally new modality, shifting the goal from helping patients live longer with cancer to helping them live without cancer.
- Why Candel’s lead programs (including CAN-2409) are gaining serious scientific credibility, supported by leaders such as Nobel laureate James P. Allison and the "father of CAR-T cell therapy" Carl June, and how this external validation is changing industry and investor perception.
- Lessons from past paradigm shifts in medicine, drawing on his early academic work at Leiden University, where once-dismissed antibody therapies later became standard of care, a parallel to today’s scepticism around viral immunotherapy.
- How leadership, culture, and decision-making drive biotech success, shaped by his experience building teams in academia, transforming R&D at GSK, and learning large-scale leadership from mentors like Lord Patrick Vallance.
- Why flexible operating models matter in biotech, including Candel’s approach to commercialisation through partners such as IDEA Pharma (led by Mike Rea) and Globe Life Sciences (Jonathon Mitchell), and cautionary lessons from companies like Oncorus and Replimune.
Is AI About to Collapse the Cost of Healthcare — Or Is This Another Tech Bubble? | Edward Kliphuis
Season 4 · Episode 28
Tuesday, February 3, 2026 • Duration 41:05
If AI is collapsing the cost of healthcare — are we on the brink of a historic breakthrough… or another bubble?
This week on Leading Beyond the Lab, we sit down with @Edward Kliphuis, Partner at @Sofinnova Partners, one of Europe’s leading life-sciences venture capital firms.
With over 20 years of experience spanning venture capital, digital health, tech-bio investing, and global life-sciences strategy, Edward has been at the forefront of investing where biology, computation, and healthcare collide.
In this episode, Edward covers:
- What’s genuinely different about AI in drug discovery and digital medicine today, and how collapsing healthcare costs could unlock a $10 trillion opportunity by reshaping long-term global supply–demand dynamics.
- Edward explains how @Excelsior, backed by Sofinnova Partners, @Khosla Ventures and @Deerfield Management, and led by @Mike Foley, is using an AI-driven, modular chemistry platform, originating from @Marty Burke at the @University of Illinois, to create entirely new, de novo small-molecule drugs.
- Why the US pharma & tech landscape may resemble a bubble, or a once-in-a-generation inflection point
- He talks about @Latent Labs, (led by @Simon Kohl) a Sofinnova-backed company designing entirely new proteins that do not exist in nature, unlocking new therapeutic possibilities.
- Edward outlines Sofinnova’s investment in @Bioptimus and discusses @Moon Surgical, exploring how AI and robotics are improving drug discovery and augmenting clinicians in complex procedures.
- Edward reflects on the broader AI landscape, referencing an @HSBC investment banking report questioning the long-term economics underpinning large AI models such as @OpenAI, before highlighting comments from @Geoffrey Hinton on the scalability limits of current AI architectures.
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Throughout the conversation, Lawrence and Yann discuss the evolution of @Iktos, collaborations across the pharmaceutical industry, and lessons learned from working with global pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners.
Be sure to check out this episode to hear how Paul-Peter Tak is helping redefine what’s possible in cancer immunotherapy - and what it takes to lead beyond the lab.
From AI-driven drug discovery and robotics in surgery, to healthcare economics, venture capital philosophy, and Europe vs the US innovation gap, this is a deep, unfiltered look at where life sciences is heading next.
To listen to (or watch) the full episode, search "Leading Beyond The Lab Edward Kliphuis" on your preferred streaming platform, or click on the first link in the comments below!
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