Life Sciences Today

Danny Lieberman and John Lynn

The Life Sciences Today podcast by Healthcare IT Today brings you strategic conversations with life science founders. Hosts Danny Lieberman and John Lynn and their guests reveal the patterns behind sustainable competitive advantages. Subscribe to the Clear Thinking newsletter by Danny Lieberman for deeper pattern analysis.

  1. 15H AGO

    How PathKeeper Surgical is Changing Spine Surgery

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Erez Lampert, Founder and CEO at PathKeeper Surgical! I talk with Lampert about his journey from Israel’s aerospace industry and Invisalign’s Itero scanner to founding PathKeeper in 2018–2019. We dig into the core problem in spine surgery—surgeons “flying blind” between low‑cost, high‑radiation fluoroscopy and ultra‑expensive robotics—and how PathKeeper offers a third way using optical 3D imaging and AI. Erez explains their dual business model (capital + disposables, plus a “razor blade” model via implant partners in a $10B US spine market), and how strategic deals with High Ridge Medical (Zimmer Biomet spine) and Vizient unlock scalable US commercialization without a 50‑person direct sales team. The conversation challenges the myth that Israelis don’t know how to sell in the US, reframing success as understanding gatekeepers, GPOs, and distribution science rather than just raising $50M and hiring a big sales force. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: What problem are spine surgeons facing today, and why is “flying blind” so dangerous? How does PathKeeper’s 3D imaging + AI platform actually work in the OR, and how is it different from fluoroscopy and million‑dollar robots? What is PathKeeper’s business model, and how does the implant “razor blade” model create leverage in a $10B US spine market? How did the High Ridge Medical and Vizient deals come together, and what do they change for commercialization? Why is the common investor advice, “raise $50M and build a huge US sales team’ the wrong playbook here? What are the biggest anti‑patterns in the spine/med‑device industry today? Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    30 min
  2. FEB 27

    AI Insights in Pharma with Protai

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Kiril Pevsner, Co-Founder and CTO at Protai. We kick this episode off by discussing how Pevsner creates and captures value with pharma. Then we talk about where AI meaningfully shapes decisions in the early discovery and preclinical work. Next, we take a look at where pharma teams hesitate to act on AI-driven insights, even when the science looks strong. We conclude this episode with Pevsner sharing where he doesn’t think AI should be used in drug discovery or development, at least with today’s tools and incentives. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: How do you create and capture value with pharma? From what you see building Protai, where does AI meaningfully shape decisions in early discovery or preclinical work — especially decisions that partners or pharma teams later have to trust? Where do pharma teams hesitate to act on AI-driven insight, even when the science looks strong? Where do you think AI should not be used yet in drug discovery or development, at least with today’s tools and incentives? Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    31 min
  3. FEB 20

    Building a Rare Disease Ecosystem with Rafa's Moonshot

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Sagi Sigali, Father and Founder of Rafa’s Moonshot – a non-profit dedicated to Landing a Cure for STXBP1. Sagi and I discuss how Rafa’s Moonshot is turning a rare genetic disorder (STXBP1) into an investable, de‑risked therapeutic opportunity. Sagi explains how his tech/entrepreneur background shapes a for‑profit mindset around fundraising, biopharma partnerships, and making rare disease indications attractive to industry. They cover building a global network, leveraging grants and consortia, working with academia/CROs, and planning the flip from nonprofit to for‑profit. They also dig into industry “anti‑patterns,” including copy‑paste development strategies, and explore a strategy to start from the drug label and work backwards. Sagi closes with his vision for a complete STXBP1 solution, a new CNS neurogenetic research center in Israel, and a stronger Israeli life sciences ecosystem. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: How does Rafa’s Moonshot actually create value for drug and biotech companies working on STXBP1? What does the market and patient landscape look like for STXBP1 as a rare disease? How has your background as a serial tech entrepreneur influenced your strategy in rare disease therapeutics? What are you doing to make STXBP1 attractive enough to enter big‑pharma pipelines? How do conversations with academics, clinicians, CROs, and biopharmas translate into real progress? What is your consortium model, and how do grants and non‑dilutive funding fit into it? How are you using CROs in preclinical work and thinking about IP and cell line development? What do you see as the biggest anti‑pattern in rare disease/drug development today? What are the top three things you want to achieve for STXBP1 patients in the next year? What is your five‑year vision for STXBP1, for Rafa’s Moonshot, and for the Israeli life sciences ecosystem? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    23 min
  4. FEB 13

    Increasing Productivity in Clinical Research

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Zina Sarif, Founder and CEO at Yendou. Zina Sarif is one of the most dynamic and inspirational founders I’ve met. She grew up in Morocco until age 20 and, after her PhD in biology, spent a decade in cancer drug discovery before leading clinical research at Parexel and PhIII oncology trials at AstraZeneca. Driven by the vision of a cancer-free world, she built Yendou to accelerate research, streamline site operations, and deliver life-saving treatments faster. Yendou streamlines the site selection process and the interaction between CROs, sponsors, and sites, producing 2X improvements in productivity. One of my other guests from Lindus Health said it best, “Everyone is more productive with Yendou. We accelerated feasibility timelines by 50% while reducing manual follow-ups by 70%.” Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: Tell us about your personal journey—how did you get from consulting and Viva to leading Ledger Run? Who are your customers, and what specific problems are you solving for them? How do you create value for sponsors and CROs in clinical trial site selection and relationship management? How do you capture that value—what does your business/revenue model look like? What is the biggest anti–design pattern you see in the industry right now? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    37 min
  5. FEB 6

    Payments, Pain, and Pragmatic AI in Clinical Trials

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is John Chinnici, CEO at Ledger Run. I talk with Chinnici about his journey from consulting (Andersen, IBM) to Viva, where he helped launch and grow Vault, and eventually to leading Ledger Run. Ledger Run focuses on the “unsexy but critical” operational layer of clinical trials: contracting and paying investigative sites. Chinnici explains how delayed, incorrect, and bureaucratic payments have become an accepted but damaging status quo in clinical research, despite sites running on razor-thin margins. Ledger Run’s SaaS platform and services aim to ensure strict contract compliance, dramatically improve operational efficiency, and turn reliable payments into a competitive advantage for sponsors in site recruitment. Chinnici also argues that a major industry anti-pattern is pouring AI investment into volatile early research use cases while underinvesting in high-ROI operational applications such as automating invoice processing and other repetitive payment workflows. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: Tell us about your personal journey—how did you get from consulting and Viva to leading Ledger Run? Who are your customers, and what specific problems are you solving for them? How do you create value for sponsors and CROs in clinical trial payments and contracts? How do you capture that value—what does your business/revenue model look like? What are three things you want to do for your customers in the next 12–18 months to make them insanely happy? What is your competitive moat—what makes Ledger Run hard to copy compared with large CROs and other players? What is the biggest anti–design pattern you see in the industry right now? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    28 min
  6. JAN 30

    Beyond the Science by Gary Zammit

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Gary Zammit, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer at Clinilabs. We often imagine medical breakthroughs as the result of data, protocols, and lab science alone. But Gary Zammit has seen firsthand that bringing therapies to patients requires far more: resilient teams, disciplined processes, and cultures that can weather setbacks. In his new book, Beyond the Science: How People, Process, and Systems Transform the Business of Life Sciences, Zammit offers readers an inside look at the real drivers of innovation. From navigating near-bankruptcy at Clinilabs to helping advance more than twenty therapies across thirteen CNS indications, his stories highlight the human and organizational forces that shape the future of medicine. Whether you are in healthcare, business leadership, or organizational strategy, Beyond the Science is both a practical guide and an urgent call to action: to build organizations as resilient and innovative as the science they support because patients are waiting. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: Tell me about your journey. How did that shape you as a leader, and how did those experiences lead you to write Beyond the Science? From your vantage point at Clinilabs, what’s the most misunderstood people-or-process failure in drug development — and how does Clinilabs create value by solving it? How do you prove to sponsors that you’ve actually solved it? CROs often look interchangeable from the outside, yet Clinilabs has built a reputation in one of the most challenging therapeutic areas. Where does your defensibility — your ‘moat’ — really come from? What does Clinilabs do that sponsors or big site networks like Velocity Clinical can’t easily copy? In the closing of the book, you emphasize pushing beyond ‘good enough’ and building teams, systems, and processes that strive for greatness. Looking ahead 12–18 months, what are the three things you want to do for your customers that will raise the bar — things that will materially improve the way CNS trials get run? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

  7. JAN 23

    Almased - Natural Health Superfood Protein

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guests today are Jamie Luu, RDN, LDN, Strategy and Nutrition Manager, and Ronja Kröger, Nutrition & Product Expert, M. Sc. Nutritional and Food Sciences at Almased. The Almased-type diet can boost natural satiety signals via GLP-1 and PYY — that is real and meaningful. But the new GLP-1-RA drugs go much further: they hijack those same signals, ramp them much higher, and translate into large weight losses in patients with obesity. So the diet is a “natural nudging” of the system; the drugs are a strong “override” of the system. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: You’re showing that the Almased high-protein diet raised GLP-1 and PYY levels — how would you compare that to what we know about the injectable GLP-1 drugs (like Ozempic)? Is the mechanism the same, just a different scale, or is there something qualitatively different going on? I read the IIS paper from 2021 and the results are impressive. Given that the diet intervention was isocaloric (same calories) and short-term, yet still changed appetite-hormone profiles — is Almased complementary to GLP-1 drugs like Ozempics or a preventive/maintenance tool for people who aren’t yet eligible for—or don’t want—drugs? For someone who isn’t on GLP-1 medication, what are realistic expectations of using a high-protein total diet replacement in terms of appetite regulation, hormone effects, and perhaps weight maintenance? And how should they view that in the context of the new drug therapies that dominate headlines? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    27 min
  8. JAN 16

    Clinical Trials with Denali Rose

    We’re excited to be back for another episode of the Life Sciences Today Podcast by Healthcare IT Today. My guest today is Denali Rose, VP at Veeva, and Co-Host of Note to File. Rose’s parents are outdoors people and named her after the national park in Alaska. Personally, this is one of the most fun shows we’ve ever done. ‘Nuff said – get in and listen! She is Vice President Sales & Strategy, Site Solutions at Veeva. That’s her day job – she’s also the Co-Host and Producer of the Note To File podcast. She’s focused on delivering solutions for clinical research sites, guiding the sales cycle, and aligning strategy to drive impact and growth. She’s super smart and extremely experienced in the patterns and anti-patterns in the clinical trial industry. Check out the main topics of discussion for this episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast: Tell me about your journey. How did you get into podcasting, and why do you think it’s important? CROs are part of the problem, and therefore, they cannot be a part of the solution; sites will inherit the Earth – what is your take on this? Do you think CROs are part of the problem and therefore can’t be part of the solution? Do you think sites will actually inherit the Earth? What other hats do you wear besides ClinOps? Now, without further ado, we’re excited to share with you the next episode of the Life Sciences Today podcast. Subscribe to Danny’s newsletter to get strategic patterns for life science leaders building a defensible business. Be sure to subscribe to the Life Sciences Today Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform: Apple Podcasts Spotify iHeartRadio Amazon Music Pandora YouTube Along with the popular podcasting platforms above, you can Subscribe to Healthcare IT Today on YouTube.  Plus, all of the audio and video versions will be made available to stream on Healthcare IT Today. As a former pharma-tech founder who bootstrapped to exit, I now help TechBio and digital health CEOs grow revenue—by solving the tech, team, and go-to-market problems that stall your progress. If you want a warrior by your side, connect with me on LinkedIn. If you work in Life Sciences IT, we’d love to hear where you agree and/or disagree with our takes on health IT innovation in life sciences. Feel free to share your thoughts and perspectives in the comments of this post, in the YouTube comments, or privately on our Contact Us page. Let us know what you think of the podcast and if you have any ideas for future episodes. Thanks so much for listening!

    43 min

About

The Life Sciences Today podcast by Healthcare IT Today brings you strategic conversations with life science founders. Hosts Danny Lieberman and John Lynn and their guests reveal the patterns behind sustainable competitive advantages. Subscribe to the Clear Thinking newsletter by Danny Lieberman for deeper pattern analysis.