Beginner's Mind
Blueprints for Builders and Investors
Hosted by Christian Soschner
From pre-seed to post-IPO, every company—especially in deep tech, biotech, AI, and climate tech—lives or dies by the frameworks it follows.
On Beginner’s Mind, Christian Soschner uncovers the leadership principles behind the world’s most impactful companies—through deep-dive interviews, strategic book reviews, and patterns drawn from history’s greatest business, military, and political minds.
With over 200 interviews, panels, and livestreams, the show ranks in the Top 10% globally—and is recognized as the #1 deep tech podcast.
With 35+ years across M&A, company building, board roles, business schools, ultrarunning, and martial arts, Christian brings a rare lens:
What it really takes to turn breakthrough science into business—how to grow it, lead it, and shape the world around it.
🎙 Expect each episode to deliver:
- Founder & Investor Blueprints: How breakthrough technologies scale from lab to IPO
- Historical & Biographical Frameworks: Timeless playbooks from the world's great builders
- Leadership & Communication Mastery: Tools to inspire, persuade, and lead at scale
Whether you're building the next biotech success, investing in AI, or leading a climate tech company through hypergrowth—this podcast gives you the edge.
Listen in. Apply what matters. Build companies that last.
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Beginner's Mind
#9 Alternatives to Antibiotics - A talk with Alexander Belcredi, CEO and Founder of Phagomed
These days there is a lot of discussion about the development of diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines against the Coronavirus and its disease COVID 19. Viruses are one threat to the health of human beings, and bacteria are another one. Traditionally, bacterial infections are treated with antibiotics, and recently, some bacteria have developed antibiotic resistance.
The WHO describes that Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today. (https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antibiotic-resistance)
Phagomed (https://www.phagomed.com/) is developing a novel approach to treat bacterial infections without antibiotics. How that works, the challenges a company has to face while developing novel drugs, and why not all viruses are evil, you will hear in this episode.
Timestamps:
(00:00) Opening
(02:26) Intro Alexander Belcredi
(03:30) Foundation of Phagomed
(06:45) Phages – An Alternative to Antibiotics
(08:10) The Different Types of Viruses
(09:20) Why Are There Not Sufficient Solutions against Bacterial Infections?
(10:50) Competitive Landscape in the Anti-bacterial Industry
(12:30) Status of Clinical Development of Phage-Based Therapies in April 2020
(14:35) Are there Registered Phage-Based Therapies on the Market in 2020?
(16:30) How Capital Intensive is the Development of Phage-Based Therapies
(18:15) Funding Sources For Early-Stage Companies in Europe
(20:00) How to Prepare for Fundraising?
(23:30) When is the right time to go on the Market for Fundraising?
(25:00) What are the right expectations for fundraising processes? What is the success rate?
(30:45) What was the biggest challenge for Phagomed in Fundraising Phases?
(32:30) Is there a suitable time for Fundraising?
(35:20) How Long Does it Take from Starting a Financing Round to The Closing?
(36:55) Raising a Series A in 2020 – Resulted in an Acquisition in 2021
(37:55) Milestone Planning for a Series A Round
(39:05) European Public Funds to Leverage Private Investments
(42:25) What Advice Would you Give Your Younger Self Who Is at the Beginning of His Journey?
Shownotes @ PodcastNotes:
Link
More information:
https://www.phagomed.com/
https://www.lifescienceget2gether.com/
https://linktr.ee/soschner
Video to the episode:
https://youtu.be/YHTR8yMoC3w
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