Atomic AI
This company launched with $35M in funding and in doing so, pointed out the founder was on one of those “30 under 30” lists.
Takes some guts to do that these days since those lists are starting to become a who's who of corporate fraud.
Nexalin
Generally speaking, neuromodulation devices look unbelievably awkward. Usually, they’re giant headsets or machines that wrap around an immobilized person's noggin.
But lo and behold, someone made a cool looking, Star Trek style device. Sure, it probably does nothing, but style sells, baby!
Pfizer
It’s often said that US citizens bankroll the rest of the world’s healthcare advances by paying through the nose for new technologies. Rarely are examples as crystal clear as this: Pfizer is now selling all its products at cost to 43 of the poorest countries in the world.
That's fine for them - not like Pfizer was wringing a lot of cash out of Somalians. But have their execs ever been to rural Mississippi? Some areas are not much different from the poorest countries in the world, complete with legal beatings of children in public schools.
Maybe Pfizer could help out those poor Americans too?
Hahaha, yeah right. #freemarket
The Usual
It’s a common joke that when a news article asks a question as its headline, the answer is always 'no'.
Here we see Labiotech asking if Copenhagen is the life science capital of the world.
Lawrence from Office Space has the complete answer to that one.
Layoff Euphemism
Companies are all laying people off, which is still a more fun way of saying 'firing'. Can't use that term, though, because all those snowflakes back in the 90s who were losing their jobs just couldn't bear to be 'fired' anymore. Had to be coddled by HR and told they were let go, made redundant, laid off...anything but fired!
Nowadays those euphemisms are wearing thin, and workers need to be handled even more carefully lest they post about it on IG. So companies are completely stepping around any term for firing and just executing ‘Initiatives to Reduce Cash Burn’.
A sandwich shop BioPharmGuy worked at in college had an initiative to reduce cash burn one time, but they failed to inform him. Upon direct cross-examination by the reduced, management admitted he was no longer employed. Surfing on the counter was apparently frowned upon, though that was definitely not in the handbook.
Hamlet Pharma
Big news at Hamlet Pharma. So big, in fact, they put a link to it on their home page.
Ladies and gentlemen - Hamlet Pharma took out an ad in the Guardian!
Groundbreaking stuff.
Biotech Criminal Roundup
Over? It’s over When Elizabeth Holmes' rich family says it’s over!
This week federal prosecutors alleged Holmes attempted to flee the country after being convicted earlier in 2022. They believe this because she booked a flight to Mexico.
Her excuse was she had booked the trip prior to the verdict hoping she would be found not guilty, thus getting her passport back and being permitted to fly down for a friend’s wedding.
Ok, not a totally outrageous explanation. After all, who among us hasn’t booked a one-way flight to a friend’s international wedding while facing charges that could lead to 20 years in prison?
Elsewhere, Martin Shkreli of AIDS-patient shakedown fame is being targeted by the FTC for working in the pharmaceutical industry despite being permanently banned from doing so. They are requesting he be held in contempt and even referred to him as "Pharma Bro" in their memo.
We never liked that term, but if the FTC itself is gonna use, we may as well follow their lead.
There is some question as to whether the original judge had the authority to institute an industry-wide ban in the first place, but if anyone is out there looking to become even more famous in figuring that out, it's Shkreli.
Woe is I
A company is offering an AI-chatbot for mental health patients and they call themselves Woebot.
Not only does it sound like a childish term for robot, it also sounds miserable. Pass.
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