"I was just very naive, and I just wanted to get down and do things. I was not thinking of how to finish my PhD fast; I just wanted to do something that was meaningful." In this episode of The Biotech Startups Podcast, Eswar Iyer takes us from his curious childhood in India through academic ups and downs at BITS Pilani and George Mason University to co-founding Aikium, a leader in AI-driven synthetic biology. Eswar shares how creative problem-solving, building custom scientific tools, and resourceful learning environments fueled his growth, while supportive mentors and cultural adaptation guided his path. His story reveals how adversity and persistence, combined with a resourceful “startup” mindset, inspire innovation and resilience for biotech founders at every stage.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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