Being a biotech is not a fundamental constraint unless you approach healthcare orthogonally. We already know that the BIG Pharma R&D model is broken and irrational. Actually words expressed by Merk late last year, as Well as Voltaire in the 1700s! To hack healthcare you must, at least initially, by-pass the gate-keepers, the incumbents, and they're lobbyists by targeting unregulated markets, ideally Golidlocks markets. That's my strategy anyhow.Regarding multi-million dollar costs, people must strain their brains some by doing design-arounds and using surrogate markers and collaborating, i.e., perspective shifting by questions fundamental assumptions. In fact, it is possible to run experiments at 2 orders of magnitude less than what establishment-heavies are doing theirs (speaking from experience).
Derek is rather skeptical that it will work. Like him I am skeptical for basically the same reasons, but also like him I am happy to see YC try something new. There is nothing to be gained by being a negative know-it-all. The only way will know if it will work is to do it and see.
