A Weiss Tech House event Monday explored where biotechnology and entrepreneurship intersect.
Biotechnology start-up company Trevana’s founding President and CEO Maxine Gowen and its director of Biology Jonathan Violin spoke in Huntsman Hall on Monday evening.
Kevin Luo, a College freshman who is part of Weiss Tech’s mentoring program, said they had reached out to Gowen because they wanted to “expand their boundaries” beyond the field of engineering. “The turnout was a little better than I expected,” Luo said.
Luo mentioned that though the event was originally supposed to only feature Gowen, she chose to bring Violin along with her. Luo said it was “great to have two different perspectives on the industry … he focused more on the academic side and she focused more on the business side.”
Gowen explained several lessons she has learned throughout her career “Don’t be in too much of a hurry to get where you want to get to,” Gowen advised those who aim to become entrepreneurs.
Violin talked about how he transitioned from being a researcher to a member of a company. Both emphasized how those who choose to be entrepreneurs in the highly regulated and expensive biotechnology industry should be comfortable taking risks.
Audience members had various reasons for coming to the event. Daniela Greco, a fourth-year exchange student from the Universidad de San Andre in Argentina studying at the Wharton School, said she attended the event because she is interested in entrepreneurship. She added that she is “trying to take advantage of all the speaking events on campus. Biotechnology is a very new field and I feel there are many opportunities in it.”
Arthur Kuan, a College sophomore who attended because he is interested in becoming a biotechnology entrepreneur, said he found the event informative. “The talk gave me a good sense of the industry,” he said. “Questions from the audience, such as a question about balancing risks taken at work with family life, helped us understand the speakers’ personal experiences.”
Weiss Tech has more speakers scheduled to visit campus in upcoming months. According to Nicholas McGill, an Engineering sophomore and chairman of the Weiss Tech’s Mentoring Committee, they are now partnering with Wharton clubs to bring speakers from Warby Parker, an eyewear company that partners with nonprofits.
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