Trends from the Trenches
Bio-IT World's Trends from the Trenches podcast offers an insider's perspective on the science, technology, and executive trends shaping the life sciences. Host Stan Gloss, co-founder of BioTeam, draws on his industry experience in science, data, and technology to engage in conversations with leaders in the field. The show explores what drives data and discovery, and what's coming next in life sciences.
Episodes
Episode: 44 - Knowledge Graphs Turning Life Science Data into Answers
AI is moving fast in life sciences, but a confident answer is not the same thing as a correct, reproducible, auditable answer. Knowledge graphs, ontologies, and FAIR data practices are the keys to bridging this gap. Knowledge3's Tom Plasterer, CEO and co-founder, and Eric Little, chief data officer, join host Allison Proffitt to discuss what it takes to turn semantics into something practical
Episode: 43 - The Hard Truth about Digital R&D: Patterns, Pitfalls, and the Next Wave of Innovation
At last month’s Bio-IT World Conference & Expo, Eleanor Howe, founder and CEO of Diamond Age Data Science, presented the Trends with the Trenches session based on gathered input from colleagues, clients, and advisors across the life sciences field. Coding agents were the central topic—how they’re speeding up software development, open source maintenance, and analysis workflows while also shift
Episode: 42 - Adam Marko on AI-Ready Life Sciences Data
Your AI plan can’t outrun your data. Adam Marko, life science field CTO at Hammerspace, joins the podcast to unpack the problem almost every biotech, pharma, and biomedical research group runs into: unstructured data that are siloed, fragmented, and scattered across storage systems, sites, and clouds. With host Jessica StLouis, they talk through what “data orchestration” means when building an AI-
Episode: 41 - Sonia Timberlake on Agentic AI for Biotech Coders
AI is now good enough to change how computational biology teams actually work, but most companies are still adopting it like it’s 2023. Sonia Timberlake, R&D strategy consultant for Timberlake & Maclsaac Biopharma Consulting, speaks with host Eleanor Howe about what’s real: agentic coding, high-throughput data workflows, and the practical limits that still slow teams down. Timberlake digs
Episode: 40 - Allissa Dillman and LaFrancis Gibson on the Power of Hackathons
Joining Trends from the Trenches is Allissa Dillman, founder and CEO of BioData Sage, and LaFrancis Gibson, manager for health promotion at ORAU, who discuss this year’s Bio-IT World Conference & Expo Hackathon sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Common Fund Data Ecosystem (CFDE) Training Center. With host Allison Proffitt, they discuss which tools and datasets from CFDE will
Episode: 39 - Jarett DeAngelis and Shane Corder on Simplifying HPC Resources
Computing resources are no longer just pieces of tech—they're scientific instruments. Moffitt Cancer Center’s Jarett DeAngelis, director of scientific information technology, and Shane Corder, senior HPC engineer, join cohost Jessica StLouis, senior scientific consultant at BioTeam, to discuss new approaches changing access to HPC resources and how platforms like Open OnDemand are simplifying
Episode: 38 - Third Rock’s John Keilty on What Lies Ahead for Bioinvestment
As the new year settles in, the industry is anticipating new innovative biotech and learning from past failures. John Keilty, venture partner at Third Rock Ventures, discusses the current trends he sees in biopharma investment, separating the hype from reality of AI (and if the AI bubble will eventually pop), other ventures that should be considered, and how new companies are being built today com
Episode: 37 - A Father’s Mission to Find a Cure: Casey McPherson on Rare Disease Research
Rare diseases do not receive enough attention for the impact they have on patients and their families. This is what AlphaRose’s founder and CEO Casey McPherson learned after his daughter was diagnosed with a rare condition. In a conversation with host Ari Berman, McPherson shares how he switched from music to founding his own pharmaceutical company, what technologies AlphaRose is developing, and h
Episode: 36 - David Hewlett on Making Learning Fun and Data Standardization
David Hewlett, founder of Tech Bandits, makes learning fun and creates an environment where children—the future generation of scientists—can feel comfortable with curiosity. With host Ari Berman, Hewlett delves into his acting career, which consists of a wide range of scientist roles, and the origins of Tech Bandits. He also shares his thoughts on how science needs to be communicated better (and w
Episode: 35 - A Farewell to Stan Gloss: Founding BioTeam, Words of Wisdom, and More
In this special transition episode of Trends from the Trenches, Ari Berman, CEO of BioTeam, takes the mic as the new host of the Trends from the Trenches podcast and speaks with founding host Stan Gloss, co-founder of BioTeam. During their conversation, they cover Stan’s journey as an entrepreneur, including the valuable lessons learned along the way, words of wisdom for people on similar paths, a
Episode: 34 - Discussing HPCs and Research Computing With Dirk Petersen
In the first Trends from the Trenches episode of 2025, host Stan Gloss and Dirk Petersen, Director of Supercomputing Center at Oregon State University, talk about the state and role of HPCs in a world that’s focused on AI. Petersen offers his thoughts and insights on working with AI teams, how to converge the traditional HPC user with the AI user, the “Wild West” of AI infrastructure and computing
Episode:33 - Renee Iacona Discusses AI/ML Expertise, Data Management, and Oncology
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss and Renee Iacona, vice president of Oncology Biometrics, Oncology R&D at AstraZeneca, discuss the process of matching patients with the right treatments, data management (particularly around oncology), and the value of knowledge graphs. Iacona mentions the importance of having scientists who understand AI/ML and AI/ML experts who und
Episode: 32 - Rémy Evard on Organizing Trials, Declining Resources, and AI Development
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss discusses high-performance computing and its progress over the years with Rémy Evard, chief digital officer and head of technology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). They delve into the impact of cloud technology, the rapid development of AI (and the overexcitement around it), and the current industry-wide issue of maintain
Episode: 31 - Tom Plasterer on Going From Pharma to Start-Up, Graph Technology, and More
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss speaks with industry veteran Tom Plasterer, managing director of life sciences innovation at XponentL Data. Plasterer shares his journey of how he became an industry leader, how his time at BG Medicine (then known as Beyond Genomics) helped him with his time at AstraZeneca, what graph technology is and its benefits, and why he returned t
Episode: 30 - Howard Jacob On Funding, Rare Diseases, and the Origins of ARCH
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss speaks with Howard Jacob, vice president of genomics research at AbbVie. They discuss Jacob’s beginnings at AbbVie, data siloing and “my data vs. our data” issues, and the role of funding in plan execution and leadership support. Jacob also delves into the origins of the AbbVie R&D Convergence Hub (ARCH—winner of a 2023 Bio-IT World
Episode 29 - Discussing Compute Research and Support in Academia With Ruth Marinshaw
Tune into this month’s episode of Trends from the Trenches, where host Stan Gloss and Ruth Marinshaw, CTO of Research Computing at Stanford University, talk about the accomplishments and challenges of supporting a diverse population of researchers in academia. Marinshaw also delves into building a reliable and trustworthy service, computational infrastructure as an essential tool for the lab, what
Episode: 28 - Bio-IT World Expo: Trends from the Trenches with Ari Berman
In this special episode of the Trends from the Trenches podcast, listen in on the Trends from the Trenches session at this year’s Bio-IT World Conference & Expo. Ari Berman, PhD, CEO of BioTeam, delivers a candid talk about the technologies driving data-intensive science, from the most worthwhile to the most overhyped to the most relevant. Learn what’s happening now with computing, storage, da
Episode: 27 - Law to Biotech: Joseph La Barge on Starting a Company and the Future of Gene Therapy
In this month’s episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss speaks with Joseph La Barge. La Barge trained as an attorney but has spent most of his career building biotech businesses and securing funding. He shepherded Spark Therapeutics through its acquisition by Roche and has since joined Apertura Gene Therapy as CEO. He and Stan talk about the entrepreneurship journey, gene expression a
Episode: 26 - Embracing Change and Overcoming Resistance With Adama Ibrahim
Change can be scary, but it can also bring new opportunities and lead to growth and innovation. In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss from BioTeam and Adama Ibrahim, VP of Digital Strategy & Change Management at Novo Nordisk, delve into a conversation about humanity’s natural resistance to change, why it is important to overcome that resistance, and how change is the key
Episode: 25 - Effective Data Management Strategies With Dr. Becky Upton
It’s no secret that the industry is drowning in data. That’s why data management strategies are needed now more than ever to speed up discoveries and bring new solutions to the market. In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss discusses data management strategies with Becky Upton, Ph. D., President of Pistoia Alliance. Dr. Upton shares how her organization is maximizing data man
Episode: 24 - Tom Miller Discusses How to Turn Your Research Into Your Own Company
Going from one field to the next can be a tricky thing to navigate. In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss speaks with Tom Miller, Co-Founder and CEO of Iambic Therapeutics, about his journey from academia as a professor at the California Institute of Technology to getting B-Round funding as the CEO of his own start-up. Miller discusses why he started his company, what inspir
Episode: 23 - Setting Global Wide Data Sharing Standards With Dr. Heidi Rehm
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host Stan Gloss speaks with Heidi Rehm, PhD, Chair Elect of the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH), about data sharing policies and standards that can advance both genomics and health. Rehm discusses the benefits of data sharing on a global scale, how organizations can reduce friction of people’s usage and adoption of standards, and success
Episode: 22 - Exploring Generative AI And How It Can Improve Healthcare With Roche’s Bryn Roberts
In the latest episode of the Trends from the Trenches podcast, host Stan Gloss and Bryn Roberts, PhD, Global Head of Data & Analytics at Roche Information Solutions explore the Why and the How behind AI. What used to be “happily left a bit in the background” is now main stage thanks to everyone’s new interest in ChatGPT. Roberts recommends applying pharma’s Target Product Profiles (TPPs) to AI
Episode: 21 - Generative AI, Digital Twins, and the Future of Pharmaceutical Innovation
After the “magical moment of hope” when the first human genome was sequenced, Jeanne Kehren switched from veterinary medicine to the pharmaceutical industry. Today, she is the SVP of Digital & Commercial Innovation and CIO at Bayer Pharmaceuticals and works in various areas, including sustainability, digital health, and digital transformation. In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, host
Episode: 20 - Exploring the Benefits of AI
A few years ago, artificial intelligence was in its developmental stages. Today, it is widely used by various industries and several companies are exploring new ways to utilize its tremendous potential. In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, Stan Gloss speaks with Jarrod Anderson, Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence at ADM, who discusses prioritizing projects, selecting the best team
Episode: 19 - Research Consumers: Understanding How Data Can—And Can Not—Answer Questions about Customer Needs
In this episode of Trends from the Trenches, Stan Gloss speaks with Efosa Ojomo, director of the Global Prosperity Group at the Clayton Christensen Institute (CCI) and coauthor of The Prosperity Paradox: How Innovation Can Lift Nations Out of Poverty, about the parallels between consumption economy and life sciences research. Ojomo discusses how relying on data metrics does not necessarily provide
Episode: 18 - Bryn Roberts on Data Citizenship and Changing Data Culture
Bryn Roberts has spent thirty years in informatics and data, most recently at Roche and before that at AstraZeneca. Now as Global Head of Data and Analytics at Roche Information Solutions, Roberts applies his career-long learnings to the current era of data in life sciences, offering advice for building data citizenship, creating a FAIR data culture, and avoiding vendor lock-in. Links from this e
Episode: 17 - Pfizer’s AI Approach: A Business Strategy for a Digital World
At Pfizer, AI plays a key role in every step of the drug discovery process, Anastasia Christianson, Global Head of AI, ML, Analytics, and Data at Pfizer, tells Stan Gloss on the latest episode of the Trends from the Trenches podcast. Christianson lists the areas at Pfizer where AI is in play and for which she has AI/ML responsibility: research and discovery, clinical development, manufacturing sup
Episode: 16 - Kjiersten Fagnan on the JGI’s Genome Citation Service That Tracks Genomes Across Research
Kjiersten Fagnan is an applied mathematician enamored of biology’s messy datasets. Now, as chief informatics officer at the Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (JGI), located at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, she finds bioinformatics' computational and data challenges very different from applied math or partial differential equations. Fagnan is the newest guest on the Trends f
Episode: 15 - CEO Andrew Hopkins on Exscientia’s AI-Driven Approach to Modern Drug Discovery
The steel industry is not a common birthplace of biotech companies, but Andrew Hopkins traces the ideas that became Exscientia back to his time there. New technologies and new processes replaced nearly 90% of the steel workforce, and Hopkins kept those market lessons. He says, “When I ended up in pharma and biotech, I had a very different perception of the power of commerce and markets and what th
Episode 14: How Recursion Hopes to Harness the Big Picture View to Understand Biology’s Landscape
After ten years of working on a specific disease, Chris Gibson’s graduate school lab tested their treatment theory on an animal model. It not only didn’t work, it actually made the animals worse. The experience prompted Gibson to look into how other tools and techniques could be brought to bear on biological programs. And so he quit medical school to co-found Recursion Pharmaceuticals where he is
Episode: 13 - Vizgen’s Terry Lo on Creating Maps of Biology’s Backroads
Terry Lo has been in healthcare for almost 25 years, with business and commercial roles across pharma, diagnostics, and life sciences, but his most recent role—CEO at Vizgen—connects him with what he calls, “without a doubt the most exciting space I’ve been involved with.” In this episode, Lo speaks with BioTeam’s Stan Gloss about spatial biology, why it matters, and how he imagines the technology
Episode: 12 - Bonus Episode With AWS’ Aaron Friedman on the New Amazon Omics Service Launch
Host Stan Gloss, founder of BioTeam, talks with Aaron Friedman, HealthAI Principal Product Manager at Amazon Web Services, about the launch of Amazon Omics. This new purpose-built service helps healthcare and life science organizations store, query, and analyze genomic, transcriptomic, and other omics data to generate insights that improve health and advance scientific discoveries. The platform si
Episode 11: Atomic Changes: Reshaping our Data Journey in Small Steps
Host Stan Gloss, founder of BioTeam, invites Mike Tarselli, chief scientific officer at TetraScience, to chat about data and how the life sciences industry thinks about our primary product. They discuss the tech sector’s influence on pharma in switching from a project mindset that yields outputs to a product mindset that yields outcomes and why the industry should use traditional supply chain mech
Episode 10: Dr. Kiana Aran on a New Wave of Technological Advancements With Graphene
Graphene has quickly become a biotech buzzword as scientists aim to better connect with biology and usher in a new wave of technological advancements. Outperforming silicon at nearly every turn, graphene is one of the most biocompatible tools for extracting valuable information without disrupting biological systems. “Graphene is a single layer of carbon molecules. Everything in our body is made of
Episode 9: State of the Industry: Checking in on AI Trends and Progress with Fernanda Foertter
In the latest episode of Bio-IT World’s Trends from the Trenches podcast, host Stan Gloss, founder of BioTeam, talks with Fernanda Foertter, director of developer relations at Voltron Data, about her AI experiences in the past few years, whether we’ve made any real progress, and if she thinks AI is a pipe dream. “It feels like it’s a pipe dream to be able to get these things right [today]... I thi
Episode: 8 - Victoria Gamerman on a Roadmap to Real-World Data in Drug Discovery
Victoria Gamerman’s love of analytics and math came from her grandmother—the first mathematician she knew. And in her nearly decade at Boehringer Ingelheim, she’s been putting that love to use as the Global Head of Data Governance and Insights. In the latest episode of Bio-IT World’s Trends from the Trenches podcast, host Stan Gloss, founder of BioTeam, talks with Gamerman about real world data,
Episode 7: George Church on Neurodiversity, Collison of Bad Ideas, and Thinking Visually
Neurodiversity is inconvenient in a classroom; George Church knows firsthand. But in the latest episode of Bio-IT World’s Trends from the Trenches podcast, Church tells host, Stan Gloss: “I’m interested in overcoming the inconvenience of having people who are a little bit out on the bell curve… You don’t want necessarily to train everybody in your lab to be as close to the ideal citizen as possibl
Episode: 6 - Susan Gregurick Previews Potential Elements of NIH’s Next Strategic Plan for Data Science
Susan Gregurick, Associate Director for Data Science and Director of the Office of Data Science Strategy at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), speaks with Stan Gloss, podcast host and BioTeam founder, about the next iteration of the NIH Strategic Plan for Data Science and the lessons learned from the recent pandemic. “COVID just told us how much we weren’t doing, and how challenging it is to
Episode: 5 - Kim Branson on Building Groundbreaking AI/ML Models in Drug Discovery
Dr. Kim Branson’s intense interest in drug discovery and structural biology quickly led to an interest in machine learning. After receiving multiple degrees from esteemed universities in Australia, Branson trained at Stanford and now works as the Senior Vice President and Global Head of AI/ML at GSK. With host, Stan Gloss, Branson shares his work in creating “biological twins.” These 3-D tumor cul
Episode: 4 - James Cuff on Computing’s Evolution and the Next Fascinating Challenge
James Cuff summarizes his career over the past 25 years or so in the latest episode of Bio-IT World’s Trends from the Trenches podcast. He tells our host, BioTeam’s Stan Gloss, where he’s seen updates in the space and which things have fundamentally stayed the same. He also shares about the problem that’s been bugging him for the past five years and the new company he’s joined that could fix it. L
Episode 03: Jim Bilotta on Digitization vs. Digital Transformation at Alnylam
Jim Bilotta found his home in orphan diseases early in his career, driven by both personal experience and the “unbelievable” impact on patients and their families. Today, as Chief Information Officer, head of IT, at Alnylam, he is still pursuing that impact. Bilotta and Trends from the Trenches host, Stan Gloss, discuss digital transformation at Alnylam, and how Bilotta views the distinction betwe
Lita Sands on the Cloud, Digital Transformation, AWS Future Plans
From big pharma to Amazon Web Services, Lita Sands has seen the amazing impact that the Cloud has had on life sciences research over the course of her career. During the pandemic, Sands has seen companies’ journeys to the cloud accelerate from 8-12 year roadmaps into 1-2 year transition plans. As companies turn their attention to enabling digital transformation, Sands has some advice. Take a 1-3 y
Tony Kerlavage on Data Lakes, Data Commons, and Empowering the Research of the Future
At the National Cancer Institute, Tony Kerlavage knows quite a bit about managing very large pools of data. When NCI launched the Genomic Data Commons, it aimed to democratize access to the genomic data in The Cancer Genome Atlas and other sources. Since then, though, Kerlavage points out that our data types and volumes have only grown. Now NCI is taking a “Commons of Commons” approach to link poo
Launching a Trends from the Trenches Podcast from BioTeam and Bio-IT World
Bio-IT World and BioTeam have been exploring the drivers of life sciences innovation for years during the Bio-IT World Conference & Expo and in regular columns in the publication. Now Bio-IT World editor, Allison Proffitt, and BioTeam co-founder, Stan Gloss, discuss their latest project: a podcast to capture in-depth conversations with leaders in the field about data, culture, technology, and
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