Smart Biotech Scientist | The CMC and Bioprocessing Podcast for Process Development and Manufacturing Leaders
The go-to CMC and biomanufacturing podcast for bioprocess development scientists and CMC leaders scaling biologics into regulatory-ready therapies with less trial and error.
Practical, execution-focused, and strategic guidance on CMC development, tech transfer, scale-up, GMP readiness, CDMO partnerships, and manufacturing economics for biologics, cell and gene therapies, cultivated meat, and biomaterials.
Hosted by Dr. David Brühlmann, CMC strategist, former Bioprocess Innovation Manager at Merck, PhD in glycoengineering, and close to 20 years of biomanufacturing experience. Smart Biotech Scientist delivers actionable insights for the people doing the hard work of turning promising molecules into scalable, regulatory-ready therapies.
This podcast is for you if:
- You are a process development scientist or CMC lead managing a technology transfer, scale-up, or CDMO partnership
- You are a biologics developer working on upstream or downstream process development, cell culture optimization, or GMP manufacturing readiness
- You are a biotech founder preparing for an IND filing or Series A fundraise, and need a CMC strategy that holds up under investor and regulatory scrutiny
- You are building or advising an early-stage biopharma team and need to make smart manufacturing decisions with limited resources
What you will learn:
CMC strategy and regulatory planning, bioprocess scale-up from lab to clinical and commercial manufacturing, cell culture process development and media optimization, technology transfer best practices, CDMO selection and partnership management, hybrid modeling, manufacturing economics, continuous manufacturing, digitization, and Industry 4.0 in biopharma.
Top 10 life sciences podcast with 200+ episodes and guests from Merck, FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific, Cytiva, KBI Biopharma, Eppendorf, and biotech innovators worldwide.
New episodes released weekly. Subscribe and join 400+ biotech leaders already using these insights to accelerate development, reduce manufacturing costs, and de-risk scale-up.
Next Steps:
Get the 5-day CMC email course: https://smartbiotechscientist.com/#cmc
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Smart Biotech Scientist | The CMC and Bioprocessing Podcast for Process Development and Manufacturing Leaders
272: From Static Scaffolds to Dynamic Matrices: Hydrogels for Animal-Free 3D Cell Culture with Jan Hunik and Matt Baker - Part 2
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How much of your research lives and dies on the bench? Not because the idea isn’t sound, but because building reproducible, scalable biomaterials remains an unsolved puzzle.
Jan Hunik and Matt Baker from MosaMatrix discuss the practical challenges and lessons learned from spinning out a biomaterials company from academia. They explore the importance of quality standards in biotech startups, building a team with complementary skills, and the realities of developing reproducible 3D culture systems for modern research.
Topics discussed:
- The critical gap between invention and reliable biomaterial products (00:40)
- Building company culture around quality standards from day one (02:45)
- Balancing scientific curiosity and business direction as co-founders (03:51)
- The impact of university partnerships on early-stage company development (06:02)
- Funding challenges and strategies for sustaining a biotech startup (06:47)
- Advice for scientists on addressing real market needs versus pushing technology (07:50)
- The importance of listening to customers and investors to find product-market fit (09:19)
- Vision for scaling technology and breaking even in the next two to three years (10:06)
- New frontiers in engineering living materials and animal-free biomaterials (12:04)
Smart insight: The MosaMatrix team believes good materials are key to unlocking advances in drug discovery, cellular agriculture, and engineered living materials. Their story is a testament to how integrating rigorous science, business discipline, and a razor focus on real-world needs can create the foundation for lasting innovation in biotech.
If this conversation got you thinking about biomaterials, scale-out manufacturing, and what it takes to turn a chemistry breakthrough into a fundable company, these episodes explore the same ground from complementary angles.
- Episodes 221 - 222: From 2D Cultures to Advanced 3D Cell Models for Preclinical Research with Catarina Brito
- Episodes 259 - 260: Why Strong Science Isn't Enough to Get Funded: What Investors Actually Look For with Michael Rome
- Episodes 265 - 266: From Human Variability to Automated Precision: Accelerating Cell and Gene Therapy Manufacturing Scale-Out with Farlan Veraitch
- Episodes 223 - 224: From Cultivated Meat to Chocolate: Rethinking Cellular Agriculture Scale-Up with Steven Lang
Connect with Jan Hunik and Matt Baker:
- Emails: matt.baker@mosamatrix.com and jan.hunik@mosamatrix.com
- Website: www.mosamatrix.com
- LinkedIn Jan Hunik: www.linkedin.com/in/jan-hunik-0183734
- LinkedIn Matt Baker: www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-baker-0abb981b