I didn’t come into biotech as a scientist.
My background isn’t in chemistry, molecular biology, or clinical trial design. I came into this space as a builder — as a law school graduate, I was someone interested in systems, incentives, and how long-term value actually gets created in complex environments.
That perspective has shaped how I think about Canurta from the beginning.
In biotechnology, it’s easy to assume that value comes only from data readouts or regulatory milestones. Those things matter deeply — but they are outcomes, not foundations. Before any molecule reaches a clinic, value is already being shaped by the choices a company makes about structure, capital, and time.
As a founder, my job has never been to out-scientist the scientists. It’s been to create the conditions where great science can survive long enough to matter.
That’s how I think about value.
For me, value is built when a company earns the right to keep going — through volatile markets, shifting narratives, and long development cycles — without being forced into decisions that trade the future for short-term relief (read some of my thoughts about this here).
Public markets, when used responsibly, can play an important role in that process.
They aren’t just a source of capital. They are a framework for accountability, transparency, and long-horizon thinking — if you approach them with discipline rather than urgency. A public platform gives you access to liquidity and flexibility, but it also demands clarity. There’s nowhere to hide poor decisions over time.
That is a feature, not a bug. Law school taught me this; The Outsiders validated it. Public markets are not something to run from, they give you tools as a builder that should be embraced.
This mindset is also why I have been deliberate about how I think about capital itself. Canurta's Satoshi Trials Strategy (an update on this later) is about resilience in drug development. It’s about holding a form of capital that isn’t tied to the same cycles as traditional biotech financing, and building a moat of optionality that can be used to our advantage when R&D funding markets tighten.
To me, value isn’t just what you raise — it’s how long that capital can work for you.
Our deal with Pharmadrug fits into my way of thinking. It is a tool on the journey to success.
And there is real, tangible substance that has been under utilized, that I am excited for us to have in our hands.
One of the most compelling aspects of Pharmadrug is the presence of PND-001, a Phase 1-ready asset built around cepharanthine — a compound with decades of clinical use in Japan. That history matters. It aligns directly with our thesis at Canurta: that botanical-inspired compounds, when approached with modern rigor, can offer differentiated paths to patients.
Cepharanthine’s long safety record, combined with a formulation strategy designed for Western regulatory pathways, creates a rare starting point. It’s not theoretical science. It’s an asset with real precedent — and one our team is genuinely excited to advance.
When I think about the value we’re building, it’s not confined to any single asset or moment. It’s cumulative. The value of assembling a team that understands both science and capital: the value of choosing platforms that don’t force false urgency;
the value of aligning funding strategies with the timelines required for real therapeutic progress.
That kind of value doesn’t show up all at once. It compounds quietly — through fewer forced decisions, better optionality, and the ability to keep moving forward when others stall.
We’re still early in this process. There’s work to be done, data to generate, and trust to earn. But the direction is clear.
We’re building a company where science, capital, and structure reinforce one another — not perfectly, but deliberately. And from my perspective as a founder, that’s how enduring value gets created.
And the ability to create value, more than any single metric, is what we’re working to protect.