129. No Cells? No Problem! eXoZymes' Michael Heltzen on the Future of Microbe-Free Biotech

Grow Everything Biotech Podcast

Erum sits down with Michael Heltzen, CEO of eXoZymes, to dive into the transformative world of cell-free biomanufacturing. Michael shares the origin story of ExoZymes—from a student bioengineering dream at UCLA to ringing the NASDAQ bell—and unpacks why scalability, sustainability, and design thinking are central to the next generation of biotech. If you're curious about how biology can be engineered without living cells, what it takes to commercialize breakthrough science, or how new business models in synthetic biology are emerging, this is the episode for you. Get ready to rethink what’s possible when biology breaks free from the cell wall.

Grow Everything brings the bioeconomy to life. Hosts Karl Schmieder and Erum Azeez Khan share stories and interview the leaders and influencers changing the world by growing everything. Biology is the oldest technology. And it can be engineered. What are we growing?

Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.messaginglab.com/groweverything⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Chapters:

• 00:00:00 – Unlocking a New Era: Rethinking Natural Resources for the Future
• 00:00:17 – SynBioBeta Afterglow: Late Nights, Big Ideas, and Bio Buzz
• 00:02:39 – Breaking the Cell Wall: The Power of Cell-Free Biomanufacturing
• 00:03:33 – Meet Michael Heltzen: The Visionary Behind the Next Bio Revolution
• 00:09:54 – Inside NCTX: The Molecule That Might Change Everything
• 00:16:06 – No Scale, No Impact: Tackling SynBio’s Toughest Bottlenecks
• 00:26:43 – From Supplements to Cures: Bio’s Leap Across Sectors
• 00:27:19 – AI x Enzymes: Cracking Nature’s Code in Real Time
• 00:28:06 – Making Biology Predictable: ML Meets Molecular Design
• 00:30:14 – Faster Than Nature: How AI Shrinks Production Timelines
• 00:33:29 – Go-to-Market Moves: Biotech Strategy for the Real World
• 00:36:07 – Bio Click™: Targeted Enzymes with Industrial Precision
• 00:38:38 – Life After the Bell: IPOs, Growth, and Big Bio Energy
• 00:42:29 – Zooming Out: Big-Picture Thinking for What Comes Next

Links and Resources:

• eXoZymes
• NCTx
• BioClick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Topics Covered:

biomanufacturing, cell free biomanufacturing, enzymes, nutraceuticals, biotech, pharmaceuticals, AI, spinouts

Have a question or comment? Message us here:

Text or Call [phone]

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ / ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Grow Everything⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Music by: Nihilore

Production by: Amplafy Media