D.A. Wallach Explains Why Biotech VC Is So Different

Tracy Alloway (0:00)

Hey there, Odd Lots listeners. It is that time of the year again. We are going to be doing a call-in show on the podcast. You can ask us any of your burning questions.

Joe Weisenthal (0:12)

That's right. You wanna ask us about finance markets and economics? Go for it. You wanna ask us about the year in podcasting? Go for it. You wanna ask about where Tracy is with raising chickens on her versioning farm in Connecticut? Go for it. This is your chance to ask us anything.

Tracy Alloway (0:34)

Joe's favorite cut of steak, right?

Joe Weisenthal (0:36)

My favorite cut of steak, my favorite Chinese restaurant in the East Village. It's all fair game.

Tracy Alloway (0:40)

All right. All you have to do is send a voice memo with your question, your name, your age, and your location to oddlots at bloomberg.net.

Joe Weisenthal (0:51)

Deadline to submit is December 17th, so get them in as soon as you can.

Tracy Alloway (0:55)

We're looking forward to hearing what you have to ask, and yeah, that's coming up.

SPEAKER_3 (1:02)

Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio, news.

Tracy Alloway (1:18)

Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Odd Lots Podcast. I'm Tracy Alloway.

Joe Weisenthal (1:22)

And I'm Joe Weisenthal.

Tracy Alloway (1:23)

Joe, we were doing a Q&A this morning.

Joe Weisenthal (1:25)

That's right.

Tracy Alloway (1:26)

It was a lot of fun.

Joe Weisenthal (1:27)

Go on.

Tracy Alloway (1:27)

A live Q&A. And someone asked a question about whether or not we're gonna do more healthcare episodes.

Joe Weisenthal (1:34)

Ah, and we don't do enough, do we?

Tracy Alloway (1:36)

No, we don't, and there's a reason for that. I personally am incredibly intimidated by the US healthcare system. I do not understand it at all. It is just a complete mystery to me. But I was very happy to say in response to that question, that this same day, that's right, we're actually recording a healthcare episode with someone that we've wanted to speak to for a long time.

Joe Weisenthal (2:01)

I'm the same way in the sense that, first of all, yes, I'm the same way in the sense that I really do not know much about how the healthcare system works. I don't even know where to begin asking the right questions. This is what you do. You have to just start a random episode, and that gives you the germs of the next question, the next episode, the next episode. But it seems so big and sprawling, et cetera, that what is the first question to ask? So we just have to plunge right in and just pick one, which we're doing now, and then maybe that will lead to the string of healthcare episodes, which we should have done a long time ago.

Tracy Alloway (2:32)

That's exactly right. There's also a lot of new stuff happening in healthcare at the moment, and we recorded an episode on Chinese biotechs a little while ago. That was incredibly fascinating.

Joe Weisenthal (2:42)

Definitely.

Tracy Alloway (2:42)

I'm very curious to see what's going on on the US side of biotech investing, and we do have another episode plan that's sort of tangentially related to that. But clearly, there's a lot to talk about. The other very odd lotsy thing with this guest is we like people who have interesting career histories, right?

Joe Weisenthal (3:01)

That's right. How they got to where they are today is often a very interesting question.

I have nothing against people who just took the normal path. People who just sort of went to college and they got their MBA.

Tracy Alloway (3:14)

It's okay. You forgive them.

Joe Weisenthal (3:15)

I forgive them. That's totally fine. But it's also interesting to hear about the people who maybe walked in through the side door, so to speak.

Tracy Alloway (3:22)

Absolutely. So we do in fact have the perfect guest. We have someone who has a lot of thoughts on US healthcare, and who is also a biotech investor, and also formerly the lead singer of Chester French. So, DA. Wallach, welcome to the show. Thanks so much for coming on.

D.A. Wallach (3:39)

Thanks for having me, guys. I'm an Odd Lots junkie, so this is like going to the Grammys.

Joe Weisenthal (3:45)

Amazing. Did you ever win a Grammy?

Tracy Alloway (3:48)

No.

D.A. Wallach (3:49)

Don't rub it in.

Joe Weisenthal (3:50)

Sorry, sorry, sorry. I shouldn't have.

D.A. Wallach (3:52)

Not yet is the right answer.

Tracy Alloway (3:54)

Not yet. I guess my first question should be, can you talk to us about the through line between being a musician and healthcare and biotech and how you got into this space? Because I think, you know, it's not a natural transition, to say the least.