Interview
In conversation with
Iris Wing To Lam
Iris Wing To Lam is accelerating biomedicine with Genie TechBio, building an AI bioinformatician that turns complex omics data into faster, more intuitive insights. Think days instead of months for analyses that unblock iterations—rooted in her own experience as an immunology PhD at Charité, where access to bioinformatics often set the pace of discovery. The wager is systemic: reduce the friction between data and understanding so scientists and clinicians can push precision medicine forward.
Researchers and clinicians are drowning in data but starving for insights.
Lessons from TechBio at the Benchside:
Lower the Barrier to Insight
Lam’s starting point is personal: weeks lost waiting for analyses translate into missed discovery windows. Her answer is an AI bioinformatician that widens access to high-quality analysis while keeping equity and transparency at the core—clear labeling, auditable pipelines, and communication about how data is used. She argues culture and capacity are as limiting as regulation: teams hesitate to trust automation, and many lack the internal data skills to benefit from today’s tools. Policy can help—governance and infrastructure that enable responsible data access, plus long-term funding for digital R&D—and founders should look beyond local capital to investors who understand techbio’s timelines. The throughline is practical: bring computation to the scientist, make analysis explainable, and let curiosity—not bottlenecks—set the cadence of research.
What we cover
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How an AI bioinformatician can cut analysis time and unlock faster iteration in omics
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Why equity, transparency, and auditable pipelines are non-negotiable in research AI
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What holds digital health back—fragmented data, misaligned incentives, and cultural hesitancy toward automation
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Where policy and infrastructure should evolve to enable responsible access to health and research data
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How founders navigate capital for techbio—clear use cases, strong storytelling, and looking beyond local ecosystems
Leonard Rinser is a healthcare entrepreneur with a mission to advance sustainable and prevention-focused health. He previously built a company in the field of metabolic health and is currently developing a new venture in the longevity space, centered around personalized diagnostics and science-based prevention. Alongside this, he supports leading research institutes, clinics, and venture capital firms in the health sector through the Venture Institute with a systematic approach to drive successful innovation in DeepTech and healthcare and mentors start-ups in international accelerator programs. With his overarching mission, he aims to make health sustainable, holistic, and long-term oriented.
About
Iris Wing To Lam
