There is a cool article in the June issue of The Atlantic by Quinn Norton about the rise of niche biotech/drug development outfits. And while I think the title (“The Rise of Backyard Biotech”) is misleading, especially because it features Hugh Rienhoff, who is a trained physician and clinical geneticist – by all means a wee bit more advanced than a garage biohacker who’s trying to make genetic medicines – there is a well-articulated message within the story: it’s time for BigPharma R&D to step out of the limelight. The future of biotech discovery and development will be crafted in these specialized, small, startup companies. I couldn’t agree more*. But I’d take the argument one step further: This isn’t something that may happen in the future, but rather, I think that time may already be upon us.
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