Uncontrolled Spread: Science, Policy, Institutions, Infrastructure
a16z Podcast20 Sep 2021

Uncontrolled Spread: Science, Policy, Institutions, Infrastructure

There's no question technology played a huge role in the recent/current pandemic, including especially in the plug-and-play engineering and incredibly fast development behind the mRNA vaccines... But is there an even bigger role for the private sector, not just government, to play (and partner) when it comes to key infrastructure for future such emergencies, and even beyond?

Especially given how faulty the translation of institutional science to policy and public health measures turned out to be -- for instance, with "6 feet" of social distancing, or with fomite (vs. aerosol) transmission of COVID. And why are we still talking about the same, not specific, vaccine booster for the Delta variant? What can we learn about real-world evidence, other clinical trial approaches, and progressive (vs. binary) EUA approvals when it comes to public health emergencies? Are capabilities like genomic surveillance and mapping strains -- which require layers of technology, real time -- sitting in the right places?

In this special book-launch episode of the a16z Podcast, former FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb -- author of the upcoming new book, Uncontrolled Spread: Why COVID-19 Crushed Us, and How We Can Defeat the Next Pandemic -- shares insights on the above, and revealing stories from behind the scenes. Do we need a new entity to manage public health through a national security lens, and is the government capable? Gottlieb debates this and other probing questions from a16z co-founder Marc Andreessen (who famously wrote "It's time to build"); a16z bio general partner Vineeta Agarwala MD, Phd (who has spoken about the trials of clinical trials, practiced medicine during the pandemic, and more); and founding a16z bio general partner Vijay Pande PhD (who, among other things, founded the distributed computing project Folding@Home which pivoted to COVID proteins).

One thing's for sure -- with this COVID crisis, we're at an inflection point between old and new technology -- whether it's in how we make vaccines, or how we apply the fields of synthetic biology and genetic epidemiology in public health response. So now's the time to look both backward, and forward, to really change things...

Episoder(904)

a16z Podcast: Engineering a Revolution at Work

a16z Podcast: Engineering a Revolution at Work

From file cabinets to typewriters, spreadsheets and word processing the tools we use for work change not only what we do, but the culture of our workplace. Steven Sinofsky, a veteran of building software tools for productivity, discusses the latest revolution in technology-enabled tools with Benedict Evans. Why today’s cloud-based tools change the role of managers, and why the perfect tool will never exist (nor would you want it to).

10 Apr 201423min

a16z Podcast: China and Tech

a16z Podcast: China and Tech

China has been a tough market to crack for U.S. internet companies. One of the key reasons is China has its own crop of hugely successful and highly innovative companies. Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon, Connie Chan and Benedict Evans highlight the key players in China, and what non-Chinese companies can learn from them. Where Chinese companies and money are headed next.

30 Mar 201417min

a16z Podcast: Oculus and the (Mind-Blowing) Reality of Virtual Reality

a16z Podcast: Oculus and the (Mind-Blowing) Reality of Virtual Reality

Up until now virtual reality has been a disappointment for all those people pining for their own personal holodeck. But advances in the components required to create a truly immersive digital 3D experience have finally broken through much of what has been holding virtual reality back. As a consequence, Oculus VR is building something that is nothing short of a new medium. Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon, Balaji Srinivasan and Gil Shafir discuss the present and future potential of virtual reality. Take heart, the holodeck can’t be far away now.

28 Mar 201412min

a16z Podcast: The Rise of Full Stack Startups

a16z Podcast: The Rise of Full Stack Startups

Suppose you develop a new technology that is valuable to some industry. The old approach was to sell or license your technology to the existing companies in that industry. The new approach is to build a complete, end-to-end product or service that bypasses existing companies. Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon, Balaji Srinivasan and Benedict Evans discuss the reasons behind, and advantages of, going “full stack.”

27 Mar 201418min

a16z Podcast: Searching for Mobile’s Own PageRank

a16z Podcast: Searching for Mobile’s Own PageRank

The mobile experience is still in its 1995 Yahoo phase, a sea of apps and websites without an easy way to find what you want and need on your smartphone. What will be mobile’s version of PageRank, the algorithm that made the web manageable? What is the interaction model and the form - app, card, URL – that will help us find, explore and engage with people, products and services from our mobile devices? Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon, Benedict Evans and Balaji Srinivasan delve into the options.

24 Mar 201412min

a16z Podcast: Where is the Technology That "Matters?" Right Here

a16z Podcast: Where is the Technology That "Matters?" Right Here

There is a recurring theme that the tech industry is busy cranking out fluffy social apps rather than hardcore technology. Not the case, say Chris Dixon, Benedict Evans and Balaji Srinivasan. Not only are tech entrepreneurs going after the deficiencies in healthcare, transportation, finance, energy - you name it - with new approaches riding on top of sophisticated technologies, what looks like fluff today often wields some serious influence tomorrow.

21 Mar 201414min

a16z Podcast: The State of the Bitcoin Ecosystem, and a Theory on Satoshi

a16z Podcast: The State of the Bitcoin Ecosystem, and a Theory on Satoshi

Andreessen Horowitz's Chris Dixon and Balaji Srinivasan discuss the state of the Bitcoin ecosystem now that the Mt. Gox dust has settled. What's next in crypto-currency, and a theory on Bitcoin creator Satoshi (not Dorian) Nakamoto.

20 Mar 201415min

a16z Podcast: Apple and Google Won the Mobile OS War, But a New War Has Already Begun

a16z Podcast: Apple and Google Won the Mobile OS War, But a New War Has Already Begun

Apple and Google won the mobile OS war, but the next war – to build big businesses on top of Android and iOS – is just beginning. Andreessen Horowitz Partner Benedict Evans untangles what the next phase of mobile means for entrepreneurs, Apple and Google's competitors, and consumers eager for the next great gadget.

13 Mar 201427min

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