Ann Lai's childhood in Taiwan and Ohio put her on the path to Harvard science labs and now venture capital. Her unbelievable journey is one of resilience, curiosity, and breaking barriers. . 🌎💡
If you’ve ever wondered how to navigate massive life transitions, thrive in STEM, or build the next billion-dollar startup, this episode is packed with stories and insights you won’t hear anywhere else. In this long-form conversation, we cover Ann's childhood in Taiwan, moving to the U.S., overcoming culture shock, winning international science competitions, choosing Harvard, balancing art and science, earning a PhD in fluid mechanics, and realizing academia wasn’t the endgame. She explains how she pivoted into big data analytics, applied machine learning before it was mainstream, and eventually transitioned into venture capital investing in biotech, healthcare, and AI-driven startups.
You’ll hear powerful lessons on:
- How to turn challenges into growth opportunities
- Why resilience and curiosity are superpowers in science, startups, and life
- The future of AI, biotech, and deep tech investing
- How great founders navigate failure and pivot to success
👉 Watch until the end for Ann’s reflections on mentorship, diversity in entrepreneurship, and how to truly navigate life’s toughest challenges.
Follow Ann on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laiann/
Follow Annalog, Ann's newsletter on Silicon Valley, real businesses, AI, and forensic analytics. https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7361020515240624128/
Read Ann's reflection on "Why Venture Capital Needs an Intervention": https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/venture-capital-needs-intervention-ann-lai-1jgke/
00:00 Intro & Ann’s Journey from Taiwan to the U.S.
02:20 Culture shock: Cleveland snow, suburbs, and U.S. school system
05:05 Language barrier stories and learning English from scratch
07:10 Parents’ unique support style and early resilience
09:20 Friendship, journaling, and adjusting to American life
11:30 Math and science strengths vs. English challenges
13:50 Gifted programs, grade skipping, and science competitions
16:30 International science fairs and inspiring STEM at her school
18:30 College applications and why she chose Harvard
20:00 Secret passion for art alongside science studies
22:40 Harvard to PhD: Chemistry, Physics, and Applied Math
23:40 Realizing academia wasn’t the long-term path
25:40 Grant writing struggles & the shift to privatized science funding
27:00 First exposure to venture capital through lab-on-a-chip
30:50 Graduating during the 2009 financial crisis & pivot to analytics
32:30 Early big data and predictive modeling in debt & insurance
35:30 From predictive to prescriptive analytics breakthroughs
36:40 Entering venture capital: evaluating biotech & healthcare startups
39:30 Lessons learned, diligence process, and spotting red flags
45:40 Patterns of successful founders & importance of diversity
48:00 Navigating failure, pivots, and founder coaching
50:40 The evolving landscape of deep tech and venture capital
53:10 AI, biotech, and opportunities at the biology-computation frontier
56:00 Curiosity, resilience, mentorship & closing reflections
#Podcast #Motivation #Inspiration #Entrepreneurship #StartupLife
#AI #Biotech #DeepTech #VentureCapital #STEM
#DataScience #BigData #Innovation #FutureOfWork
#Resilience #ImmigrantStory #Harvard #WomenInSTEM #FounderStories