Hello, and welcome to Insider
- An exclusive look at an ex-Goldman partner's new healthcare startup;
- Four factors are fueling the 20-fold increase in COVID-19 cases in India;
- Albert Bourla's plan for a new, nimbler Pfizer set the stage for pandemic success.
If you're new to this newsletter, sign up here. If you want to chat about the biotech and pharma industry, comments and tips can be sent to adeangelis@insider.com. Now, on to the news:
See the pitch deck that an ex-Goldman partner and a public health doctor used to raise $8 million for a startup taking a new approach to fighting disease outbreaks
- The Public Health Company wants to help businesses and governments navigate public health crises.
- The startup plans to use data to help track viruses and make decisions about office openings.
- Venrock and Sweat Equity Ventures invested alongside Verily, Alphabet's secretive healthcare arm.
A perfect storm of 4 factors has fueled India's harrowing coronavirus surge
India is in crisis: Hospitals are overloaded with patients amid a surge in coronavirus cases- Rapidly spreading variants and social gatherings are fueling this outbreak, experts say.
- A slow vaccine rollout and ill-prepared healthcare system have made matters worse.
These countries could be next >>
Albert Bourla is ushering in a new era at Pfizer after a historic triumph
- Bourla has focused on building a trimmed-down, science-focused drug company since becoming CEO in 2019.
- The chief executive personally met with the scientists developing a COVID-19 vaccine, and told them not to worry about the cost.
- An analyst said what Pfizer has done during COVID-19 is "remarkable". It will also make the company $15 billion.
More stories we're reading:
- What's next: CEOs tell us how they are preparing for the return to office after a tumultuous year (Insider)
- How blackouts, fires and a pandemic are driving shortages of pipette tips - and hobbling science (STAT)
- Confessions of pandemic homebuyers: 6 families open up about overpaying, losing bidding wars and settling for fixer-uppers in a bonkers housing market (Insider)
- Earth has been knocked off its axis over the last 25 years, changing the locations of its north and south poles (Insider)
-Allison