Episode Summary

Neal sits down with Will Alaynick, managing partner at Phase Two Ventures, for a fireside chat on what it actually looks like to go from building a company to running a venture fund. Will walks through his journey from operating a life science instrumentation startup - backed by a strategic investor who gave him governance, talent, and manufacturing access - to raising a fund focused on the tools and infrastructure layer of biotech. They dig into how fund managers evaluate deals differently than angels, why SBIR funding can be a double-edged sword, and what it takes to say no for a living.

Key Topics

* How a strategic investor provided governance, talent, and manufacturing - not just capital

* Building Phase Two Ventures from operator pattern recognition

* Evaluating life science deals through the lens of an ex-founder

* SBIR funding as a signal - and when it becomes a distraction

* The difference between angel deal evaluation and fund-level portfolio construction

* Why most of the venture job is saying no - and how to do it humanely

* AI's emerging role in life science - and why wet labs still matter

* What angels should know before making the leap to managing a fund

Links & Resources

* Phase Two Ventures

* San Diego Angel Conference

* Rising Tide Partners

Connect on LinkedIn

* Will Alaynick

* Neal Bloom

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