Episode 196 - September 18, 2026

On this week's episode, Josh Schimmer, Eric Schmidt, Paul Matteis, and guest Adam Feuerstein open with the OpenAI/Hugging Face AI agent controversy, debating whether calls for AI regulation reflect genuine safety concern or capital rotating out of biotech into AI. Turning to markets, the group describes a choppy September for biotech, driven more by rate jitters and a quiet M&A backdrop than any real shift in FDA or drug-pricing sentiment. In data news, Xenon Pharmaceuticals voluntarily paused enrollment in its Phase 3 depression trial after adverse events, sending shares down as investors worry about the company’s epilepsy franchise. The hosts then cover North Immunology's reverse merger, framing the ongoing wave of reverse mergers as a viable, capital-efficient alternative to IPOs. The conversation turns to Sionna Therapeutics failed cystic fibrosis study, leading to a broader discussion of Vertex's durable moat in CF—its proprietary cell-based assay, willingness to cannibalize its own pipeline, and multimodal drug combinations. The episode closed on rare disease, citing recent approvals as signs of a resurgence, along with the measles outbreak and RFK Jr.'s renewed ties to anti-vaccine groups. *This episode aired on September 18, 2026.