Rodrigo Cortes

Building Automated Bio-reactors with @RoMcLocko

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

Bio-production has an Engineering problem. We’re fixing it by building the automation layer for biologics to scale.

Here are a some insights about Anaula from @RoMcLocko at @DiscipulusVent Demo Day in El Segundo.

[Atoms Not Bits @AtomsNotBits]

GLP-1 drugs are one of the fastest-growing pharmaceutical markets ever. This startup is building the autonomous factory to produce them at scale.

Founded by @RoMcLocko and @RodrigoCorEst, part of the @DiscipulusVent Spring Cohort.

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

@jared_western 🔥

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

@Astro_Maggio @RoMcLocko Yessir

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

a CAD model and a bootstrapped bioreactor humming in the back. We’re building fast and breaking things.
The road to automated biofactories starts like this.

Who else is in the trenches?

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

@campedersen @RoMcLocko Gotta fix that ty 🫡

[Sammy @ToughSammy]

This is yet more reason Biopharma Manufacturing needs to be restructured.

Since there isn’t a cure and those who seem to beat the challenge and create one are either threatened or have their labs burned down, this is a wake-up call: “Smart Manufacturing of specialized medicines is not just an option but a necessity.”

Imagine today: in Biopharma manufacturing, production takes 12-18 months, small-batch medicines are very expensive, and bottlenecks never cease.

This is where @MustardBio comes in. Mustard is a deeptech lifesciences startup building an AI-native autonomous manufacturing ecosystem that turns raw materials into finished batches of medicines with minimal human intervention.

Our goal is to apply the “Dark Factory” concept, a vertically integrated manufacturing architecture we designed from the ground up to autonomously control machines, orchestrate processes, and unify quality assurance, maintenance, compliance, and supply chain management into one intelligent software, to achieve 10x faster production and up to 30x lower costs, enabling affordable, accessible medicines globally.

Our “Factory OS” controls two hardware forms:
1. A smart factory hub for mass production: a large-scale, renewable-powered facility running on proprietary software for high-volume medicines at scale.
2. Mobile mini-factories: easily deployed, renewable-energy-powered, containerized manufacturing pods for low-cost, small-batch, rapid supply at the point of need (e.g., clinical trial sites, pandemic control centers, research labs, and hospitals).

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

Knowing @jared_western this is going to be huge. This man operates at serious speed!

[Jared West @jared_western]

Western Chemicals Pilot Plant is now officially under construction in El Segundo! We are spinning up domestic fuel production capacity with historic speed, stay tuned for updates!

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

From building generational companies to solving mortality. Great to chat with @PalmerLuckey and pick his brain backstage before this interview.

[Jakob Diepenbrock @jakobdiepen]

🇺🇸 EXCLUSIVE: @PalmerLuckey x @DiscipulusVent Spring Demo Day Fireside Chat.

We cover Why El Segundo, Founding Anduril, Defense Tech Incentives, State of Hardtech VC, SVB Collapse, Erebor, Founder Advice, & more.

Highlights:

(00:00) Palmer Luckey
(00:20) Why Anduril chose El Segundo over the Bay Area
(01:20) The Facebook acquisition & Bay Area mercenary problem
(02:43) Building across veterans, Democrats, Republicans & libertarians
(03:33) How the four Anduril founders' roles have evolved
(04:21) "Want to work on tech? Don't start a company"
(06:02) What Palmer learned from Oculus about delegation
(06:44) How not to become Lockheed or Raytheon
(07:33) Why the government rewards being slow & expensive
(09:25) Anduril's real failure mode: becoming Google, not Lockheed
(10:21) The state of hardtech venture capital
(10:55) Why ZIRP killed serious investing
(12:31) The vibe shift toward energy, defense & agriculture
(13:01) Erebor & the SVB collapse that almost killed Anduril
(13:32) Why no American bank is actually aligned with America
(15:18) How Biden accidentally saved Anduril
(17:10) Palmer's one piece of advice for founders
(17:38) Bonus: the One Piece anime fan edit

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

True

[Sammy @ToughSammy]

At Mustard Biopharma, we are also fixing Biopharma manufacturing right now.

Biopharma manufacturing today is

• Slow (12–18 month lead times)
• Capital intensive (millions upfront for small batches)
• Operationally inefficient (30–40% lost capacity annually)
• Fragmented across disconnected factories
• Dependent on fragile centralized supply chains

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

Great to present Anaula and talk to laureate scientists and experts in microbiology at the School of Biosystems and Food Engineering at @ucddublin

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

@arbckle @jared_western @RainmakerCorp @DiscipulusVent Hell yeah, Ethan!! …Gotta work with Western🤠

[Ruairí McLoughlin @RoMcLocko]

Built this in 7 days in El Segundo
All-in cost: <$1,000

Working photobioreactor
• sensors, controls, light delivery

This is how fast iteration in biomanufacturing can move

Now imagine 1 month
Now imagine 1 year

Autonomous, robot-driven bioreactors coming next

We’re Raising

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

Right there with you! Best place to be.

[Jeff Tang @jefftangx]

I’m at the intersection of machine god and human god

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

These guys built an autonomous robotic surgeon in their apartment. I can’t wait to be blown away by what comes next!!

[Ryan McGuire @r_mcguire]

check out what we’re building at aleph

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

Great morning before last prep day! Thanks everyone for making it happen!

[rob eloff @robeloff]

Little known fact about El Segundo founders - they can walk on water. Last week’s cohort of @DiscipulusVent builders put their physics and judgement skills on display for a pre-demo day liquidity event with fearless leader @jakobdiepen and @KingJamieLee @tamarackglobal. Your move @PalmerLuckey

[Rodrigo Cortes @RodrigoCorEst]

@robeloff @mattcirac @DiscipulusVent @jakobdiepen @KingJamieLee @tamarackglobal @robeloff idk about ‘shreds’ but I’ll take the compliment.
Surf sess with impromptu Spanish chat on the water too!

Great way to let some steam off before demo day.

[Jakob Diepenbrock @jakobdiepen]

Anaula (https://t.co/SFPcKcOWVi) — Autonomous bio-factories for GLP-1s

Helped build Intel's 2nd largest autonomous chip factory. Their reactor cuts GLP-1 production cost in half. Just signed a $4M agreement to build biological drugs.

📩 [email protected] (@RodrigoCorEst)

[Jakob Diepenbrock @jakobdiepen]

The @DiscipulusVent Spring Cohort just wrapped up in the 'Gundo. 🇺🇸

Joined by @PalmerLuckey, @isaiah_p_taylor, @ADoricko & more throughout the week.

10 hardtech founders building for the American Interest. Companies below 🧵👇

[Jeff Tang @jefftangx]

El Segundo Demo Day yesterday

3 companies to watch out for:

> Anaula: bioreactor for pharma APIs and GLP-1s
> @jared_western: bioreactor for waste water
> @AJA_Cortes: reshoring nitrogen and creatine manufacturing

If the US got into a war with China, we'd be out of insulin, statins, antibiotics, Tylenol, etc. in a month

Like what happened with masks during COVID

Feels like there's an opportunity for a $20M solo GP fund just focused on reshoring pharma and biomanufacturing

@jakobdiepen @discipulusvent cooking

[Palmer Luckey @PalmerLuckey]

@joel_chakra @jakobdiepen @ADoricko @DiscipulusVent @texheavy @fedpoasts Legit the best pitch day I have ever been to. Incredible companies pitched incredibly well.