michael's update #13
spring 2024
hello!
here's a seasonal update with three things:
coaching spotlight: new website = new clients
cohort: lab auto program pilot in sf
community: primer guides in lab auto hardware
my goal is to share important updates from the last few months. i like a menu format so if you’re curious for more, then i linked other things to explore.
enjoy,
michael
🤖
1. coaching: new website = new clients
this season, i designed and released a new website for performance coaching. it’s inspired by notion for its minimalism as well as my memo style format in coaching.
my coaching practice is domain agnostic. in the last couple of years, i’ve worked with ambitious founders, scientists, investors and other kinds of builders.
with the release of the new website, i started working with my first artist: cole with super extra fancy.
quick intro on sxf:
he’s sold and shipped 5,000+ original drawings in the last 5 years (for context, picasso did 13,500 paintings over his life time…)
he’s built his own distribution channels with 195,000+ followers across tik tok, instagram, and substack
for coaching, he’s figuring out the next stage of growth for his business and what best practices he can integrate from other founders
it’s off to a strong start, as in the last few months:
he’s opened up his first retail space downtown with a grant from sf (media feature)
launched pre-orders for first fashion line (more here)
finished xl piece 5k with custom framing from orion’s (sneak peek)
“coaching is great! fast paced, dense, and super informative… i like how much progress i’ve made.” cole
while coaching is at the center of what i do, i’ve limited my annual roster to a handful of founders and builders to focus on more below.
2. cohort: lab auto program pilot in sf
this season, i’ve tested out how a professional cohort based program may be designed in lab automation exploring how to accelerate fundamental science with new robotics, hardware, and the latest in machine learning.
over two months, 120+ builders joined in weekly sprints and a hardware hack, where teams went from zero to demo on different platforms.
some highlight projects include:
multi-agent ai system to translate multimodal data from initial idea to feedback on experimental data
cameras with computer vision models to receive visual feedback data on different instruments
spatial computing representation of a live time updated digital twin using iphone lidar sensors and apple vision pro
hardware partners included opentrons automated liquid handlers (their new flex!), massmelt’s mobile robot, and cephla’s automated microscope. we also got exclusive access to pilot opentrons ai, a generative tool translating experimental protocols into python protocols.
the learnings from this spring will be used in designing the next fall program.
3. community: primer guides in lab automation
less than half of the participants in the pilot program had experience in lab automation. part of the process was building community resources to help builders establish a baseline.
these guides would traditionally take 40-50 hours of research as they assemble the latest across published papers, blogs, and videos. working with a custom ai toolset, i was able to get the publishing time down to <5 hours.
in the last month, guides were made across topics in automated microscopy, liquid handling, digital twins, and more.
next up will be making a website to share these with the community.
and as a bonus, if you made it this far, here’s my favorite event recap from the larger hardware meetup series. it covers insights for integrating ai into different areas of product design from interactions and new experiences.
vinay, the ceo of hal51, shared his journey in building a startup making faux 3d screens through one way mirror reflections.
this helps use technology that already exists (smart phones, tablets, chromebooks) and helps get current ai avatars and language models out of the screen and into a socialized interaction. they are currently piloting with schools for interactive stem programs.
up next for me:
finalize one more founder for performance coaching
release and recruit for fall studios: ai in global healthcare and ai in lab automation
testing ai assistant coach for feedback on time management
always cooking something,
michael
ps. if you made it this far, here’s a recipe for parsley lemon pasta from flour + water in sf. it’s as fragrant as it is flavorful.