In this episode of the Podcast, SynBioBeta founder and CEO, John Cumbers, speaks with Harshal Chokhawala, co-founder and CEO of ZymoChem, about how the company is reengineering the foundations of materials science using microbial fermentation. Harshal discusses his scientific journey from organic chemistry to building a carbon-conserving biotech platform capable of producing bio-based adipic acid, a key component in nylon 66. Their recent partnership with lululemon aims to bring sustainable, high-performance textiles to market.

The conversation also touches on ZymoChem’s second major innovation: a biodegradable superabsorbent polymer for use in diapers—a response to the overwhelming waste generated by the hygiene industry. Harshal explains their BAYSE platform, the technology powering these innovations, and how they’re scaling up production to meet market demand.

The discussion closes with thoughts on scaling biomanufacturing, policy support, and the broader bioeconomy opportunity in the U.S.

In this episode of the SynBioBeta Podcast, John Cumbers sits down with Shannon Hall, co-founder and CEO of Pow.bio, to talk about how her team is flipping traditional fermentation on its head. Pow.bio’s AI-enabled, continuous fermentation platform decouples cell growth from production—enabling higher yields, faster scale-up, and dramatically lower costs. Shannon shares what led her to leave a successful career at Bio-Rad, why manufacturing is the often-overlooked bottleneck in synthetic biology, and how her company is bringing modern, data-rich, software-driven biomanufacturing to life. From food proteins and fine chemicals to probiotics and enzymes, this episode explores the promise of continuous systems, digital twins, and the smart bioreactors of tomorrow.

On this SynBioBeta podcast, John Cumbers talks with Edward Shenderovich, the Founder and CEO of Synonym, a company creating bioeconomy infrastructure to help next-generation bioproducts scale and get to market. Edward will speak at this year’s SynBioBeta conference on “Scaling Biological Capacity,” and in today’s episode, John and Edward will discuss how Synonym addresses some of the challenges in biomanufacturing with its technology-driven products and focus. 

Edward Shenderovich is the founder and CEO of Synonym, which provides startups with a way to value the feasibility of their technology and effectively de-risk scalability. Edward has extensive experience in the tech industry and has founded numerous companies and VC firms, including Essential Capital, Knotel, Kite Ventures, and Merchantry. Edward and his co-founder Joshua Lachter started Synonym in January 2022 to establish, fund, and construct large-scale bio-manufacturing facilities, offering synthetic biology producers of various scales adaptable production capabilities while simultaneously providing infrastructure investors with opportunities in a novel, carbon-negative bio-manufacturing asset class.

Connect with Edward: @eshender 

Connect with John: @johncumbers

Stay updated on the latest news in synthetic biology, check out our weekly newsletter, and follow us on social media:

Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Be sure you make it to our SynBioBeta events! Click here for more information.