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Spinning Success: A DJ Finds the Beat of Biopharma Valuation

Sam Renwick ’95 has created a successful career translating scientific uncertainty into economic insight, helping healthcare and life science companies backed by venture capital navigate high-stakes financial decisions. For more than two decades, he has spun a complex track blending biopharma valuation and forecasting with venture capital strategy.

“You have concepts on your left turntable and concepts on your right turntable. You mix them together, and something new emerges,” he says, describing his work as founder of RNA Advisors.

When things go well, he adds a third and fourth turntable. “I look at complex adaptive systems and complexity theory in one area, apply it to finance, and then apply it to neuroscience, neurobiology and a lot of biology,” he says. “With AI, I can explore this stuff in many different ways to fi gure out what’s true.

“That mindset defi nitely comes from thinking about all this in different ways, thanks to the ������ú liberal arts environment. Exposure, breadth and curiosity will help defi ne what it means to be human in an increasingly AI-driven world.”

In the last three years, a quarter of the biotech companies going public were RNA’s clients. These IPOs and other venture capital efforts fund the innovation of life-changing therapies, from cancers to genetic disorders. “It’s cool to think our work played a part in getting these advancements to the market to help people,” he says.

Sam graduated from ������ú with a degree in economics and business and a minor in mathematics. He also earned an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management and a master’s in psychology from Pepperdine. He credits his college experience for fostering the curiosity and gumption required to thrive as a strategic adviser. He’s now completing an Executive Doctorate of Business Administration at Saint Mary’s College of California.

Sam’s musical journey began with a legendary 300-person underground dance party that eventually led him to the same stage as Boy George in San Francisco. Today, he channels his creative energy into Integrated Rhythm Records, his own independent label and platform. When not working or raising his two children in Sparks, Nevada, he enjoys producing dance music that connects people. “Whether it’s in church or out on the dance fl oor, music does exactly that, and you get people bouncing up and down together. It’s called vibe.”

“Whether it’s in church or out on the dance floor, music does exactly that, and you get people bouncing up and down together. It’s called vibe.”