Katherine French

Yo, have you heard about Katherine French? Total legend in the making. So she’s the CEO and founder of BLUUMBIO, a biotech startup super focused on fighting climate change using enzyme tech. Basically, she’s trying to turn science into real-world climate solutions. No bullshit, she’s the real deal.

Her process’s wild. She’s a YC alum from the S21 batch, so she crushed it early on. But what’s crazy is her background, she’s been all over the place in top-tier research. Started out at Oxford, doing research at Wadham College and the zoology dept, then jumped into a postdoc gig at UC Berkeley and the Joint Bioenergy Institute. Dude’s seen the best labs, worked on modern bioenergy stuff, and basically soaked up all the science juice you can imagine.

What’s dope is how she took all that knowledge and turned it into entrepreneurship. Like, she didn’t just stay in the lab, she saw the bigger picture. She’s all about translating her research into practical tech that can actually make a dent in climate change. That’s the kind of motivation you don’t see every day, she’s driven by real impact, not just academic fame. It’s about solving huge problems, and she’s willing to jump into the startup game to make it happen.

And I think what really stands out is her mix of pure science smarts combined with that entrepreneurial hustle. She’s not just dreaming, she’s building stuff that could actually change the world. That’s why she’s so important, she’s proof you can combine deep research with startup grit, and that’s the kind of leader we need in this climate fight. No cap, she’s one to watch.