Articles, Lectures, and Media

Articles

Innovation to investment: how to build your first life sciences pitch deck

A strong pitch deck can help make a good first impression, establish credibility and build the confidence to secure the support and financial resources needed for eventual commercial success.

Bullseye these Ten Slides and Get Funded

I’ve seen hundreds of fundraising pitches and have seen which ones succeed. The winners prove ten points on ten slides.

Clearing Hurdles to Academic Startup Formation: How Editpep Became a Company

Berkeley Haas Case Study by Darren Cooke and Richard Lyons

Answer these 10 Questions to see if your Biotech Startup Survives

Introducing the Life Sciences Venture Canvas

Celebrating Ten Cohorts of the Bio Track at Berkeley SkyDeck

The Beginning

If your Startup’s Product isn’t Irresistible it will be Resisted

When great isn’t quite good enough — a strategy for success

Videos

Life Sciences Business Model Testing and Iteration 

Best practices for Customer Discovery

UC Berkeley Entrepreneurship — Meet the Resources and Opportunities (Homecoming)

A Homecoming session highlighting key programs and practical pathways for founders at UC Berkeley.

Startup Campus Book Launch — Panel & Celebration

Highlights from the “Startup Campus” book launch event featuring campus leaders and innovators.

For biotech companies, fundraising can be unique

The Data Minute: Peter Walker (Head of Insights at Carta) sits down with Darren Cooke (Executive Director, Berkeley Life Sciences Entrepreneurship Center)

Podcasts

From Lab Bench to Market: Unlocking Innovation at Universities

Our special guests, Darren Cooke from UC Berkeley and Eva Maria from the University of Zurich, share their unique insights and experiences in fostering startup culture within their respective institutions

Ignite Startups: Darren Cooke on Leading Berkeley’s Startup Ecosystem and Innovation

Darren Cooke, Interim Chief Innovation & Entrepreneurship Officer at UC Berkeley, has had a career journey as dynamic as the startups he mentors. From mechanical engineering to patent law and eventually to a leadership role in fostering life sciences entrepreneurship, Darren has worn many hats. For those passionate about innovation, startups, and academic ecosystems, his story offers a treasure trove of insights.

ATDev Podcast: Episode 4 Darren Cooke

In this episode of the ATDev Podcast, we chat with Darren Cooke, the Interim Chief Innovation and Entrepreneurship Officer at UC Berkeley. With a diverse background in engineering, law, and entrepreneurship, Darren shares his unique insights on UC Berkeley's innovation ecosystem.

Ignite Startups: Darren Cooke on Leading Berkeley’s Startup Ecosystem and Innovation

Conversation with Brian Bell on building Berkeley’s I&E engine and lessons for founders.

GeneOnline: Interview of Darren Cooke (Executive Director, LSEC, UC Berkeley)

Short interview on Berkeley’s life sciences entrepreneurship landscape and founder pathways.

The Biotech Startups Podcast — Part 1/4: Building Berkeley’s $1B Innovation Ecosystem

Origins, pivots, and the systems behind Berkeley’s biotech startup growth.

The Biotech Startups Podcast — Part 2/4: Mentors, Networks & IP

Practical playbook for founders on mentorship, networks, and negotiating university IP.

The Biotech Startups Podcast — Part 3/4: Regulatory Chaos → Competitive Advantage

How to treat regulation as strategy rather than friction.

The Biotech Startups Podcast — Part 4/4: How We Built a Biotech Startups Launchpad at UC Berkeley

Darren shares how 100 "discovery interviews" turned a $3 million gift to UC Berkeley into an experiment that became a powerhouse for biotech innovation in academia.

Illumination by Modern Campus — From Campus to Career with an Entrepreneurial Mindset

Why entrepreneurship programs deliver measurable ROI for students and institutions.

Startup Mindsets — UC Berkeley’s Chief Innovation/Entrepreneurship Officer: Darren Cooke

Career path, program design, and advice for student founders.

EdUp Experience Podcast — 4 Nobel Prizes, 100+ Programs, 600K Alumni: Inside Berkeley's Innovation Machine

Darren Cooke, Interim Chief Innovation & Entrepreneurship Officer, UC Berkeley.

Media

How Universities Are Reinventing Healthcare Innovation

Health Technology Insights, July 31, 2025

HealthTech Top Voice Interview with Darren Cooke, Interim Chief Innovation and Entrepreneurship Officer at UC Berkeley

Healthcare Business Today, July 15, 2025

At biotech's biggest conference, UC Berkeley shows off startups

SF Business Times, Jan 14, 2025

JP Morgan Health Conference brings 8,000 tech, finance, and health companies to SF 

KTVU Channel 2 News, Jan 9, 2024

In a first, UC Berkeley showcasing startups around J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

San Francisco Business Times, Jan 8, 2024

UC Berkeley biotech startups share spotlight during annual J.P. Morgan health conference

Bay City News, Jan 12, 2024