#60 - Craig Boyce & Dr. Melanie Leitner: Can Venture Capital Cure ALS?

When private-equity veteran Craig Boyce left nearly two decades at Bain Capital and neuroscientist Dr. Melanie Leitner stepped out of the lab, both carried a deeply personal mission: speed up the end of ALS. Together they helm the ALS Investment Fund, a for-profit venture vehicle that backs early-stage therapeutics aimed at turning the disease from terminal to chronically managed by filling the “capital void” between basic research and big-pharma buy-in​. In this conversation with Tim and Troy, Craig recounts losing his father to ALS and how that tragedy redirected his deal-making skills toward impact investing​, while Melanie shares the “seventh-grade brain report” that launched her career and why today’s biomarker and platform-trial advances finally make true progress possible​. They break down: Why capital markets—not philanthropy alone—must fund $10-$50 M clinical trials ​ The business case that’s luring big pharma back to neuro (“the decade of neurodegeneration”) ​ How a cystic-fibrosis-style royalty model could recycle billions into ALS research ​ The audacious goal to “put ourselves out of business” by making effective therapies commonplace ​ If you’re curious how finance, science, and relentless human stories converge to accelerate cures, this episode delivers a front-row seat. SPONSORS: ElevenLabs: Thanks to ElevenLabs (https://elevenlabs.io) for supporting this episode and powering Tim’s voice. ALS Investment Fund: Thanks to ALS Investment Fund (https://www.alsinvestmentfund.com) for supporting this episode. SOCIAL: Website: https://tgnlu.com   Twitter: https://twitter.com/nlutimgreen   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NLUpod  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nlupod/  AUDIO ONLY: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5fhcANt7CSnYvgBlgxpVVa  Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/nothing-left-unsaid/id1734094890   PERSONAL:  Tackle ALS: https://www.tackleals.com   Tim Green Books: https://authortimgreen.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices