Bioentrepreneur and Carolina pharmacology Ph.D. student David Lee is researching the genetics of addiction – and personalizing medical cannabis therapies as co-founder of his startup ExstoBio.
An entrepreneur since the age of 14 when he started his small lawncare business, David Lee has always viewed the world through an innovator’s lens. As co-founder of startup ExstoBio, he is working to set the standard of patient care by personalizing medical cannabis and developing targeted cannabinoid therapeutics.
Throughout his startup journey, Lee gained valuable resources, connections and mentorship by participating in key programs offered by Innovate Carolina, including KickStart Venture Services’ Venture Catalyst Program. The Venture Catalyst Program allows founders of UNC-affiliated startups and innovations to converge, collaborate and grow young companies with the support of talented graduate students and postdocs. In addition, Lee participated in Launch Chapel Hill, an international award-winning startup accelerator and co-working space in downtown Chapel Hill. These programs helped Lee solidify and validate his idea for a startup as well as launch and scale the business.
Beyond working as a startup co-founder, Lee is also a fourth-year pharmacology Ph.D. candidate in the UNC School of Medicine, where he is focused on uncovering precision pharmacological approaches for pain relief. He hopes to combat the current dual chronic pain and opioid epidemic. In this Chats With Changemakers video, Learn more about Lee’s work and the resources he tapped into through Innovate Carolina.
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