Psychedelic research company MindMed kicked off trading on Canadian stock exchange NEO this week, becoming one of the first of its kind to go public.
"We are the first publicly listed psychedelics company in the world. And I think what's really important about it is we take a clinical development approach through the FDA pathway. And this ultimately is the way forward for deploying and commercializing psychedelics," MindMed co-CEO and co-founder JR Rahn told Cheddar.
In advance of the reverse takeover transaction that took it public, MindMed raised $24.5 million from a variety of investors including Bail Capital, Cannell Capital, and Grey House, with participation from the founder of Toms Shoes Blake Mycoskie, and others. Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary invested previously.
Almost 50 years after President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act into law, psychedelic drugs are having a political and scientific renaissance in the U.S. Activists are pushing forward state-level and hyper-local decriminalization efforts. And research is well underway at top institutions all across the U.S., like at New York University and Johns Hopkins University, which received $17 million last year to launch a psychedelic research center. Promising research on drugs like psilocybin and LSD, which could be used for everything from fighting addiction to alleviating depression, has fueled interest and investment in the space. MindMed is one of many startups to take on the daunting task of bringing psychedelic-based drugs to market, focusing on 18-MC, which may allow for therapeutic uses without the hallucinogenic effect, for opioid addiction and microdosing LSD for adult ADHD.
"There's a lot of people going after psilocybin at the moment in terms of conducting clinical trials both in the academic realm, but also in the commercial realm and the nonprofit world. And we saw other forms of psychedelics that had such great therapeutic potential outcomes that it was thought a wiser way to go," Rahn said.
Ibogaine, a psychedelic drug derived from an African shrub, has shown promise as a treatment ー but a risky one ー for opioid addiction. 18-MC, a derivative of ibogaine, has fewer risks — plus, it's neither hallucinogenic nor scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act. It will likely be a long and expensive road before the Food and Drug Administration grants approval of a psychedelic-derived drug, but Rahn is hopeful the FDA may expedite trials on 18-MC since it shows promise for alleviating the opioid epidemic sweeping America.
The nature of the psychedelics space invites constant comparison to cannabis. But Rahn, like many others working in the field now, said the future of psychedelic drugs will be much different.
"What we are doing is federally legal and these are going to be medicines. We have no interest in recreational psychedelics," Rahn said. "This is a major message we are sending to the market. I don't think the cannabis folks really took this rigorous science and clinical trial approach."
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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