From Scientist to Founder: Nervoid’s Pavana Rotti on Building Technology Customers Actually Want

For Pavana Rotti, there’s a lot you can understand by looking at cells under microscopes. But the question was how to make the process easier. 

Then she had a breakthrough — Nervoid. 

The startup transforms cellular imaging into actionable biological insights, using AI to infer signaling pathways and gene expression directly from microscopy data. The platform speeds up decision-making across preclinical workflows.

But as Pavana quickly discovered, building innovative technology is only one part of launching a successful startup. Understanding who needs it, why they need it, and how to get them to adopt it is an entirely different challenge.

We sat down with Pavana to chat about her transition from scientist to founder, the advice that has shaped her approach to building Nervoid, and why even the most groundbreaking technology needs to start with the customer.

Startup Boston (SB): How did you get your start?

Pavana Rotti (PR): I love science and it’s something I've always wanted to work in. I like finding out what's happening and that’s how I would describe my thought process. Molecular biology was an excellent way for me to ask complex questions and understand what's happening. 

I am a scientist by training, and I worked in the lab for a long time. I completed my PhD,  and then I came to the Whitehead Institute for my postdoc. There's so much you can understand by looking at cells under the microscope. I always think about that. Shouldn't there be a way to easily identify what's happening to the cell now that there are AI models? There's a lot of data that we could use. It’s the right time to leverage morphology as a way to understand biology and cell function. 

I would have loved to have the platform that we've built at Nervoid. Once I started thinking about it as a product, then the whole business came up. You can think about the technology and then the platform, but when it comes to actually bringing it out there and seeing if people use it, that's different.

You can work in a lab and think about things that will help you move ahead, but this is not about you. It stops being about the technology and platform, and starts being about everything else. Do people want it? Will they pay for it? Getting it out of your mind to an actual product and then selling it — I've enjoyed that process, and that's why I wanted to be a founder.

SB: You’ve spoken about your past as a scientist and how that influenced you to become a founder. You've been a founder for over a year. What's that been like last year or so?

PR: I think it's been such a great learning curve in changing your mindset. How do you stop thinking about the product itself as a technology alone, but as something that people should use or would want to use? People don’t think about that enough. It's about customers. 

You get to meet so many people that are part of the ecosystem. I've enjoyed meeting everybody that I've met as a founder, and everybody has contributed so uniquely to my perspective of being a founder. 

SB: You mentioned you had the opportunity to talk to different people who had some unique perspectives. What is something that’s resonated with you over the last year?

PR: I was having a conversation about pitching with an investor and he said, ‘If I don't understand why I should be listening to you in the first five seconds or the first few lines of our conversation, then you lose me. Why should I be interested in this? Get to that quick. Why should I care about it? How is it relevant to me? Why should I be listening to you? Why is it useful to me?’ 

That’s something that resonated with me. Before I talk to someone, I do the research first for the hook. It changes the pitch slightly. 

And I was recently part of the CEO Peer Forum at The Engine, and there was a session about adoption and selling. We often think that selling means we have to somehow defend our technology. That's not necessarily the case because it's more about the emotion of the customer. How convenient is it for the customer to adopt your technology? That reduces the friction in adopting your technology, and so it becomes more about how easy it’s for my customer to use my product. You have to validate your product, but the customer should be comfortable using your product. There shouldn’t be any friction. 

These are two things that I’ve thought about a lot when it comes to developing Nervoid’s platform.

SB: What other ways has the startup community supported you? You mentioned some advice, but has anything else stayed with you?

PR: It's important to talk to as many founders in the ecosystem as possible, understand their experiences, and essentially assimilate all that information to improve what you have right now.

SB: What do you value most about being part of the Greater Boston startup ecosystem?

PR: What I think the ecosystem provides is connections, be it other founders, operators,  VCs, pharma professionals, or customers. I want to talk to as many people as I can. I would love to get their perspectives. If it’s someone from pharma, I want to know how they're adopting AI. How are they thinking about AI for their workflows? I want to know about early-stage biotech companies, and what issues they're facing. I want to immerse myself in those conversations.

SB: What advice would you give scientists, engineers, or researchers who are considering turning their technology into a startup?

PR: One thing, especially for scientists, engineers, or any academic kind of students who want to start their company or want to bring their technology out of a lab, is that they should know there is no other perspective than the customer's. Being able to identify who your customer is going to be, how to talk to them, and how you understand what they’re saying are some things I would like to talk about and get that conversation going.

From the Lab to the Market

Pavana's journey highlights a challenge that many technical founders face: developing groundbreaking technology doesn't automatically mean there's a market for it.

For scientists and researchers looking to turn their work into a company, the transition requires more than technical expertise. It means stepping outside the lab, talking to potential customers, understanding their workflows, and learning how to communicate the value of what you've built.

And sometimes, the most important question isn't "What can this technology do?" but "Why would someone want to use it?"

About the author: Kathleen Ohlson is a Boston-based content writer with a background as a high-tech writer and storyteller. With a passion for creating content that resonates with audiences, you can connect with her on LinkedIn.