What rain? Attendees filled up the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research despite some shaky weather.

Guests talk biotech and make new connections.

Novartis's Martin Seidel kicks things off.

The crowd settles in as Foundation Medicine CEO Mike Pellini (left) and Third Rock Ventures partner Alexis Borisy (right) give an inside look at the origins of Foundation.

Pellini and Borisy noted that there were often heated debates early on in the boardroom about Foundation's identity, and exactly how to build the company.

Borisy, the man of many fedoras, greeting an attendee.

Jose-Carlos Gutierrez-Ramos left Pfizer to join a synthetic biology/microbiome hybrid startup called Synlogic. He explained the potential of the "living therapeutics" Synlogic is making, as well as the challenges that lie ahead.

Synlogic was spun out of the lab of MIT professor Jim Collins (left), who explained that the company has gone in a direction---rare metabolic disorders---that he didn't first envision. Gutierrez-Ramos (right) elaborated on the thinking behind that strategy.

An attendee checks in with a question for Collins and Gutierrez-Ramos.

Flagship Ventures CEO Noubar Afeyan, atypically wearing a suit, quipped: “Everybody’s been predicting the death of the IPO window for awhile, so I thought this would be the wake.”

Make sure to pay attention; we always set aside time for audience Q&A.

Some folks catch our cameraman in the act...

...and others are unaware that he's sneaking around.

Pomerantz wasn't sold on any of Seres's CEO candidates, so as its chairman, he "pulled a Dick Cheney" and hired himself.

An event tip for all of you: bring your business cards.

A guest explains how he came to acquire the coolest sweater in the house.

Thanks to all for coming out! (And why wouldn't you, biotech + free drinks = good times)