[EO San Francisco] Solving Hidden Health Crises Through Mission-Fueled Innovation With Alice Li

Alice Li is the Founder and CEO of First Day, a wellness company that offers science-backed gummy multivitamins designed to support the health of families, particularly children and women. Motivated by her family's experiences during the Great Chinese Famine, Alice established First Day in 2019 to address nutritional gaps and prevent "nutritional trauma" in future generations. A Yale University graduate with a background in consulting, she collaborated with academics and health experts to develop effective, evidence-based supplements. Under her leadership, First Day has grown into a nine-figure brand, emphasizing transparency, trust, and accessibility in the wellness industry.

In this episode…

What if the food we eat every day no longer nourishes us the way it used to? With modern agriculture altering nutrient content and convenience diets compounding the problem, millions unknowingly face a quiet nutritional crisis. So how can today’s entrepreneurs create scalable, science-backed solutions that address this urgent health challenge?

According to Alice Li, a mission-driven wellness entrepreneur and former strategy consultant, solving hidden health issues starts with education and empathy. She highlights how the decline in nutrient density — known as “vanishing nutrients” — leaves consumers vulnerable, even when they believe they're eating healthy. The result is a growing health gap that can’t be ignored. To counter this, she believes founders must combine clinical-level efficacy with approachable brand storytelling to reach families where they are. Alice explains that great execution, not just bold ideas, is what truly drives transformational impact in this space.

In this episode, host John Grover sits down with Alice Li, Founder and CEO of First Day, to talk about solving the hidden health crises through mission-fueled innovation. She discusses the surprising root causes of nutritional deficiencies, how to build trust in a saturated wellness market, and why execution trumps strategy for startup success. Alice also shares her hiring philosophy and how she evaluates grit in early-stage teams.