The Future of Fertility With Lauren Makler

Jun 16

We knew this episode was going to be good—but we didn’t expect to be furiously taking notes, shedding tears at a sister’s selfless gift, and (unfortunately) learning how far the fertility world still has to go.

Lauren Makler is the co-founder and CEO of Cofertility, a company that’s reimagining egg freezing and donation to be more ethical, accessible, and empowering. She’s also a mom of two, a former Uber Health exec, and one of just 154 people ever diagnosed with a rare abdominal disease that nearly robbed her of the chance to carry a child.

Here are a few things Lauren taught us—and that every parent, hopeful parent, or someday-maybe parent should know.

Egg Freezing Isn’t Just a “Backup Plan”

For years, egg freezing was framed as something you do only when things go wrong. Cancer diagnosis? Last chance at kids? Better freeze those eggs. But as Lauren shared, that’s outdated thinking.

“I had the gift of frozen eggs,” she said. “It gave me peace of mind… I could make decisions about my career and my relationship without the pressure of my biological clock.”

The Cofertility Model: Split or Keep

Traditional egg donation has some real flaws—from high cash payouts (surge pricing for genetics, yiiiiiikes) to complete anonymity and lack of agency.

Lauren’s company Cofertility offers two options:

The Split Program: Freeze your eggs for free by donating half to someone in need.
The Keep Program: Pay for the process, keep 100% of your eggs, but get support and discounted services along the way.

Ethical, transparent, and supportive. Imagine that.

Secondary Infertility Is More Common Than You Think

Getting pregnant once doesn’t guarantee it’ll be easy next time. Lauren knows that firsthand—and wants more people to plan ahead.

“You have your first child, then the postpartum experience, and then maybe you wait a bit. By the time you’re ready again, your egg quality and quantity may have dropped.”