TechCrunch Early Stage 2023
April 20, 2023 — Boston
Speakers
Ghalia Aame
CEO TalkMaze
Ajay Agarwal
Partner Bain Capital Ventures
Rashad Assir
Head of Content Redpoint
Jason Brausewetter
General Manager Figure Equity Solutions
Ned Brody
CEO Actifai
Jeff Bussgang
General Partner & Co-founder Flybridge
David Chang
Entrepreneur & Angel investor Hunt Club
Keith Cline
Founder VentureFizz
Josh Coyne
Partner Kleiner Perkins
Mark Crane
Partner General Catalyst
James Currier
General Partner NFX
Pablo Dominguez
Operating Partner, Sales & Customer Success Insight Partners
Sophie Duffy
Associate Latham & Watkins LLP
Arthur Foliard
Creative Director Koto
Lisa Frusztajer
Investor in Residence The Capital Network
Dayna Grayson
Co-founder & Managing Partner Construct Capital
Sergey Gribov
Partner Flint Capital
George Hantzaras
Director, Kubernetes Engineering MongoDB
David Jegen
Managing Partner F-Prime Capital
Ben Jennings
Chief Revenue Officer Embroker LLC
Patrick Jones
Executive Director, Head of Partnerships and Ecosystem Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan
Meghan Joyce
Co-founder & CEO stealth technology startup
Simon Kearney
Senior Strategy Director Koto
Kerty Levy
Managing Director Techstars
Josh Machiz
Partner Redpoint
Ginny Miller
Partner 1Sharpe Ventures
Alex Monger
Managing Director, Koto NY Koto
Olga Polunina
Executive Director, Private Capital Markets Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan
Kyle Poyar
Operating Partner OpenView
Amber Quiñones
Head of Platform & Operations BBG Ventures
Stephen Ranere
Partner Latham & Watkins LLP
Spencer Ricks
Partner Latham & Watkins LLP
Ishan Sachdev
General Partner Deciens Capital
Jacqueline Samira
Founder & CEO Howdy.com
Matt Segneri
Bruce & Bridgitt Evans Executive Director Harvard Innovation Labs
Naomi Smith
Counsel Latham & Watkins LLP
Madison Sowards
Senior Community Manager MassChallenge
Neesha Tambe
Startup Battlefield Editor Techcrunch
David Thacker
General Partner Greylock
Liza Vilnits
Founder & CEO Beyond Trending
Heather Widman
Partner Building Ventures
Russ Wilcox
Partner Pillar VC
Pae Wu
General Partner, SOSV & CTO, IndieBio SOSV
Ghalia Aamer is the founder of TalkMaze, an edtech company that instills confidence in children globally through public speaking and debate training. Ghalia has been passionate about entrepreneurship since she started her first business in the education sector at 13. Now, as the founder of TalkMaze, Ghalia combines her 8+ years of public speaking and debate experience with her drive for business to empower children around the world. In addition to running her company while being a full-time university student, Ghalia advocates for underrepresented entrepreneurs. She represented Canada as the country’s youngest delegate and policy lead at the G20 Young Entrepreneurs’ Alliance Summit, championing recommendations around inclusion. She also sits as the youngest member of both Junior Achievement’s Board of Directors and Edmonton Unlimited’s Innovation Growth Council as a voice for youth, women, and visible minorities. In her free time, Ghalia enjoys traveling and learning new languages. She has visited 17 countries and is currently learning her fourth language, Spanish.
Ghalia's Sessions
Audience Choice: Navigating Entrepreneurship as an Underrepresented Founder @ Roundtable #3
This interactive discussion is geared towards young founders and underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship. I will create a space for sharing challenges and addressing them as a group. Founders will walk away from this session with new connections with like-minded entrepreneurs who can help one another succeed.
Audience Choice: Navigating Entrepreneurship as an Underrepresented Founder @ Roundtable #3
This interactive discussion is geared towards young founders and underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship. I will create a space for sharing challenges and addressing them as a group. Founders will walk away from this session with new connections with like-minded entrepreneurs who can help one another succeed.
Ajay Agarwal is a managing director at Bain Capital Ventures, where he focuses on early-stage SaaS investing.
Ajay's Sessions
Lessons Learned from Silicon Valley
In this session, hear from veteran early-stage investor Ajay Agarwal, who has partnered with software founders at the earliest stages and worked with them on their journeys from 0 to 100s of millions in ARR. Having lived and worked in Silicon Valley and been an investor in many scaled software companies such as Sendgrid, Clari, Gainsight, FourKites, 6Sense, and Bloomreach, Ajay will share some of the lessons learned from those experiences and how they can be applied to younger companies.
Rashad is Head of Content at Redpoint Ventures. In 2022, Rashad (@corporayshid) made a hobby into his full time job, observing and commenting on the subtle mundanities of Corporate America, Dating and general social life as a millennial. In December of 2021, Redpoint Ventures found him on IG and recruited him to join and apply the same style of satire / observational comedy to the small but absurd world of VC. Rashad is consistently reposted by some of the largest comedy accounts (@betches, @9gag, etc) and now writes / edits / produces daily shortform sketch videos commenting on all things tech, VC, and corporate culture. Video production has also expanded beyond satire/sketch – Rashad his helping Redpoint investors and portco’s reimagine traditionally boring corporate-y content into something fresh and authentic that cuts through the noise (e.g. our new funding announcement videos). Besides making millions of people on the internet laugh, Rashad is trying to send a message to be more original and stop taking ourselves too seriously.
Rashad's Sessions
How To Turn Your Startup into a Social Star
From building your audience to creating viral content that moves your business forward, Redpoint’s Josh Machiz and Rashad Assir will tell you how to capitalize on the multiplier effects of genuine online communities. Rashad has experience building his own following, as well as Redpoint’s own TikTok presence, while Josh has helped Redpoint portfolio companies develop their founder and company brands.
Jason Brausewetter is the General Manager of Figure Equity Solutions at Figure, a fintech company that leverages blockchain technology to deliver innovative product solutions across several operating business lines. Figure Equity Solutions is a platform that enables companies to raise capital, manage their cap table, and provide liquidity to existing stakeholders. Jason is also the Founder of Gain Advisory, a consulting company that counsels startups on go-to-market, sales, marketing, product development, pricing, and fundraising. He offers a free service to help founders nail their pitch through. He is a serial intrapreneur with his 6th startup and with over 25 years of experience in leadership in the financial services industry. He’s held executive positions at companies such as Nasdaq, Discovery Data, Long-Term Stock Exchange, Q4, LOYAL3, Charles Schwab, and Morgan Stanley. Jason has been involved in every aspect of the capital markets, from equity market-making, traditional and alternative investments, wealth management, investor relations, portfolio and risk analysis, deal syndication, and capital raising. He enjoys biking, carpentry, coaching youth sports, and traveling with his family. He is an angel & seed investor in disruptive startups. He mentors small businesses to help them get off the ground, grow their businesses, and achieve their goals.
Jason's Sessions
Creating an Investor Relations Plan: Best Practices for Early Stage Startups @ Roundtable #2
Learn how to raise non-traditional funding by building strong investor relationships. We’ll explore the basics of investor relations and how it’s different from PR, the different types of investors, and how to communicate with each one effectively. You’ll also learn how to determine if your startup qualifies as an impact investment and how to tell your company story to attract impact investors.
Creating an Investor Relations Plan: Best Practices for Early Stage Startups @ Roundtable #1
Learn how to raise non-traditional funding by building strong investor relationships. We’ll explore the basics of investor relations and how it’s different from PR, the different types of investors, and how to communicate with each one effectively. You’ll also learn how to determine if your startup qualifies as an impact investment and how to tell your company story to attract impact investors.
Ned currently serves as CEO of Actifai and Partner at Foundry.ai, an incubator of artificial intelligence companies and Actifai’s parent company. He has led and helped shape a variety of technology businesses over the past 20 years, previously serving as Yahoo’s Head of the Americas, CEO of AOL Networks, President & Chief Revenue Officer at AOL Advertising, CFO of LookSmart, Principal at Mercer Management Consulting, Chief Revenue Officer for Verizon Media, and Chairman of The Supervisory Board of ADTECH AG. Ned received his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with concentrations in decision theory and finance.
Ned's Sessions
Audience Choice: Creating a Successful Pilot Program — How to Prove Product Value and Win your N’th Customer
An excellent pilot program eliminates initial barriers to customer growth, like license costs and change management. Creating an ideal pilot (i) engages customers in the crucial introductory phase that makes success and future partnership possible, (ii) builds confidence and rapport with decision-makers, and (iii) delivers financial proof-of-concept. In his presentation, Ned will describe how to create and deliver a pilot program that can grow your technology business.
Jeff Bussgang of Flybridge Capital is a former entrepreneur turned venture capitalist who teaches entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School.
Jeff's Sessions
Audience Choice: Why Lack of Community is the Not-So-Secret Enemy of Early-Stage Founders
For early-stage founders focused on building the best product, gathering necessary market data, and gaining the finances they need, it may seem less important to actively and deliberately seek out community. Our more than 4,000 early-stage startups launched provide case studies of how intentional community development can sustain founders working to accomplish big things. So, how should you: 1. Build your startup community from scratch 2. Recognize the value of community in each stage of your company’s growth 3. Know how to identify key players in your field and attract them into your circle 4. Learn how to form relationships with people who will provide value beyond what they ask for in return
David is GM, Expert Network at Hunt Club and a Founding Member at TBD Angels. As an entrepreneur and angel investor, he has held operating roles at 6 startups and invested in 90 companies. He was recently the CEO of Gradifi, which was acquired by E*TRADE. Previously, he was Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Harvard Business School and Director of the Babson Summer Venture Program. For more info, see www.davidchang.me
David's Sessions
Audience Choice: Why Lack of Community is the Not-So-Secret Enemy of Early-Stage Founders
For early-stage founders focused on building the best product, gathering necessary market data, and gaining the finances they need, it may seem less important to actively and deliberately seek out community. Our more than 4,000 early-stage startups launched provide case studies of how intentional community development can sustain founders working to accomplish big things. So, how should you: 1. Build your startup community from scratch 2. Recognize the value of community in each stage of your company’s growth 3. Know how to identify key players in your field and attract them into your circle 4. Learn how to form relationships with people who will provide value beyond what they ask for in return
Keith is the founder of VentureFizz, the leading hiring and employment branding website focused on the tech industry. He has spent the last 20 years helping grow vibrant technology and startup communities. Prior to VentureFizz, Keith founded Dissero, a progressive recruiting firm focused on early to mid-stage venture-backed technology companies, where he conducted many senior-level searches for high growth tech companies. Keith has contributed to leading publications on topics related to entrepreneurship and recruiting, including Inc., Forbes, Fox Business News, and The Boston Globe.
Keith's Sessions
How to Recruit for your Startup @ Roundtable #1
Ideas are important, but your startup’s success ultimately hinges on building a world class team to execute. Founders need to think about building out an employment brand from the early days of the company, which will help drive recruiting. When you should hire an inhouse recruiter and how to leverage & evaluate external recruiting firms? Why recruiting is more like marketing and how to build up your online presence to build up awareness of your company? Creating a best in class interview process for a positive candidate experience and why this matters? And more!
How to Recruit for your Startup @ Roundtable #1
Ideas are important, but your startup’s success ultimately hinges on building a world class team to execute. Founders need to think about building out an employment brand from the early days of the company, which will help drive recruiting. When you should hire an inhouse recruiter and how to leverage & evaluate external recruiting firms? Why recruiting is more like marketing and how to build up your online presence to build up awareness of your company? Creating a best in class interview process for a positive candidate experience and why this matters? And more!
Josh Coyne is a partner at Kleiner Perkins where he focuses on investments in enterprise software and financial services. Prior to joining Kleiner Perkins, Josh was at Qatalyst Partners, where he helped advise on multi-billion dollar acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and financings across a variety of technology sectors. Originally from Cleveland, Josh graduated summa cum laude from Boston College with a degree in Information Systems and Finance.
Josh's Sessions
How to Raise a Series A with Headwinds Against You
The Series A round is a massive milestone in a startup’s life, and it can also be one of the most challenging to put together when overall economic conditions aren’t favorable. Kleiner Perkins’ Josh Coyne knows how a big round comes together, having previously invested in Figma, UIPath and Rippling, and he’ll share tips on how to make it happen.
Mark Crane is a partner at General Catalyst, a venture capital firm that works with seed to endurance-stage founders to help build companies that can withstand the test of time. He focuses on sourcing and investing in later-stage investment opportunities such as AuthZed, Bugcrowd, Resilience and TravelPerk. Prior to joining General Catalyst, Mark was a vice president at Cove Hill Partners in Massachusetts. Previously, he was a senior associate at JMI Equity and an associate at North Bridge Growth Equity. When away from the office, Mark enjoys playing or watching soccer games and exploring new restaurants. Mark is a graduate of Amherst College, earning a B.A. in History.
Mark's Sessions
How to Raise Outside of SV in a Down Market
Silicon Valley’s funding market tends to be more immune to macroeconomic conditions than elsewhere in the world. So how do you raise outside the Valley bubble? General Catalyst’s Mark Crane has ample experience on both the founder and VC side from all over Europe, as well as a firm understanding of the funding landscape in the northeastern U.S., so he’ll give practical advice on how to stay alive and thrive.
James Currier is a co-founder and partner of NFX Guild, an early-stage fund with a three-month program for marketplace and network businesses.
James's Sessions
Where Unicorn Ideas Come From
Good startup ideas have patterns, and 90% of ideas that James Currier of NFX sees at the pre-seed/seed stage are not going to lead to large exits. From his experience as a VC as well as a five-time founder, he can explain how to recognize platform shifts and capitalize when something is newly possible; how to identify fast-moving markets where TAM is not large, but increasing; how to de-risk your idea, and much more.
Where Unicorn Ideas Come From
Fresh off the breakout stage, join this roundtable with your follow-up questions for serial founder and NFX General Partner James Currier.
Pablo Dominguez joined Insight in 2018 as an Operating Partner. Pablo focuses on partnering with Insight’s portfolio companies to build and scale effective commercial teams through the application of proven and repeatable go-to-market and operational best practices. He brings over 20 years of experience working on Salesforce effectiveness engagements across startups and various global 2000 companies. Prior to Insight, Pablo was the Vice President of Global Business Operations and Customer Experience at NYC-based ad tech startup AppNexus, which was acquired by Xandr (division of AT&T) in 2018 for approximately $2B. Pablo joined AppNexus in 2014 and was responsible for building a Business Operations organization which provided support for Sales, Services, Marketing, and Product Line teams as well as driving annual strategic planning and key initiatives. Previously, Pablo spent four years at ADP, first standing up a Global Sales Compensation function and ultimately running Global Sales Operations across 10 business units. Prior to ADP, Pablo held various leadership roles in sales operations across Avaya, where he led the global sales integration of Avaya’s $1B acquisition of Nortel Enterprise in 2009. Earlier, he began his career in management consulting at The Alexander Group, a boutique consulting firm focused on providing revenue growth solutions. Pablo received a BBA from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas, and his MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business. Originally from Mexico, Pablo grew up in Texas and has spent the last 16 years living in New Jersey with his wife and two sons.
Pablo's Sessions
Audience Choice: What a Unicorn Knows: Set Your Company Up for Success by Leveraging Lean at the Earliest Stages
The most successful startups have one thing in common: they set themselves up for large-scale operational success at the earliest stages, some before even having a product. But how can founders look that far ahead, in a turbulent market, and predict their future business model? The answer is SCALE – a five-principle Lean framework that enables any company to accelerate its ability to grow. Survival of the leanest requires hopeful unicorns to examine, identify and remove the various forms of waste impeding the free flow of value to customers, none of which involve layoffs or knee-jerk cost-cutting. In this session, Pablo will draw on his 25 years as an operator to explain how early-stage startups should leverage Lean Principles to set themselves up for success.
Sophie Duffy is an associate in the Boston office of Latham & Watkins and a member of the firm’s Emerging Companies and Executive Compensation, Employment & Benefits practices. Ms. Duffy represents public and private companies in all aspects of employment law, with a focus on the employment needs of emerging companies and start-ups. She regularly advises clients on the labor and employment aspects of mergers and acquisitions. She also has an extensive counseling practice. This includes advising on discrimination and retaliation claims, executive hiring, terminations, performance plans, leaves of absence, and other policies, as well as restrictive covenants disputes. Ms. Duffy also conducts pay equity audits, workplace trainings, and internal investigations.
Sophie's Sessions
Early Stage Startups: Employment and Benefits @ Roundtable #3
Join us in discussing challenges that early stage startups face when issuing equity and engaging with employees, consultants and service providers.
Arthur has developed brands for some of the most well known companies in the world, including Airbnb and Venmo. He spent six years working in Koto’s London studio, before relocating to New York in May 2022 to build and lead the agency’s newest office. Arthur frequently appears on many design and branding podcasts, and his work has been featured in leading industry publications including Brand New, and It’s Nice That. He is passionate about fostering talent and is often a guest speaker at colleges and design conferences.
Arthur's Sessions
How to Build a Disruptive Brand and What It Means for Your Business
Sharing examples from some of the most disruptive and category defining brands of the last 10 years, hear from brand strategy and design agency Koto on how to leverage the power of branding to win the hearts and minds of your audience. See how businesses that operate at the intersection of product and brand differentiate themselves from the competition, produce memorable product experiences and create lasting cultural impact that translates into business success.
Lisa Frusztajer is an active early stage investor focusing on companies led by under-represented founders. She started investing as a Pipeline Fellow, an LP with Converge Venture Partners and as a Lead Partner with the Portfolia Enterprise Fund. She also invests independently. Lisa is currently Investor in Residence at The Capital Network (TCN), where she built a mentorship program designed to create leadership opportunities for both mentors and mentees, and to address the power dynamic inherent in founder / investor interactions. Lisa speaks frequently on the founder journey and is a certified coach who helps founders to overcome obstacles to growing their businesses and becoming effective leaders. Lisa spent most of her career in technology, working in marketing, finance, engineering and project management. She has served on non-profit boards, mainly for educational institutions, and currently chairs the board for a small Cape Cod library.
Lisa's Sessions
Be a Great Mentor, Find a Great Mentor @ Roundtable #2
Most people are convinced mentors are important, but only about a third of us have one. There’s a gap between the mentoring we want, and the mentoring we have, and yet there’s no shortage of mentoring programs, including at many startup accelerators. How do we address the gap? Bring your questions for Lisa Frusztajer from The Capital Network to chat through practical steps you can take today to find and sustain mentorship that will take your goals to the next level.
Dayna Grayson is Co-founder and General Partner of Construct Capital, an early stage venture firm that invests in extraordinary founders building technology to transform the most foundational industries of our economy from manufacturing to mobility. Dayna was one of the first venture capitalists to turn her attention to transforming these sectors of our economy through software based models. She backed companies creating new advances in manufacturing, automation, and vertically integrated consumer brands. During her time as a partner at NEA (2012-2020), she was the lead investor from the earliest stages and was on the board of companies including Desktop Metal (2015 – today), Tulip (2017 – 2020), Onshape (acqd by PTC) (2013-2019), and Framebridge (acqd by Graham Holdings) (2014-2020) among others. She also led investments in Guideline, Formlabs, Evenly and Neuralmagic. At Construct, along with her co-founder Rachel Holt, Dayna is exclusively focused on early stage investments and investing behind the accelerating changes in foundational industries that together make up half our economy’s GDP are failing to meet customer expectations. Some of their investments include Copia, Veho, Hadrian, The Rounds, and Verve Motion. Dayna started her career in product development and led design efforts at Blackbaud [BLKB], the leading global provider of software to nonprofit organizations, as the company grew to over $130 million in revenue and completed a successful public offering and was an investor at North Bridge Venture Partners from 2007-2012. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia (Systems Engineering) and Harvard Business School, where she serves as a venture partner today
Dayna's Sessions
How to Tell Your TAM
Dayna Grayson from Construct Capital invests in the rebuilding of the most foundational and broken industries of our economy. Industries such as manufacturing and logistics among others that formed in an analog world have been neglected by advanced technology. Dayna will talk about how, beyond the idea, founders can pitch investors on their TAM, including how they will wedge into the market and how they will eventually disrupt it.
Sergey Gribov is Partner at Flint Capital, an early-stage venture fund that invests across Israel, USA, and Europe. Sergey is an investor and board member at Socure, Cyolo, Sensi.ai, Quantori, and others. Sergey is a technology entrepreneur and investor with more than 20 years of experience. Over the years he participated as a founder or top manager in many startups in USA and Israel. Sergey has a lot of experience in IT, across such sectors as software development, cybersecurity, digital health, fintech, and others. Sergey holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management and B.Sc. in Computer Science, Cum Laude from Beer-Sheva University.
Sergey's Sessions
Finding a Founder-Friendly Investor: Tips for Early Stage Startups
The goal of the session is to help founders find an investor who is not only willing to provide funding but also has the expertise and resources to help them grow and succeed. They will gain insights into what qualities and characteristics to look for in an investor, such as their track record of working with startups and their willingness to provide mentorship and guidance.
George is a distributed systems expert and a hands-on engineering leader with focus on delivering Enterprise cloud services at scale. He is a Director of Engineering at MongoDB, focusing on implementing cloud native technologies at enterprise scale. He is also a Managing Partner at Algorythm (wearealgorythm.com), a boutique innovation and startup consulting firm, and has led large scale transformation projects for enterprise and government customers. Previously, he was a Director of Cloud Platform Engineering, at Citrix Systems, leading the company’s cloud transition. In 2017 he co-founded Tradeline, a SaaS startup that disrupted the way global commodity trading works and was an innovator in enterprise blockchain technologies. In the past, he has worked as a venture partner for venture capital firms in the United Kingdom and Greece and currently is an advisor to early-stage startups, with a focus on cloud infrastructure products and enterprise SaaS. Most recently, he has been a speaker at global events like OpenSource Summit, Hashiconf, LeadDev, DeveloperWeek, and more, focusing on agile leadership, scaling engineering teams, and entrepreneurship.
George's Sessions
Audience Choice: Assembling the Perfect Founding Team: Insights and Strategies for Non Technical Founders
Building a strong founding team is essential for the success of any startup, and finding the right technical co-founder can be a particularly daunting task for non-technical founders. In this presentation, we will explore the importance of assembling a diverse and well-balanced founding team and share best practices for finding and working with the right technical co-founder. We will also address common challenges that non-technical founders may encounter when building their founding team and offer practical strategies for overcoming them.
David Jegen is managing partner of F-Prime Capital’s Tech Fund.
David's Sessions
Audience Choice: How Founders Can Prepare for Successful Exits at Any Stage @ Roundtable #1
In this session, F-Prime Capital’s Managing Partner David Jegen, who has experienced 11 different acquisitions from multiple perspectives: as a founder, an investor, and a Board member, will break down the different types of startup acquisitions, what leverage startups have, and the important points to push on that will help maximize success and employee happiness in the long run.
Audience Choice: How Founders Can Prepare for Successful Exits at Any Stage @ Roundtable #1
In this session, F-Prime Capital’s Managing Partner David Jegen, who has experienced 11 different acquisitions from multiple perspectives: as a founder, an investor, and a Board member, will break down the different types of startup acquisitions, what leverage startups have, and the important points to push on that will help maximize success and employee happiness in the long run.
Ben Jennings is Chief Revenue Officer for Embroker, the leading insurance technology company that’s radically improving the way insurance works for businesses of all types and sizes. A seasoned global technology executive, Ben brings more than 25 years experience in sales, marketing, business development, customer success, alliances and M&A to the role. Ben is responsible for driving the company’s go to market lifecycle from top of funnel build, to new client acquisition, installed base retention, customer success engagement and expansion. Previously, Ben was Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer for ServiceSource (NASDAQ: SREV) responsible for the company’s global Sales, Solution Design and Business Development functions. During his 15+ years at ServiceSource, Ben led the company’s global expansion, founding and managing ServiceSource’s EMEA and APJ operations, and also held a variety of customer success and operational leadership positions in the company. Prior to ServiceSource, Ben held senior leadership positions at Jamcracker, Loudcloud (NASDAQ: LDCL), and Transition Networks. Centered on scaling organizations and driving revenue growth, Ben’s career also includes marketing, go to market strategy, product management, networking, M&A, and managed services.
Ben's Sessions
Audience Choice: What's Your Risk Archetype? How to Turn Risk into Your Startup Superpower @ Roundtable #4
Using our Risk Archetype quiz, founders can and have discovered what kind of risk taker they are, and how that affects everything from fundraising to building a team and critical decisions when growing their business. Founders will leave with a blueprint on how to take their specific Risk Archetype and turn it into their superpower.
Audience Choice: What's Your Risk Archetype? How to Turn Risk into Your Startup Superpower @ Roundtable #4
Using our Risk Archetype quiz, founders can and have discovered what kind of risk taker they are, and how that affects everything from fundraising to building a team and critical decisions when growing their business. Founders will leave with a blueprint on how to take their specific Risk Archetype and turn it into their superpower.
Patrick Jones is Head of Partnerships and Ecosystem for Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan, a digital platform where private companies and investors can network, access proprietary benchmarking data, raise capital, and manage their cap table. Patrick began his career as a consultant and strategic advisor to private equity and venture investors. Prior to his current role, Patrick ran various innovation and FinTech initiatives for J.P. Morgan’s Investment Bank, including the foundational work that led to the creation of Capital Connect.
Patrick's Sessions
Access to Capital in an Unprecedented Market
Building a startup during periods of economic uncertainty can pose difficulty in access to funding. How can founders evaluate the potential for market disruption, and what strategies can be used to identify opportunities for growth and innovation? Join our distinguished speakers from Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan and Latham & Watkins as they bring their institutional knowledge and broad perspectives to discuss key takeaways for entrepreneurs at every stage in their fundraising journey.
Meghan is the Co-Founder and CEO of a stealth technology startup. She previously served as EVP of Platform at Oscar Health (NYSE: OSCR), where she oversaw engineering, product, data, marketing, clinical, ops, and the company’s enterprise healthtech business. During her tenure, Meghan led a team of over 1,000 through +100% growth and IPO, and expanded access to Oscar tech and services to over 1 million members. Before joining Oscar, Meghan served in several leadership roles at Uber Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: UBER), including the Regional General Manager of the United States & Canada. She formerly served the United States Department of Treasury as Senior Policy Advisor on Domestic Finance. She began her career at Bain Capital and Bain & Company. Meghan serves as Director and Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee of The Boston Beer Company (NYSE: SAM), and Director of Guardant Health (NASDAQ: GH). She is a Member of the Board Executive Committee and Chair of the Talent & Culture Committee of WBUR, and a Member of the Board of Trustees at UP Education Network. Meghan previously served as Co-chair of the Boston Chapter of the Brookings Society and is a former Member of the Graduate Board of CityStep. Meghan attended Harvard College, graduating with her BA in the history of science in 2006 and her MBA from HBS in 2013.
Simon leads the brand strategy team at Koto’s New York studio, bringing an insight-led approach to every partnership and project. With a background in research and innovation, Simon ensures that we build brands from a place of deep understanding and empathy for both the customer and client. Over his 15 years of experience, he has defined strategy for businesses including Coinbase, Google, DailyPay, Meta, and Samsung.
Simon's Sessions
How to Build a Disruptive Brand and What It Means for Your Business
Sharing examples from some of the most disruptive and category defining brands of the last 10 years, hear from brand strategy and design agency Koto on how to leverage the power of branding to win the hearts and minds of your audience. See how businesses that operate at the intersection of product and brand differentiate themselves from the competition, produce memorable product experiences and create lasting cultural impact that translates into business success.
Kerty Levy has been with Techstars since 2019 and has been the Managing Director of the Techstars Iowa and the Techstars Crypto Boston programs. She comes from a global background in entrepreneurial and intrepreneurial ventures, corporate executive leadership, and management consulting. She is passionate about helping entrepreneurs succeed and about technologies that make the world a better place.
Kerty's Sessions
State of the Northeast Seed Market
As Managing Director of Techstars Boston and Iowa, Kerty Levy has a unique vantage point when it comes to the state of entrepreneurship and startup funding in the Northeast. She’ll provide a look at the early stage landscape as it stands, how ongoing economic turmoil could shift the scene, and how you can prepare.
Josh Machiz is a Partner at Redpoint Ventures. Before joining the firm in 2021, Josh was Chief Digital Officer at Nasdaq where he had a front-row seat to the growth and expansion of generation-defining companies.
Josh's Sessions
How To Turn Your Startup into a Social Star
From building your audience to creating viral content that moves your business forward, Redpoint’s Josh Machiz and Rashad Assir will tell you how to capitalize on the multiplier effects of genuine online communities. Rashad has experience building his own following, as well as Redpoint’s own TikTok presence, while Josh has helped Redpoint portfolio companies develop their founder and company brands.
Ginny oversees venture investing and platform strategies for 1Sharpe Ventures (1SV). Prior to 1SV, Ginny led Ventures at Jamestown, a $12Bn real estate private equity firm. She has also worked on real estate technology initiatives at Apple, Fifth Wall Ventures, and Harvard University after starting her career in product design. Ginny received her MBA from Harvard Business School and studied Engineering at Dartmouth.
Ginny's Sessions
Bringing Outsider Perspectives to Industries Ruled by Insiders
Join Ginny Miller, a Partner at 1Sharpe Ventures to discuss lessons learned from investing in technology and innovation in real estate, construction, and old school industries.
So You Think You Can Pitch?
So you think you can pitch? Founders selected to take part in this session will have five minutes to wow a panel of judges including leading VCs, who will then provide feedback.
Alex is the Managing Director of the brand strategy and design studio, Koto New York. Alex has over fifteen years of experience in brand and advertising in both London and New York. He has led rebranding efforts for some of the biggest and most complex companies in the world, including American Express, Delta Air Lines, Grubhub / Seamless and Wells Fargo. Alex partners closely with all of Koto New York’s clients to ensure that they get the very best of the studio at every turn.
Alex's Sessions
How to Build a Disruptive Brand and What It Means for Your Business
Sharing examples from some of the most disruptive and category defining brands of the last 10 years, hear from brand strategy and design agency Koto on how to leverage the power of branding to win the hearts and minds of your audience. See how businesses that operate at the intersection of product and brand differentiate themselves from the competition, produce memorable product experiences and create lasting cultural impact that translates into business success.
Olga is a senior member of the Private Capital Markets team at J.P. Morgan based in New York. She has spent her career across Private Capital Markets, Investment Banking Coverage and Equity Capital Markets in London and New York, and has worked on over $100bn in transactions including a number of landmark deals in the industry. Olga started her career in Morgan Stanley’s Equity Capital Markets team and has been with J.P. Morgan since 2010. Olga holds an MA(Hons) in Economics from the University of Cambridge.
Olga's Sessions
Access to Capital in an Unprecedented Market
Building a startup during periods of economic uncertainty can pose difficulty in access to funding. How can founders evaluate the potential for market disruption, and what strategies can be used to identify opportunities for growth and innovation? Join our distinguished speakers from Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan and Latham & Watkins as they bring their institutional knowledge and broad perspectives to discuss key takeaways for entrepreneurs at every stage in their fundraising journey.
Kyle leads OpenView’s Growth Team, responsible for advising portfolio executives on strategies to increase revenue growth and dominate their markets. He specializes in pricing & packaging strategy, which is the most effective yet overlooked growth lever at a SaaS company’s disposal. He’s an expert in product-led growth (PLG), go-to-market strategy, usage-based business models and SaaS benchmarks. Subscribe to his newsletter, Growth Unhinged, at kylepoyar.substack.com.
Kyle's Sessions
How to Win with Product-led Growth (PLG)
Learn the growth tactics behind today’s top performing startups and how to apply PLG for efficient growth.
Amber Quiñones is a former fitness instructor and startup operator turned VC. In her current role as the Head of Platform & Operations at BBG Ventures, Amber is the connective tissue between founders, investors, and senior operators, working to source and grow women- and BIPOC-founded businesses while increasing fund value. Prior to joining BBGV, Amber led Growth & Customer Success on the founding team of the proptech startup, withco — developing the company’s early product and customer journey. As a Stanford d.school grad, Amber cares deeply about user experience and service design; and her personal mission is to elevate diverse leaders creating delightful, need-solving products that support underestimated communities.
Amber's Sessions
Audience Choice: Extracting the Most Value from Your "Value-Add" Investors
Whether you call it “Platform,” “Portfolio Impact,” or any number of clever euphemisms; it is undeniable that we’re living in the age of value-add VCs. In recent years, many firms have heavily invested in the Platform function to grow the firm’s network and help their investments succeed. Yet, the wide range of team structures and focuses leaves founders struggling to determine how to appropriately engage with Platform — and about what. Amber Quiñones, Head of Platform & Operations at BBG Ventures, will demystify this function for founders and clarify how to best leverage the various forms of VC Platform to assemble an operational SWAT team that will unlock more value from your value-add investors.
Stephen W. Ranere is a partner at Latham & Watkins, where he represents technology and life sciences companies, as well as venture capital and private equity firms, across a diverse array of growth industries. His practice spans early-stage formation and strategy, venture and growth financings, mergers and acquisitions, IPOs, corporate governance, and public company representation. He assists clients in various sectors such as fintech, climate tech, digital health, and AI-enabled drug discovery, and leverages Latham’s global platform to deliver tailored, business-focused solutions at every stage of corporate development. A recognized leader within the firm, Stephen serves on the Digital Health Task Force and previously served on the Associates Committee. He is ranked by Chambers USA for Private Equity: Venture Capital Investment (Band 3) and Technology (Band 2) in Massachusetts, and recognized by The Legal 500 US for Venture Capital and Emerging Companies.
Stephen's Sessions
Early Stage Startups: Employment and Benefits @ Roundtable #3
Join us in discussing challenges that early stage startups face when issuing equity and engaging with employees, consultants and service providers.
Spencer B. Ricks is a partner at Latham & Watkins, where he focuses his practice in advising entrepreneurs, start-ups, and emerging companies across the technology, life sciences, and clean energy sectors. With a comprehensive approach, Spencer guides companies through their entire corporate life cycle, from early-stage formation and strategy to venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions, and public offerings. His practice extends to mature companies, where he facilitates strategic investments and commercial collaborations. Beyond his professional achievements, Spencer is deeply committed to community service, offering pro bono representation to asylum petitioners, U visa applicants, and survivors of domestic violence. His leadership roles include serving as Massachusetts Chair of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society and contributing to the Boston Bar Association’s Private Equity & Venture Capital Committee.
Spencer's Sessions
Access to Capital in an Unprecedented Market
Building a startup during periods of economic uncertainty can pose difficulty in access to funding. How can founders evaluate the potential for market disruption, and what strategies can be used to identify opportunities for growth and innovation? Join our distinguished speakers from Capital Connect by J.P. Morgan and Latham & Watkins as they bring their institutional knowledge and broad perspectives to discuss key takeaways for entrepreneurs at every stage in their fundraising journey.
Ishan is a General Partner at Deciens Capital. He has worked across financial services & fintech as an investor and operator, and is passionate about finding the next generation of transformative fintech companies. Before joining Deciens, Ishan was a growth equity investor & early member of the portfolio operations team at PSG Equity. He was previously a venture capital investor at Bain Capital Ventures, a proprietary trader at Goldman Sachs, and a co-founder of MIT Alumni Angels, the only angel group affiliated with MIT. He was also an executive at iPay Technologies, a Bain Capital Ventures and Spectrum Equity-backed payments company, playing a key role in its acquisition by Jack Henry & Associates. Ishan received his MBA from Harvard Business School, where he graduated with distinction. While at Harvard, he spent time as a policy advisor in the Office of Capital Markets at the US Department of the Treasury, focusing on topics related to the global financial crisis. Ishan also holds M.Eng. and S.B. degrees from MIT, both in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.
Ishan's Sessions
Audience Choice: What You Need in a Lead Seed Investor. Spoiler Alert: It's More Than Money @ Roundtable #2
Ishan Sachdev, whose venture capital firm exclusively leads seed rounds, will discuss how founders can find the right lead investor for early funding rounds…and why investor/founder fit matters.
Audience Choice: What You Need in a Lead Seed Investor. Spoiler Alert: It's More Than Money @ Roundtable #2
Ishan Sachdev, whose venture capital firm exclusively leads seed rounds, will discuss how founders can find the right lead investor for early funding rounds…and why investor/founder fit matters.
Jacqueline Samira is the CEO and founder of Howdy. Jacqueline has over 15 years experience driving sales, building great teams, and exponentially increasing revenue across a variety of industries. She has a passion for creating processes that promote efficiency, increase revenue, foster employee happiness, and drive a human-first culture that puts well-being above all else. She previously headed up sales and operation teams for three different YCombinator companies and after making those companies lots of money and identifying many inefficiencies, decided to start Howdy.
Jacqueline's Sessions
Your Deck Sucks – The Pitch that Raised $18 Million in the Current Climate
In this session, you will learn a new way to share your message with VCs in order to maintain the story and allow you to retain control of the fundraising process. Jacqueline successfully raised $21 million without ever sending a deck to a single investor. Come hear a unique way to share your vision in your own words that will have investors clamoring to give you money in this economy.
Matt Segneri is the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Executive Director of the Harvard Innovation Labs, which includes the student i-lab, Launch Lab X GEO for alumni, and the Pagliuca Harvard Life Lab. He oversees the i-lab’s strategy and operations and acts as the primary liaison to the i-lab’s key stakeholders and the local, national, and global innovation community. He has 20+ years of leadership experience in organizations of different sizes and stages of development across the private, public, and non-profit sectors. Prior to joining the i-lab, he was the Director of the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative. During that time, he served as co-lead of the HBS New Venture Competition and played a key role in developing the proposal that established the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. Previously, he was a senior leader on the Government Innovation team at Bloomberg Philanthropies. He co-led the inaugural Mayors Challenge, a $9 million competition to inspire American cities to develop bold solutions to common challenges, and oversaw initiatives on cross-sector collaboration and innovation teams around the world He holds an A.B. in Psychology from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He was recognized by the Boston Business Journal as one of Boston’s “40 Under 40” and the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce as one of Boston’s “Ten Outstanding Young Leaders.” He is the Vice Chair of the National Board of Directors for Generation Citizen and serves as an advisor to New Politics and Project 351. He lives in Newton with his wife and three children.
Matt's Sessions
How to Think About Accelerators and Incubators
Founders often hear they should get involved with an incubator or accelerator, but when is the “right” time for early-stage founders to apply to these types of startup support ecosystems, and how can they best engage if accepted? In this talk, Harvard Innovation Labs Executive Director Matt Segneri will cover everything from the types of incubators and accelerators available to early-stage founders, to what startups should consider before applying, and tips for getting the most out of these ecosystems.
Naomi Smith is a counsel at Latham & Watkins, specializing in representing life sciences and technology startups, as well as venture capital investors, through strategic transactions. Her pragmatic approach ensures clients receive comprehensive advice on company formation, governance, venture capital financings, mergers and acquisitions, and exit strategies. Naomi’s expertise spans the technology, healthcare, and life sciences industries, where she advises leading venture capital firms. Prior to joining Latham, she supported public company clients with Exchange Act filings and corporate governance matters. Naomi is actively involved in Latham’s recruiting, mentoring, and training programs, serving on the firm’s Associates Committee. Her commitment to pro bono work includes assisting with asylum cases, reflecting her dedication to both professional excellence and community service.
Naomi's Sessions
The Ins and Outs of Seed Funding @ Roundtable #1
Join us in discussing challenges the different types of early stage fundings, including convertible notes, Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) and Series Seed financing rounds.
Madison Sowards, Senior Community Manager at MassChallenge (MC), is dedicated to bridging gaps within the innovation ecosystem by facilitating relationships between entrepreneurs and a global network of experts, mentors, and corporate, governmental, and academic partners. In her current role, Madison is responsible for cultivating the local MC Boston and Providence innovation community and MC’s global network of innovators through events, mentorship, speaking engagements, judging opportunities, and community partnerships. Madison spearheads MC’s US alumni relations, expert engagement, and ecosystem partner strategy. In her time at MassChallenge, Madison has also been responsible for driving meaningful relationships with the MC Partner network to meet corporate innovation goals and increase revenue growth as Partnership Success Manager. Coming from a background in marketing communications and experience at Glen Raven, Wray Ward, and Elon University’s Global Education Center, Madison is passionate about leveraging the power of community to bolster brand awareness and customer loyalty.
Madison's Sessions
Audience Choice: Why Lack of Community is the Not-So-Secret Enemy of Early-Stage Founders
For early-stage founders focused on building the best product, gathering necessary market data, and gaining the finances they need, it may seem less important to actively and deliberately seek out community. Our more than 4,000 early-stage startups launched provide case studies of how intentional community development can sustain founders working to accomplish big things. So, how should you: 1. Build your startup community from scratch 2. Recognize the value of community in each stage of your company’s growth 3. Know how to identify key players in your field and attract them into your circle 4. Learn how to form relationships with people who will provide value beyond what they ask for in return
Neesha A. Tambe recruited, sourced, vetted and trained startup founders from across the globe for TechCrunch’s global startup competition, Startup Battlefield. Passionate about scaling products and programs to new markets domestically and internationally, Neesha ran startup programs in Berlin, San Francisco, Latin America, Middle East North Africa and Sub Saharan Africa. Additionally, Neesha managed the Startup Battlefield Alumni Community and founded CrunchMatch, TechCrunch’s investor-startup matching program. Neesha wrote her thesis on Sustainability and has a dual degree in Sociology and Political Science from Georgetown University. She also has an AA from De Anza Community College. She’s passionate about social justice, civic engagement, carbon capture and reformer pilates.
Neesha's Sessions
So You Think You Can Pitch?
So you think you can pitch? Founders selected to take part in this session will have five minutes to wow a panel of judges including leading VCs, who will then provide feedback.
David is an experienced technology leader who has built out new businesses and products for some of the most iconic companies in the world. Immediately prior to joining Greylock, David served as VP of Product Management & User Experience at Google. And before that, David managed products across LinkedIn’s business lines including Premium Subscriptions, Talent Solutions, Marketing Solutions and Sales Solutions. At Greylock, he is focused on investing in founders building applications – productivity tools, front office software, and vertical SaaS – along with marketplaces and gaming. His investments include companies like Magical, Instawork, Curated, and Pragma.
David's Sessions
How to Find Product-Market Fit
Everyone in startupland wants one thing: Product-market fit. Greylock’s David Thacker has experience building and scaling some of the most popular products in the world at Google and LinkedIn, and also has extensive experience building in a downturn, so he’s the perfect person to help you find product-market fit now when you need it most.
Liza Vilnits is the founder and CEO of Beyond Trending, a boutique public relations agency that specializes in helping startups and VCs increase their exposure through powerful storytelling. The agency’s clients have been featured in TechCrunch, Fortune, Forbes, WSJ and many others. From publicly-traded cybersecurity companies to vegan pet food brands, Liza has led PR campaigns for B2B and B2C clients, large and small, for more than a decade. Prior to founding Beyond Trending in 2020, she honed her communications and media relations skills at agencies including PR Hacker, Momentum Marketing and CHEN PR. She also provided marketing and communications support to nonprofits like The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and The Nature Conservancy. Liza sits on the board of IMPACT, a Charleston nonprofit that mentors youth through exposure and experiences, and she frequently fundraises for local and national organizations. When she’s not working to get her client featured in the press, you can usually find her at the beach with her husband and daughter, enjoying live music or daydreaming about her next international adventure.
Liza's Sessions
Audience Choice: How to Leverage PR to Get in Front of Investors @ Roundtable #4
This session will provide an edtech case study example (from school teacher to Chelsea Clinton & Serena Williams-backed) as well as a “roll-your-sleeves-up” roundtable discussion to help founders better craft their stories and understand how to engage media.
Audience Choice: How to Leverage PR to Get in Front of Investors @ Roundtable #3
This session will provide an edtech case study example (from school teacher to Chelsea Clinton & Serena Williams-backed) as well as a “roll-your-sleeves-up” roundtable discussion to help founders better craft their stories and understand how to engage media.
As a partner at Building Ventures, Heather Widman spearheads the firm’s investment activities within the real estate and real estate tech community. She utilizes 15+ years of operating experience to advise portfolio companies in go-to-market and product strategy. She is active throughout the ecosystem at organizations, including CREtech, MITdesignX, and AllRaise, and she serves on the advisory committee of Women In PropTech.
Heather's Sessions
How Product Marketing Fundamentals Fuel an Early-Stage GTM Strategy
Building Ventures Partner Heather Widman draws on more than 15 years of experience leading product, marketing, and product marketing functions for tech companies to advise startups on GTM strategy. During this session, Heather will share the product marketing assets and activities that are non-negotiable for early-stage startups and share the best practices for using these as tools for a successful launch.
So You Think You Can Pitch?
So you think you can pitch? Founders selected to take part in this session will have five minutes to wow a panel of judges including leading VCs, who will then provide feedback.
Russ Wilcox is a general partner at Pillar, a seed stage VC firm in Boston. Russ comes to VC after a career as a serial entrepreneur. He is an Ernst & Young New England Entrepreneur of the Year, a Mass High Tech All-Star, a Venture Partner at the Harvard Business School, and an instructor on entrepreneurship for Harvard SEAS. He was previously CEO of E Ink, a company he co-founded to commercialize electronic paper materials invented at the MIT Media Lab. E Ink conducted ground-breaking research and shipped tens of millions of displays for the Amazon Kindle, SONY Reader, B&N Nook and other devices. In 2009 he sold the company for $480 million. Russ also co-founded Transatomic Power, a project to develop safer and cleaner nuclear energy, and Piper Therapeutics, pursuing a preclinical target for immuno-oncology. He graduated with honors in Applied Mathematics from Harvard College and was a Baker Scholar at Harvard Business School.
Russ's Sessions
Found podcast Live
Found tells the stories behind the startups, with each episode exploring the peaks and pits of starting a company. In this live recording, hosts Darrell Etherington and Becca Szkutak will be joined by serial-founder-turned-VC Russ Wilcox. Wilcox founded E Ink, which commercialized electronic paper displays and was acquired by Amazon in 2009. Currently he’s a partner at Pillar VC.
Pae is a General Partner at SOSV and CTO at IndieBio, where she is responsible for portfolio management and technical oversight. Prior to joining IndieBio, Pae served as the Scientific Director of Telefónica’s moonshot factory, Alpha (in Barcelona). She was Science Director at the US Office of Naval Research – Global (out of Singapore), and technical consultant at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Her whole career, Pae has been investing in high-risk solutions to intractable problems for national defense, humanity, and the planet. She is especially passionate about bridging engineered materials and systems to biology. Pae earned her PhD at Duke in Electrical Engineering and her BSE from Princeton.
Pae's Sessions
How to Turn Research Into a Business
A lot of startups are incubated in the lab, but how exactly do they make the leap from research project to commercialized business? SOSV General Partner and IndieBio CTO Pae Wu can tell you how, thanks to her experience managing her firm’s portfolio, as well as her multiple roles overseeing high-tech R&D and moonshot development projects.