StartX

StartX Summer 2024 VIP Night! 🎉 Last Thursday, we hosted our Summer 2024 VIP night that featured the incredible innovation and entrepreneurial spirit that thrives here within the StartX community. Our Summer 2024 founders showcased projects that unveiled the future of innovation. From pioneering deeptech solutions to next-generation AI applications, our founders are not just innovating—they're setting new standards across industries. The energy was electric, the ideas were transformative, and the potential was limitless with over 200+ attendees. This event was more than just a showcase—it was a celebration of the relentless drive and creativity that fuels startups at StartX. We're immensely proud of what our founders are building and can’t wait to see how they’ll impact the world. Thank you to everyone who made the night unforgettable, and a special shoutout to the entire StartX team and community of alumni, mentors, and partners for making this event possible!#StartX #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #Startups

Introducing the Founder Spotlight Series to highlight our community! Starting with Kathryn Zealand | SKIP | StartX P24 Kathryn's entrepreneurial journey began in an unexpected place: a pet fish business she started at age 12. Balancing early business endeavors with prepping for her Science Olympiads, Kathryn’s passion for tackling challenges was clear and has continued throughout her entire career. This early experience set the stage for a career characterized by innovative problem-solving and drive to make a difference at large scale. Kathryn’s career journey may look scattered, but it’s tied together by a drive to leverage her practical skills and quantitative background to address the world’s most pressing challenges. She produced policy documents and organized conferences for the International Criminal Court and human rights NGOs in Egypt, Senegal, & Uganda. She modeled climate change with quantum mechanics. She set up the Diabetes Care Project, the largest randomized controlled trial for diabetes care worldwide. She developed an economic development strategy for Nigeria while at the McKinsey Global Institute. Kathryn didn’t just want to work on a good cause but was thoughtful maximizing impact. She then went to Google X, Alphabet’s “moonshot factory,” where she eventually became GM for several high-tech robotics projects. In 2019, Kathryn saw her grandmother’s mobility decline and was disappointed by the lack of solutions for 1-in-5 adults who struggle with movement. After years of prototyping and refinement of wearable robotics solutions, Kathryn spun the project out into Skip, co-founded with Anna Roumiantseva. Much like e-bikes sit between pedal bikes and motorbikes, movewear sits between clothing and exoskeletons to provide support. Skip recently unveiled their first product called MO/GO, an "e-bike for walking," developed in partnership with Arc’teryx. MO/GO’s potential to revolutionize mobility has received significant attention: According to a Fast Company article, the exoskeleton is intuitive, beautifully designed, and transformative, showcasing Skip's vision of blending advanced technology with practical, life-enhancing products. Kathryn credits her global upbringing and experiences to her ability to fearlessly challenge the status-quo: “If you see something like healthcare done in several different ways in different places, it becomes easier to imagine alternative futures, and then work to make it a reality.” Kathryn Zealand’s journey is one of relentless pursuit of innovation and impact. From selling pet fish to launching moonshot technologies, her journey has been a testament to curiosity's power and desire to make the world a better place. Her work continues to inspire and push forward the boundaries of what’s possible. She has proven again and again that even the most ambitious goals can be achieved with passion and determination. We are so grateful that Kathryn in our StartX community! https://lnkd.in/gQbz-mT4

Thank you to Ashraf Hebela, CFA for an insightful and candid discussion on the investing landscape. And Erin Lashbrook for bringing together such an amazing set of people in the JP Morgan world across biotech, sustainability and AI to StartX. The StartX program gets even better with this network and resources. We look forward to this partnership to support the best of Stanford founders and build a better future. Last week, we had the privilege of hosting a JPM-sponsored fireside chat with two incredible leaders in the innovation and startup space: Ashraf Hebela, Co-Head of Technology Banking & Head of Startup Banking at J.P. Morgan, shared his vast experience serving startups across Technology, Disruptive Commerce, Life Sciences, Climate Technology, and Healthcare IT. With a deep understanding of the Innovation Economy and a national team dedicated to helping founders succeed, Ashraf's insights were invaluable. Kyle Wong, CEO of StartX, brought his unique perspective on driving growth and innovation within the startup ecosystem, making the conversation even more enriching. It was a fantastic afternoon of learning, networking, and engaging discussions, followed by a delicious lunch! Thank you to Erin and everyone on the JP Morgan team who joined us, and thanks to Ashraf and Kyle for their time and insights. Let’s continue to drive innovation and support the next generation of startup founders! hashtag #StartX #Startups #Innovation #TechBanking #Entrepreneurship #Networking #SiliconValley

Last Thursday, we hosted an incredible panel featuring some of Silicon Valley's most influential venture capitalists! We were honored to have: Sarah Smith, Founder of Sarah Smith Fund and Stanford professor, who shared her invaluable insights from her journey at Meta/Facebook, Quora, and Bain Capital Ventures. With $50M invested in 70+ companies, Sarah provided deep wisdom on building company culture and supporting founder CEOs. Bilal Zuberi, Partner at Lux Capital, who captivated the audience with his wits and nearly two decades of experience in deeptech and healthcare investments. He has led investments in companies like Applied Intuition and Aurora Solar, and holds a PhD from MIT. Richard Boyle, General Partner at Canaan, offered a masterclass on real estate tech, AI, robotics, and marketplaces. As the former CEO of LoopNet, he led the company through a successful IPO and a $900 million sale to CoStar Group. His investments include Apartment List and Diligent Robotics. The event was a fantastic opportunity to gain insights from top investors and connect with industry leaders. Also a huge thank you to our moderator, StartX CEO Kyle Wong, for guiding an insightful and inspiring discussion. Thank you, everyone who attended and made it a memorable evening! #StartX #VentureCapital #Networking #SiliconValley #Entrepreneurship #Startups

One of our favorite events of the summer session thus far 😎, the Unicorn Panel @ StartX! We had the privilege of hosting the StartX Unicorn Founders Panel, featuring two visionary entrepreneurs: Charlie Gao, founder of Lime and Crafting, and Jonathan Siddharth, founder of Turing. A huge thank you to our moderator, StartX CEO Kyle Wong, for guiding an insightful and inspiring discussion. The quality of insights from these industry leaders and experts was truly transformative, leaving us all motivated and ready to take on new challenges! Afterwards, we hosted a community dinner, where the conversations and connections continued. It was a fantastic evening of collaborating and building relationships! #StartX #UnicornFounders #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #Inspiration #Community

🌟 Another amazing week at StartX and a highlight of the Summer ‘24 session 🚀 Midway Expo: It was wonderful to see everyone in person and on Zoom. Founders pitched their companies to fellow StartX Founders and received valuable feedback, ideas, and direct advice. A fantastic opportunity to connect, support each other, and improve pitches! 💡 Financial Discussion with Fenwick & West: A big thank you to Fenwick partners Mark Leahy and Sam Angus for informing our community about financing structures and market trends. Our founders gained crucial insights in this open discussion format! This week wouldn’t have been possible without our amazing community and partners. Here's to more learning and growing together! #StartX #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #Community #PitchPerfect

Lovely summer day at The Hub! Thanks to Stanford Research Park for hosting the "Emerging Technologies" panel for the Stanford Summer Session students! It was a really engaging panel and we were thrilled to be able to participate. (Great dinner as well 😎 ) Thank you Jamie Jarvis, Mo Fong, Krithika Kumar, and Julie Bert!

Recapping an an incredible event last week at StartX! We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to Ilya Strebulaev, The David S. Lobel Professor of Private Equity and Professor of Finance at Stanford Graduate School of Business, and Alex Dang, senior technology executive, for taking the time to present their new book, "The Venture Mindset: How to Make Smarter Bets and Achieve Extraordinary Growth". Your insights and expertise were truly inspiring, and we are grateful for the knowledge you shared with us. It's events like these that fuel our entrepreneurial spirit and guide us towards achieving extraordinary growth. A huge thank you to JP Morgan for sponsoring this event and making it possible. Your support for the startup community is invaluable. #StartX #Entrepreneurship #TheVentureMindset #StanfordGSB #JPMorgan #Innovation #GrowthMindset

Hello! PSA that there are 6 more days to complete your StartX application for our fall programs! StartX is the largest community of Stanford founders. StartX startups have a 3x higher chance of growing past a $100M valuation, have seen over 165 companies to reach that $100M milestone, and 15+ that have captured a > $1B unicorn valuation! How to Apply: 1. Submit Your Application at www.startx.com/apply 2. Interview and impress the judges with your innovation and dedication! 3. Join the Community and gain access to unparalleled resources, mentorship, and collaboration! **Deadline: June 30th, 2024, at 11:59 PM** Don’t miss this chance to join StartX. Apply today and be a part of our founder community! #StartX #StanfordEntrepreneurs #Innovation

An essential part of StartX’s success is our incredible partnerships! Thanks to Google Cloud for bringing a wealth of resources, expertise, and connections to support our founders in building their companies. A huge thank you to Colleen Pimentel, CPA for sharing Google Cloud’s offerings with our Summer ’24 cohort during Orientation Week. Your insights and guidance are truly invaluable. cc: Andrea Perdomo, Louis Huynh, Ryan Kiskis