The VentureFuel Visionaries

How can corporates and startups collaborate? Is it possible for Enterprises and Entrepreneurs to drive mutual growth? Originally recorded live in Silicon Valley as part of the Angeles Investors’ Q2 Pitch Night, during this episode, we host Daniel Grubbs, Chief Venturing & Investment Officer at PepsiCo, and Bob Carroll, the VP of Business Development at the California Milk Advisory Board, to discuss startup and corporate partnerships, the different on-ramps for collaboration and the benefits to each – from expertise to insight – that make these partnerships not just viable, but critical to each for future growth.

Founder Stories from three high-growth entrepreneurs whose unique perspectives and experiences help them rethink status quo solutions to some of industry & society's most pressing challenges. Featuring Nicole Schmidt, CEO of Source; Chekesha Kidd, Founder & CEO of Kinumi; and Tara Fung, Co-Founder and CEO of Co:Create. Moderated by Shira Averbuch, VP of Innovation at VentureFuel.

Discover how investors are rethinking traditional strategies and structures to build new onramps to funding. Featuring Allison Goldberg, SVP & Managing Partner at Comcast Ventures; Shila Nieves Burney, Founding and Managing Partner at Zane Venture Fund; and Jenny Fielding, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at The Fund; with Rogue Women's Fund Managing Partner, Caroline Lewis.

Clair Casey is the new President of AARP Foundation, the charitable affiliate of AARP focused on a future without senior poverty. She shares how the Foundation’s approach to innovation: leveraging empathy and experimentation to understand people's needs and find new, scalable solutions to complex issues.

Authentic innovation, seizing the right opportunities, and understanding when to strategically go Rogue – featuring Lesley Folensbee, Director of Marketing, Neuropsychiatry Franchise at Biogen; Joan Ondala, Director of Business Development and Corporate Strategy at Winnebago Industries; and Kristen Gendron, Director of VF Venture Foundry. Hear personal stories of triumph and challenges faced from these trail blazers guiding enterprise transformation at their organizations.

The evolution the premier global corporate startup partnership program, the Comcast NBCUniversal’s LIFT Labs Accelerator. Laura Plunkett and Luke Butler, executive directors of Startup Engagement for Comcast NBCUniversal share why they now offer multiple programs throughout the year, open to various stages of startups and all aligned to strategic areas of interest for the core business. We go deep on the value to startup founders, the value to Comcast and what other corporates can learn from the opportunity.

110 years of progress and counting, the General Manager of L’Oréal Paris shares how the company has embraced everything from AR to Sustainability to the Empowerment of Women. From Skin Genius to Virtual Hair Color Try-Ons to pioneering science in products, innovation is in the DNA of the organization. Eli shares her 20 years of experience leading multinational consumer goods companies from AB InBev to Mars to Pedigree in the US and Europe and why L’oreal Paris continues to evolve to better serve their customers.

Today’s episode features Sallie Krawcheck the Co-founder and CEO of Ellevest, a financial company built by women, for women to reach their financial goals. Sallie is one of the highest ranked women ever to have worked on Wall Street, having held posts such as CEO of Smith Barney, CEO of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, and CFO of Citigroup. She is one of the most-read “Influencers” on LinkedIn and has been profiled as one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People” in business, as well as in The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Forbes, and more. Ellevest has a community of more than 3 million, raised a $53 million Series B funding round and has $1.5 billion in assets under management. Learn why “nothing bad happens when women have more money.”

Fiercely female, always rogue. Why investing in women is good business and how innovation can change the world. This is a rebroadcast of our conversation with Caroline Lewis, Managing Partner Rogue Women’s Fund from 2020 as she was launching the Rogue Women’s Fund and we were beginning our Rogue Women Event Series together. This also serves as a preview for our 2023 Rogue Women VI event on Mar 9 2023 in NYC.

On Wednesday, February 1st, we honored the 2022 Visionary and Venture of the Year: Antonia Dean of Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs & Curio Digital Therapeutics’ Shaila Dixit. Join us for a conversation with them about the state of innovation today, the opportunity for entrepreneurs to reshape the industry, and the power to drive positive societal change through collaboration. Learn more about Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs' work with startups and entrepreneurs and Curio’s efforts to transform women’s mental healthcare.