DealMakers: Entrepreneur | Startups | Venture Capital

Davis Siksnans built his own unicorn startup before becoming an investor to help other entrepreneurs maximize the potential of their own ventures. His initial startup, Printful, attracted funding from top-tier investors like Bregal Sagemount, Latham & Watkins, and Goodwin Procter.

Andrew Lacy sold his first company to Disney. Now he’s working to transform the healthcare system with his newest venture, Prenuvo. The startup has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Anne Wojcicki, Tony Fadell, Cindy Crawford, and Steel Perlot.

Antonio Juliano has already raised tens of millions of dollars for his tech startup that is forging the future of finance. The venture, dYdX, has acquired funding from top-tier investors like beToken Capital, BR Capital, CMS Holdings, and CMT Digital.

Satyen Kothari has raised capital, sold companies, and now wants to help others to build their own wealth and enjoy more peace of mind. His latest venture, Cube Wealth, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Beenext, Asuka Holding, and 500 Startups.

Drew Oetting is one of the biggest forces providing the financial fuel this new generation of fast-growing, super-sized startups need to make it. His venture capital firm, 8VC, has invested in startups like Unlearn, Chaos, Tome, and Ushur.

After two previous successful exits, Mance Harmon is now on his third startup. One which has quickly grown to become a multi-billion dollar venture that aims to be the platform for tokenizing everything. The venture, Hedera Hashgraph, Has raised financing from top-tier investors like Boeing HorizonX Ventures, Vestinwolf Financial Holdings, Digital Currency Group, and Tata Communications.

Ravi Parikh is now on his second startup venture. After having built a very successful first company, he is now working to streamline development for other businesses, so they can move faster, and focus on what matters most. The company, Airplane, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Andrew Ofstad, Jaren Glover, Thrive Capital, and Guillermo Rauch.

Naveen Jain has created a whole string of successful startups. Now with his seventh venture, he is tackling a problem faced by eight billion people around the world. The startup, Viome, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Glico, Khosla Ventures, WestRiver Group, and Physician Partners.

After leading another great startup to scale and become profitable as their CRO, Alan Chang has raised tens of millions of dollars to take on what is perhaps the largest and most impactful industry on the planet. His startup, Tesseract, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Woorton, Accel, Balderton Capital, and LeadBlock Partners.

Having already started and sold two companies, Omer Davidi is now working on his biggest project yet. One that he believes will be responsible for most of the food production in the world. His startup, Bee Hero, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Firstime, Rabobank, Cibus Capital, and General Mills.

Andy Bromberg is now on his third startup. One which has already raised $100M from top investors, to make the financial services space simpler, and more accessible to everyone, everywhere. His latest venture, Eco, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Lightspeed Venture Partners, StartX, Formless Capital, and Blockchange Ventures.

Stephanie Tilenius successfully led her first startup through an IPO. Now she is taking on the healthcare space, which makes up 20% of GDP in the United States. Her latest venture, Vida Health, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Centene, Lumir Ventures, Hamilton Lane, and Canvas Ventures.

Jordan Noone was the youngest person in the world to get FAA clearance to fly a rocket into space. His venture capital firm, Embedded Ventures, has funded startups like Slingshot Aerospace (Series A Round), Chromatic, and KittyCAD.

Daniel Khachab built a billion Euro business in just three years. His startup, Choco, has raised funding from top-tier investors like Insight Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Target Global, and G Squared.

Rob Frohwein has been starting businesses since he was in high school. Now he’s helping other business owners with their finances. His latest fintech startup, Keep Financial Technologies, has acquired funding from investors like Launchpad Capital, Cambrian Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and Thomvest Ventures.

Now on his second startup, Santiago Molina’s latest venture has raised tens of millions of dollars, to facilitate the movement of $90B in merchandise. His latest venture, FinKargo, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Community Investment Management, ONEVC, Maya Capital, and Pear VC.

Brian Fenty has been on both sides of the table as an investor and entrepreneur. He has leveraged that experience, as well as his love for culture, to build an incredible business that delivers six-star experiences. His startup, TodayTix, has acquired funding from top-tier investors like Great Hill Partners, Rubicon Venture Capital, TYLT Lab, and Riverside Company.

Philip Kelvin has gone from studying history to investment banking to launching his own startup that seems incredibly well-timed to help others through today’s financial turmoil. The venture, Tranch, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Y Combinator, Global Founders Capital, Soma Capital, and Clear Haven Capital Management

James Lochrie achieved one of the biggest startup exits in Canada with his first company. Now he is investing in other founders to help them bring their world-changing ideas to life. The firm, Thin Air Labs, has invested in startups like Clinify, PayShepherd, Rehabtronics, PhenoTips.

Ron Gula built a multi-billion dollar business that went public. Now he is helping other founders make their startups succeed as an investor. His venture, Gula Tech Ventures, has invested in companies like Second Front Systems, North American Wave Engine Corporation, Cybrary, and ShardSecure.

Shensi Ding has already raised $75M for her tech startup. Even though they chose to get started in the middle of the COVID crisis. Her startup, Merge, attracted funding from top-tier investors like Alameda Research, Evening Fund, Addition, and New Enterprise Associates.

Uri Kolodny is now on his third startup. He’s now working on his biggest and boldest tech venture so far. His startup, Starkware, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Alameda Research, Coatue, Greenoaks, and Tiger Global Management.

Gene Hoffman has started and sold several startups. As well as becoming one of the youngest CEOs of a public company in the United States ever. His latest venture, Chia Network, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like True Ventures, Richmond Global Ventures, Breyer Capital, and Naval Ravikant.

Gregory Sewitz is now on his second food startup. Since selling his first company, he has raised $100M to make your breakfast both healthy and delicious. Gregory's latest startup, Magic Spoon has attracted funding from top-tier investors like HighPost Capital, Siddhi Capital, Coefficient Capital, and The Chainsmokers.

Dan Teran took the leap from legal to tech, sold his company for over $200M, and then leaped from entrepreneur to startup investor. His venture capital, Gutter Capital, supports early-stage and mission-driven startups preferring to invest in the education, health, economic mobility, and housing sectors.

Tom Ellis has gone from bootstrapping his business to finding alternative financing methods to grow and secure big private equity deals. His startup, ShiftKey, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Clearlake Capital Group, Health Velocity Capital, Lorient Capital, and Pantheon Ventures.

Michael Ronen has gone from investor to entrepreneur and back again. During which he helped the massive Vision Fund, and raised over $100M for his own venture. His startup, Branded, has attracted financing from top-tier investors like Kreos Capital, Lurra Capital, Target Global, and Declaration Partners.

Eliot Horowitz is now on his third startup. After building a billion-dollar company and taking it public, he is now creating the technology that is fueling a new generation of robotics startups. His latest venture, Viam, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Union Square Ventures, 12 West Capital, Tiger, and Union Square.

Rishi Bhargava exited his first company for $560M. Then raised a seed round for his latest venture, which is more than 20x the average size for a brand-new startup. The startup, Demisto, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Accel, ClearSky Security, Palo Alto Networks, and Greylock.

Waseem Daher sold his first startup to Oracle and the second to Dropbox. He’s now raised millions of dollars from some incredible investors to help other founders grow their companies by handling their backend office and accounting needs. His latest startup, Pilot, has attracted funding from top-tier financiers like Akkadian Ventures, Empede Capital, Whale Rock Capital, and Jeff Bezos.

Bibhrajit Halder has been a big part of the autonomous wave taking over the world. He’s already raised nearly $70M for his own AI software company that is helping to build the future. The startup has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Brick & Mortar Ventures, Newlab, Autotech Ventures, and Vimson Group.

Alexandra Zatarain is on a mission to help others optimize their sleep for their best lives using new software and hardware technology. His startup, Eight Sleep, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Jesse Robbins, Kris Bryant, Anthony Pompliano, and Sophia Amoruso.

Imran Khan went from becoming one of the youngest managing directors at JP Morgan to taking Snap through raising $4B, and becoming an entrepreneur himself. His venture, Verishop, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Lion Capital, Cassius Family Fund, Upfront Ventures, and DCM Ventures.

Ryan Morris has been on both sides of the table as an investor and an operator. His latest venture has already raised close to half a billion dollars to tackle a huge problem. The company, Turntide Technologies, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like JLL Spark, OGCI Climate Investments, FootPrint Coalition, and Keyframe Capital Partners.

Jai Shekhawat has built, funded, and sold companies. Now he’s investing in and advising other entrepreneurs on their own ventures. His startup, Fieldglass, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Madison Dearborn Partners, SAP, HLM Venture Partners, and Grotech Ventures.

Sasha Orloff built his first two companies at the same time. Now he’s helping other founders figure out the financial puzzle they face on the startup journey. His latest venture, Mission Lane, has raised funding from top-tier investors like Oaktree Capital Management, Gramercy Ventures, QED Investors, and Goldman Sachs.

Greg Marsh previously founded and sold for $250 million OneFineStay. He is now the cofounder and CEO of Nous which is a software company that deals with household utilities. The company has raised millions from investors such as Mosaic Ventures.

Bruce Smith has gone from competitive rowing and coaching to leading a connected fitness startup that has raised $300M and is better for you than a Peloton bike. His venture, Hydrow, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Constitution Capital Partners, Sandbridge Capital, Activant Capital, and Rx3 Growth Partners.

Caesar Sengupta left working at Google with seven other cofounders to create a digital family office and democratize financial services. His venture, Arta Finance, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Coatue, Betsy Cohen, Sequoia Capital India, and Ribbit Capital.

Dr. Eric Whitaker has gone from physician to private equity and is now a three-time startup founder. His latest venture, Zing Health, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Town Hall Ventures, Leavitt Equity Partners, Newlight Partners, and Health2047.

Keith Teare has been one of the most influential founders behind today’s technology and startup ecosystem. Now he’s changing things again with his new AI-powered fintech that is changing the DNA of the venture capital space. The company, SignalRank, has acquired funding from top-tier investors like Candou Ventures, AltaIR Capital, Blake Grossman, and Charlie Jadallah.

Jim McKelvey has now started close to a dozen different for-profit and nonprofit ventures, including Square. Now he’s tackling the problems we face on the internet every day, with the backing of Peter Theil as an investor. His venture has also attracted funding from other financiers like GGV Capital, Morgan Stanley, Vanguard Group, and Omega Venture Partners.

Ty Harris and Matt Wielbut came together around a shared problem to launch their own insurtech startup that has already raised $200M. The venture, Openly, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like MTech Capital, Gradient Ventures, Obvious Ventures, and Clocktower Technology Ventures.

Christer Holloman has raised tens of millions of dollars for his fintech startup, including achieving 100% oversubscribed funding rounds. The venture, Divido, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Silicon Valley Bank UK, Dawn Capital, SBI Investment, and ING Ventures.

Ethan Agarwal sold his first company after raising $70M for it. He’s now championing the area of financial health for entrepreneurs and others who need a modern approach to investing that understands their needs and aspirations. His venture, Aaptiv, has raised funding from top-tier investors like Insight Partners, Warner Music Group, Bose Ventures, and Amazon Alexa Fund.

Howard Lerman has been building and selling companies since he was in college. After taking his last venture through an IPO, he has launched a new startup helping to solve the future of work dilemma that many are debating right now. His startup, Yext, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Insight Venture Partners, WGI Group, CrunchFund, and Grape Arbo VC.

Sacha Michaud has not only been involved in the birth of several startups but has ended up seeing them go public as well. His latest venture, Glovo, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like GR Capital, Lugard Road Capital, Drake Enterprises, and Delivery Hero.

Nikita Shamgunov built a $100M revenue company, before joining Khosla Ventures to invest in other startups. Now he is going at it again, with a new tech startup that has raised $54M in just 16 months. The company, SingleStore, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Prosperity7, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), Dell Technologies Capital, and Insight Partners.

Elli Kaplan has already raised tens of millions of dollars to take on one of the biggest and fast-growing healthcare challenges we face today. Including investments from top investors like Peter Thiel. Her venture, Neurotrack, has acquired funding from top-tier investors like AME Cloud Partners, Rethink Impact, Sozo Ventures, and SOMPO Holdings.

Bharath Krishnamoorthy has gone from a young rebel to working for one of the world’s top M&A law firms, to a startup entrepreneur. His venture, Denim, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Crosslink Capital, REFASHIOND Ventures, Anthemis, and Trucks VC.