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TAI Startup Forum – Women in Venture Capital

May 4, 2023 @ 10:00 am - 11:00 am

Free

“Narrowing the Gap: Women in Venture Capital – Addressing the Funding Disparity for Female Founders”

Despite women’s significant contributions to the business world, less than 2% of venture capital funds are allocated to female entrepreneurs.

Join us on Thursday, May 4th, from 10-11 a.m. at Maple Studios for an insightful forum on funding disparities in venture capital for women. The panelists will discuss the core reasons behind this discrepancy and critical ways to address this disparity in Iowa.

Schedule of Events

9:30 – 10:00 am: Networking and Coffee

10:00 – 11:00 am: Panel Discussion

11:00 – 11:30 am: Tour of Maple Studios [Optional]

Be sure to RSVP below!

 

Moderator:

Kaylee Williams, Innoventure Iowa

 

Panelists:

Mikayla Sullivan, Senior Associate ISA Ventures

Mikayla Sullivan is the Senior Associate at ISA Ventures, Iowa’s first multi-stage venture capital studio. Mikayla is also the co-founder and CEO of KinoSol, a food-tech startup focused on reducing post-harvest loss in developing countries via solar-powered food dehydrators and educational programs. She is very involved in the startup ecosystem across Iowa and loves working with early-stage founders. In her free time, she can be found training for half-Ironman races or planning her next international adventure.

Charise Flynn, COO and Co-Founder at The Hummingbirds

Charise is an entrepreneur and startup advisor, board member and investor. For almost six years, she led the growth of a fintech startup from 2-85 team members and millions of users, leading distributed teams from New York to SF. During her leadership, she was integral in raising over $35m in Venture Capital from coastal VCs.

This past Fall, she joined The Hummingbirds as COO and co-founder, where she hit the ground running and along with her co-founder, Emily Steele, closed just over $1m in a seed round to scale their business nationally.

Liz Keehner, Senior Associate at Next Level Ventures

At Next Level, Liz sources and evaluates investment opportunities, performs due diligence and financial analysis, leads the investment decision and execution process for Iowa investments, and provides support for portfolio companies. In addition to venture, Liz’s prior experience also includes startup operations and economic development.

Kate Lyon, Former President of Ames Seed Capital

Kate Lyon served as the President of Ames Seed Capital from 2021-2023. ASC is Iowa’s largest community investment fund, with $4,000,000 in assets under management. In this role, she led the executive team and board of managers that evaluated and invested in early-stage companies, resulting in a portfolio of promising startups with the potential for high growth and profitability.

Kate remains actively engaged with portfolio companies, providing mentorship, strategic guidance, and support to help them achieve their growth goals and maximize their potential. She is a mentor for Iowa State University’s Ivy College of Business and TechStars Des Moines.

Details

Date:
May 4, 2023
Time:
10:00 am - 11:00 am
Cost:
Free
Event Categories:
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Venue

Maple Studios
1207 Maple Street
West Des Moines, IA 50265 United States
View Venue Website
Interest Form

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