Funders & Founders Meet in Shadelands to Talk Innovation in HealthTech & SportsTech
The conference hall at 2850 Shadelands Drive was abuzz last month when more than 100 business leaders, venture capitalists, angel investors, entrepreneurs, and innovators gathered for an event to introduce a planned Shadelands HealthTech + SportsTech initiative designed to foster innovation, accelerate technology development, and build a vibrant business ecosystem in Shadelands and the greater Walnut Creek region in health-tech and sports-tech spaces.
Entrepreneurs and investors mingled and networked during the Shadelands Funders & Founders opening reception.
Funders & Founders: Early-Stage Venture Funding in Health & Sports, held January 29, was presented by Sutter Health, hosted by Five Star Bank, and co-hosted by Band of Angels and the Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau. The event drew experienced, knowledgeable investors and creative, passionate entrepreneurial talent in health and sports related enterprises—such as wearable sports performance clothing and AI-powered aids for the elderly and their caregivers—from around the Bay Area, from as far north as Marin and as far south as Santa Cruz. They gathered to share ideas, offer advice, discover potential business opportunities, and forge new partnerships and collaborations in a friendly setting.
The larger, long-term plan is to develop a Shadelands HealthTech + SportsTech initiative that will serve as a hub for collaboration among forward-thinking start-ups, investors, and advisors to focus on the intersection of health, technology, and sports performance, This will be designed to create high-quality jobs, strengthen regional economic growth, and position Shadelands and Walnut Creek as destinations for groundbreaking health-tech and sports-tech solutions.
James Beckwith, President & CEO, Five Star Bank, welcomed attendees to the Shadelands Funders & Founders event.
James Beckwith, President & CEO, Five Star Bank, kicked off the evening’s event by welcoming participants and setting expectations. He said the evening was for coming together to have conversations about pitching ideas and partnering for growth—to have, in one room, experienced leadership in funding and founders who are in the exciting early stages of development and growth, on the cusp of big things.
Bob Linscheid, President & CEO, Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce, encouraged attendees to ask questions and share thoughts about the intersection between health-tech and sports-tech.
Bob Linscheid, President & CEO, Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce, spoke of the 270-acre Shadelands district, home to 600,000 square feet of medical use and the 227,00-square-foot Shadelands SportsMall, signaling an organic confluence in Shadelands between medical and sports. “What better way to introduce the idea of a HealthTech and SportsTech initiative than to have an event like this that ignites a conversation about the next step in innovation. We envisioned a gathering of about 40 people and tonight we have well over 100 in the room, demonstrating that Shadelands is an active community that attracts talent.”
(l-r) Rick Spencer, Managing Partner, Growth Factory, moderated the Start-Up Success Stories panel with entrepreneurs Daniel Jue, LiveFreely, and Joe Gaggero, VideoVerse.
The evening continued with the Start-Up Success Stories Q&A panel, moderated by Rick Spencer, Managing Partner, The Growth Factory, with representatives from two start-ups who are successfully navigating the funding landscape: LiveFreely, a digital app for seniors and caregivers that predicts and prevents falls, and VideoVerse, which employs AI to automatically generate sports highlights reels to replace the hours needed to assemble highlights manually. Rick noted that the funding community is strong and engaged in innovation, and “we just need to get the right people in the same room, at the same table, in the same conversation.”
Jon Gregory, SVP/Venture Banking Manager, Five Star Bank, moderated the State of the Fundraising Market panel made up of VCs and angel investors/accelerators.
Jon Gregory, SVP/Venture Banking Manager, Five Star Bank, moderated the State of the Fundraising Market panel, with ten heavy hitting representatives from premier venture capital (VC) firms and angel investors/accelerators, across diverse funding stages, industries, and expertise, sharing their insight about the state of today’s funding market (most were optimistic after two brutal years) and advice about the do’s and don’ts of pitching funders.
“Being verbose is your enemy. Leave funders with the one thing they’re going to remember about the story and the value that you create for them.” “We see 6000 pitches a year and make five decisions. Be memorable.” “It’s a tenacity game, if there ever was one.”
The evening’s agenda wrapped up with the Start-Up Showcase & Investor Input presentations moderated by Asli Gozoren, Executive Director, Band of Angels. Six start-ups pitched a panel of seven judges.
Amy Kelly, co-founder & CEO of Miri AI, pitched her start-up that helps wellness coaches, organizations, and brands harness the power of artificial intelligence to enhance their impact and generate revenue.
Ricardo Berrios, CEO, Adhera Health, pitched his digital health solution that aids people with chronic conditions and their family caregivers with adaptive self-management programs.
One start-up was chosen Top Presenting Company. Standing in the winner’s circle was Kevin Hoil Yoo, founder of Haptic, a technology company that creates navigational products for the visually impaired that communicate through touch.
The Winner’s Circle: (l-r) Bob Linscheid, Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce; Paul Ratner, Marble Bridge Funding Group; Kevin Hoil Yoo, Haptic (Top Presenting Company); Josh Broward, Wisdom Partners; Jon Gregory, Five Star Bank; Asli Gozoren, Band of Angels; Jared Asch, Capstone Government Affairs.
For its part, the Funders & Founders event served to demonstrate support and encouragement for startups and entrepreneurs as they develop transformative technologies that improve athletic health and performance, as well as the next generation of multi-solution products that benefit all people who struggle with health-related and age-related issues. Connections and collaborations between the startups and VCs and angel investors—many of which were quite likely made at this Funders & Founders event—will cultivate solutions and shape healthier, more connected communities and societies.
At the end of the evening, networking continued and funders and founders talked, shook hands, shared contact information, and scheduled follow-up coffee dates and team introductions.
The importance of an event like this cannot be overstated. Shadelands is primed for building partnerships between innovators and investors looking to help build and grow enterprises that serve specific markets and the common good. The six brilliant pitches at this event are just a microcosm of what’s out there on the horizon for health-tech and sports-tech innovation.
Founders & Founders: Early-Stage Venture Funding in Health & Sports Tech was presented by Sutter Health; sponsored by Band of Angels, Five Star Bank, and Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce; and supported by BPM, California Capital & Investment Group, Capstone Government Affairs, COPA Soccer Training Center, DLHA Law Group, Growth Factory, Marble Bridge Funding Group, Shadelands SportsMall, Shadelands Walnut Creek, Trinet, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, Visit Walnut Creek, and Wisdom Partners.
