Claim OwnershipThe VentureFuel Visionaries
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Visionaries are defined as having extraordinary foresight and imagination. Those who can see what isn't there. They can imagine the unimaginable and they have the grit to make it happen. Business Visionaries are the change-agents embracing new opportunities to drive outsized results. From the C-Suite to the up-and-coming disruptors, they are blazing new paths, discovering inventive solutions and powering the future. Join us each week as we speak with these Visionaries: the entrepreneurs, investors and corporate leaders driving transformative change across business and society.
231 Episodes
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Started in a small kitchen in Ireland, Niall Harty wanted to see if he could create nutritious protein bars made from real food ingredients. We explore how Niall and Co-Founder Ross McDowell have grown the company since we first met him as a participant in Bord Bia’s innovation program with VentureFuel. Now in over 2,000 stores across Ireland and the US from Sprouts to Pressed Juices. Beyond their clean labels, nutritional content and fantastic taste they also have created unique compostable packaging as well as funded ocean cleanup initiatives that make a “Real Impact.” We talk about the evolution from Founder to CEO, scaling globally, the commitment to sustainability and the moment of your first sale to when you see your product on shelf across the pond.
In this special re-release of VentureFuel Visionaries, we’re excited to welcome Bob Carroll, Vice President of Business Development at the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB). As we count down to the 6th year of the Real California Exceleator on November
14th, Bob shares insights on how CMAB—backed by California’s pioneering dairy farm families—leads the way in sustainable dairy farming practices.
Marlene Orozco, lead research analyst at the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative, joins us to discuss the unique challenges faced by Hispanic entrepreneurs, particularly in accessing capital. With her background in sociology, Marlene highlights the initiative's role in advancing Latino entrepreneurship, shares key insights from impactful research projects, and emphasizes the importance of networks and collaborations for scaling businesses. Tune in to learn how her work informs policy and empowers underrepresented entrepreneurs in today’s landscape
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we are re-releasing this episode
featuring Maria Rodriguez, Executive Director of the Valiente Fund, a collaborative
focused on increasing philanthropic investment in Latine leaders, organizations,
and communities. Maria shares insights on the importance of innovation in critical
moments, scaling bold solutions, and the power of microecosystems. We also
discuss the value of starting before you're ready and how collaboration can drive
systemic change.
Former NFL star (one of the top 50 wide receivers in NFL history
and the New Orleans Saints’ all-time leader in every major statistical category for his
position) and entrepreneur Marques Colston joins us to discuss the future of sports
and the new value chain in sports. As the Founder of Champion Venture Partners,
Marques has created a new investment model which unites everyone from casual
fans to accredited investors into a single fund, unlocking secure wealth-building
opportunities in alternative investment markets. We talk about the emerging
opportunities in sports beyond the Big 5 leagues, why media rights and appointment
viewing will continue to expand and how technology is creating competitive
advantage on a team and league level.
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we're re-releasing this insightful episode with Natalia Rodriguez-Hilt, Senior Director at Raza Development Fund (RDF). Natalia discusses how RDF unlocks the $2.1 trillion revenue potential of Latino-owned businesses through creative financing solutions, including equity-like revenue-based loans. She also highlights the crucial role of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and the importance of empowering under-resourced entrepreneurs to drive meaningful economic change.
What Needs to Be Done? Is Better Possible? Where do the seeds of change begin, and can entrepreneurs really solve society’s biggest challenges? Paolo Narciso is a Build Fellow at Stand Together Ventures Lab. STVL invests and builds to change society with founders and teams who are obsessed with showing that better is possible. Today, we talk about how he is re-imagining healthcare as well as his book “From Founder to CEO,” a transformative guide for entrepreneurs navigating the crucial transition from founding to leading.
“Further, Faster.” Rachel Shepphard, Director of Ventures for Mars Pet Care, shares how the Leap Venture Studio & Academy ignites impactful growth for pet care startups.7 out of 10 US households have a pet, with 97% considering the pet a part of the family - which explains the $320+ billion global pet care market (predicted to get to $500bn by 2030). In this episode, we discuss the future of pet care, exciting startups, and new technologies, as well as how to find adjacent and emerging opportunities and the value of holding frameworks lightly in the fast-moving world of innovation.
Dan Kihanya is the Director of REI’s Path Ahead Ventures, a $30 million fund aimed at supporting founders of color in the outdoor industry. Launched in 2021, this program focuses on providing resources, mentorship, and funding to help diverse entrepreneurs start and scale their businesses. They have multiple programs like Embark (for early-stage founders), Navigate (for enterprise-ready founders that could sell into REI) as well as the more traditional fund – all built to meet Founders where they are in the journey. In this episode we discuss how diversity drives innovation and how Path Ahead is closing the gap between the 1% of founders who identify as a person of color vs. the 30%+ of outdoor participants identifying as such.
Marcelo De Santis is a seasoned C-suite leader (former executive at Thoughtworks, Pirelli, and Mondelēz International), and his new book, Figure Eight, unlocks the secrets of leadership in our rapidly evolving world where technology and humanity converge. We talk about leadership in fast times, accelerating time to market, executive mountaineering through humility and empathy, and having more questions than answers. How far from the core should you explore, and what mental barriers you must overcome in order to drive transformation?
In this special re-release, we dive into the ever-evolving world of artificial intelligence with Rudina Seseri, Managing Partner at Glasswing Ventures, as she reflects on AI investment and innovation. Rudina provides an analysis of the AI industry, addressing pressing questions on the technology's evolution and her assessment of its long-term potential to impact the enterprise.
Natalia Rodriguez-Hilt is the Senior Director of UnidosUS Affiliate Development and Small Business Strategies at Raza Development Fund. Natalia is a seasoned expert in economic and community development, with a passion for driving economic opportunity for entrepreneurs in underrepresented communities. We discuss how RDF unleashes unleash the power, potential and promise of Latino and other under-resourced communities to accelerate the $2.1 Trillion Dollar incremental revenue potential of Latino-owned business. WE talk about the need for creative financing to enable that growth (such as Equity-Like revenue-based loans), the role of CDFIs and how to empower entrepreneurs to ignite change.
Elizabeth Bieniek, author of Cake on Tuesdays: 25 Lessons To Unlock Corporate Innovation, shares her blueprint for executing change within complex organizations. She co-founded Webex Hologram, the industry’s first holographic collaboration system, while at Cisco and here explores the intricacies of innovation and leadership, offering valuable insights for aspiring innovators inside and outside of large companies with gems like “find the angel in the marble,” “add oil and reduce friction,” “nobody cares until you make them” and the hilarious “don’t be a flat squirrel.”
We are thrilled to announce the re-release of one of our more popular podcast episodes, featuring a captivating conversation on collaboration and growth with industry leaders from PepsiCo and the California Milk Advisory Board. Hosted by Fred Schonenberg, founder and CEO of VentureFuel, this episode delves deep into innovative strategies and real-world examples of successful partnerships.
GlobalWafers is a global leader in semiconductor technology, providing innovative, advanced silicon wafer solutions to integrated chip manufacturers worldwide. Brent Omdahl, Executive Vice President for Government Affairs, has over 20 years of deep experience counseling U.S. firms on international market entry strategies and advising foreign firms on U.S. greenfield investment. We talk about Silicon Prairie, how to navigate international innovation (specifically Asian and African markets), the role of regulation, industrial policy, and the semiconductor industry's future. There will also be some fun innovation conversations around supply chain strategy, fixed-wing drones, microfinancing, nanometers, and advanced packaging.
In this episode, Vanessa Rosato sits down with Kylan Gibbs, CEO and Co-founder of Inworld AI. They delve into the groundbreaking work of Inworld AI, a platform that's transforming gaming and media by making virtual characters more lifelike and interactive. Kylan shares insights on the unique value proposition of Inworld, their innovative approach to AI in gaming, and what the future holds for the company. From the impact of interactive characters on storytelling to the social benefits of immersive AI, this conversation explores the cutting edge of technology and its potential to reshape our digital experiences.
The Roberts Innovation Fund was launched in 2022 to provide funding, mentoring, and strategic support for Yale faculty-led projects to assist in the commercialization of breakthrough inventions that solve real-world problems. New methods to purify our water, advance quantum computing, democratize artificial intelligence, and deliver life-saving drugs are just some of the projects funded by the 2024 Roberts Innovation Fund Awards, providing $1 million in accelerator funding to support 10 new inventions led by faculty from Yale’s School of Engineering & Applied Science. Director Claudia Reuter shares her insights on how to commercialize emerging technologies, how to innovation within a large organization.
Corporate Venture Capital to Corporate Venture Partnerships, we examine the evolving role of CVC, why it matters for startups and investors + trade secrets on sourcing and vetting the best startup investment opportunities. Featuring: Elias Chavarria of TDK Ventures, Min Park of J.P. Morgan Sustainable Growth Equity, and Joshua Di Frances of LG Electronics
Mike Jackson, Managing Partner of Earthshot Ventures. Earthshot Ventures invests in entrepreneurs making a dent in climate change. Collectively, their team has invested in 200+ startups over the last fourteen years and Mike’s investments have collectively raised over $1.1 billion in follow-on funding from Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, BlackRock, Microsoft, Google, Patagonia, and the like. We talk about the business models and playbooks that work, “what can go right” thinking, specific areas of climate tech that are most interesting, the future of sustainable entrepreneurship and the role of large corporations in the clean tech.
Ben Colman is the founder of Reality Defender, the leading deepfake detection platform helping enterprises flag fraudulent users and content. In this episode, join us as we dive deep into the world of AI, cybersecurity, and the innovative solutions being developed to protect our reality in an increasingly digital age.
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