What We’re Excited About at SXSW 2017

Under-represented founders, investing to save the world, and more

Village Capital is heading to SXSW this week to talk about our experience supporting entrepreneurs that are caught in blind spots, and discover founders who are innovating in sectors like fintech, education and more.

We’re particularly excited about finding exciting new investment opportunities for our upcoming education investment program (held in partnership with AT&T) and our fintech investment program (held in collaboration with PayPal) — if you know a founder we should meet while we’re in Austin, let us know. Ross, Hallie, Ebony, and Dustin on our team would love to hear from you.

Our team will be stopping by favorite Austin haunts like Pete’s Dueling Piano Bar, but we’ll also be participating in a series of events on inclusive entrepreneurship and investing. Here’s a short list of what our team will be hosting, and where we’ll be:

Village Capital hosting: Underrepresented (and Overachieving) Founders Meet Up, 2:00p-3:00p, JW Marriott Room 211–212

Village Capital CEO Ross Baird is co-hosting a meet-up for overachieving underrepresented founders and the investors who believe in them. This is an invitation for founders that aren’t normally highlighted in the press and on the portfolios of most VC firms. Maybe you didn’t go to Stanford (maybe you did!). Maybe you haven’t worked at Facebook. Maybe your startup isn’t in Silicon Valley. Maybe most VCs don’t understand the market you’re targeting because they’re not in it themselves. This event brings together founders that don’t fit the standard mold.

Changing the Face of Entrepreneurship, 11:00a-12:00p, Hilton Austin Downtown (500 E 4th St), Salon C

Talent is everywhere, opportunity is not. Tech pioneer and investor Jean Case explores the journey of fearless entrepreneurs who are changing the way business is done. Discover the wide range of dynamic pioneering founders who are closing the opportunity gap and scaling creative solutions to persistent global problems. Challenge the traditional notions that entrepreneurs are exclusively wealthy, Ivy League educated white men in this conversation on how a new breed of entrepreneurs from all walks of life are fueling economic growth and shattering the status quo.

Navigating a Rapidly Changing and Connected World, 9:30a-11:30a, Austin Convention Center, Ballroom EFG

Sensors that track a food’s temperature from source to store. Hospitals designed to avoid misdiagnosis. Traffic lights that actually respond to traffic. These are the changes we are likely to witness in the Third Wave: a period in which entrepreneurs will use technology to revolutionize major sectors — healthcare, manufacturing, education and food — and transform the way we live. Steve Case, co-founder of AOL and CEO of Revolution, and Beth Comstock, Vice Chairman at GE, discuss how to adapt to the changes coming our way.

CODE 2040 EIR Launch Party, 6:00p-9:00p, Capital Factory

Google for Entrepreneurs and Code2040 are running a happy hour, hosted by Capital Factory, to launch their 2017 Residency Program. Meet their newest class of entrepreneurs, who will be working with their local hubs to foster diversity in tech in 8 cities across the country. Hear from Code2040 CEO and Co-founder Laura Weidman-Powers on the growth of the Residency Program and connect with other like-minded professionals who support diversity and inclusion.

Humanitarian Design In Action 11:00am — 2:00pm, Hilton Salon D

In recent years, universities across the country have been increasingly engaging with the entrepreneurial ecosystem, developing programming internally to cultivate entrepreneurial activities and working to bring entrepreneurs into the university. Join MIT, Rice Univesity, StartX and the University of Chicago as they explore what bridges are currently being built to facilitate flows of information and people between universities and the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

How Tech Companies Can Give Back to Communities 12:30pm — 1:30pm, JW Marriot Salon D

Join Andrew Keen, Elaine Weidman-Grunewalk from Ericsson, Gary Shapiro of Consumer Technology Association and John Donovan from AT&T as they explore game-changing technologies and disruptive innovations and the sharing economy bring the power to improve our lives and what are the best practices that allow “Technology for Good” to authentically come into play with both the bottom line and corporate responsibility and community engagement.

Village Capital participating: Investing to Change the World, 9:30–10:30a, JW Marriott Room 201–202

Featuring Village Capital Co-Founder Victoria Fram, this panel will offer practical and powerful solutions for people who want to generate positive impact on society through their investments. Our panelists are at the forefront of impact investing and will explore opportunities that range from green bonds to public equities to private equity investments. You can generate profits AND progress by investing in companies with cutting-edge environmental strategies, in bonds that fund clean energy or support low-income communities, and in innovative private investments that seek to drive social change. It’s all just a matter of nailing down your personal aims and your financial goals, and aligning the two.

How to Fundraise without Silicon Valley, 12:30p-1:30p, Hilton Austin Downtown, Salon C

We’re witnessing a new wave of investment and entrepreneurship in the United States. How can we level the playing field for women-entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color to fund, grow and scale their thriving businesses? Learn both investor and entrepreneur perspectives on what it takes to build and back inspiring companies and bring the deal process to life for diverse founders.

Village Capital discovers, develops and invests in entrepreneurs solving real-world problems. Read more about what we’re learning here, or visit our website.