IU Ventures

Come "home" to Bloomington! Registration is now open for the 4th annual IU Founders and Funders Network Venture Summit! Indiana University-affiliated entrepreneurs, innovators and investors interested in starting, nurturing or growing venture-capital backed businesses will gather on the IU Bloomington campus this spring for an annual Venture Summit hosted by IU Ventures, the university’s early-stage venture and angel investment arm. ? The IU Founders & Funders Network Venture Summit will take place May 15-16 at Henke Hall @ Memorial Stadium and Alumni Hall @ Indiana Memorial Union. The Venture Summit provides members of IU’s startup ecosystem the chance to connect with industry leaders and potential partners, build relationships to support their endeavors, and learn about innovative startups and investment opportunities. Friday morning’s keynote session features IU alumnus Matt Hay. Hay is a best-selling author, TEDx speaker, congressional lobbyist, public health doctoral candidate and serves as the Director of Advocacy for a rare disease biopharma company. The phrase “never daunted” is memorialized in IU’s fight song. The perseverance and “never daunted” mind set found in Matt’s journey serves as inspiration for founders and funders alike. Later that morning, IU alumnus and the Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Gill Chair in Biomolecular Sciences at Indiana University, Richard DiMarchi. Dr. Richard DiMarchi, will take the stage during the “IU Icons Fireside Chat.” DiMarchi, a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, is a co-inventor of more than 100 U.S. patents, co-author of more than 250 scientific papers and co-founder of eight successful biotechnology start-up companies. The fireside chat will be moderated by David Johnson, the president of Regional Growth Strategies LLC, and former CEO of both the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and BioCrossroads.? ? Registration for the Summit, which is limited to 300 people, is now open on the IU Ventures website. Registration is $100 and includes all Summit programming including the always popular “Networking at Nick’s.” Register: https://lnkd.in/d9wePgMF Tara Aggarwal, Tony Armstrong, Ravi Bhatt, Ryan Dammeyer, Richard DiMarchi, Patricia Felts, Lisa Forbes, Matt Hay, Julie Heath, Daniel Herscovici, Scott Holloway, David Johnson, Julia Keene, Kenzie Weston Mucci, Michelle Rogoff, Rahul Shrivastav, Pete Wilkins, Ting Gootee, CFA, CAIA, Andrew Godfrey, ABV, Daniel Spungen, Claire Neuman, Christopher (Toph) Day, Audrey Wessel

Looking for a reason to come "home" to Bloomington? Attend the 4th annual IU Founders and Funders Network Venture Summit. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gGpznhF7

IU Ventures Summit Speaker Lisa Forbes Credits IU with Helping Her Develop as a Leader Forbes is currently General Counsel at Builders Vision, a team of investors and philanthropists committed to building a more resilient future. She joined in 2019 after spending most of her career in the finance industry. The company’s goal is to accelerate sustainable transitions in three key sectors of food and agriculture, energy, and oceans by deploying strategic capital to drive meaningful change and move markets forward. At this year’s IU Ventures Founders & Funders Network Venture Summit, Forbes will join Daniel Herscovici and Scott Holloway on a VC Perspective panel entitled “Economic Trends and Investment Themes for 2025 and Beyond,” which will take place on Friday, May 16th. Registration for the Summit is now open at iuventures.com.

Special thanks to Max Yoder for spending time with IU student entrepreneurs earlier this month. Max spoke about his journey co-founding Lessonly (now Seismic Learning) and some of the incredible insights found within his book "Do Better Work." One of our favorites? Ask clarifying questions: -I want to make sure I understand this well. May I ask a few questions? -What's our goal here? -Have we talked to anyone who has tried this before? -Can someone repeat back to me what they just heard me say? "Clarifying questions can be the difference between a hasty decision and a good call."

Last Call - Chicago area IU "founders and funders" stop by for networking and to connect with the IU Ventures team on March 27 form 6-8pm at mHUB. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gcD9YcfY Go Hoosiers!

Grab lunch and join Jon Barada and Drushya Musham for tomorrow's IU Founders and Funders Network Fireside Chat. Register: https://lnkd.in/gUb5NH7t The IU Founders and Funders Network Fireside Chat series is presented by Kelley Direct Online MBA. Get started at kelley.iu.edu.

Registration for the IU Founders and Funders Network Venture Summit is open. Get started at iuventures.com. Go Hoosiers!

Congratulations to Jason Wadler and the entire team at The Wisory on the recent investment from the IU Angel Network. The Wisory is an innovative membership-based platform that connects business executives with a network of highly experienced and accomplished advisors. Co-founded by Jason Wadler, an IU alumni with 30 years’ experience building brands and businesses, and his business partner Jerome Peraud, The Wisory launched on February 25, 2025. The Wisory connects middle market executives with Advisors composed of Fortune 1000 leaders and world class professors to expand their networks in order to get answers to pressing needs in an ever-changing marketplace. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gyNsEmFX

Calling all Chicago area IU "founders and funders!" Link up with the IU Ventures team and others in the Network on March 27 from 6-8pm at mHUB in Chicago. Drop us a line and let us know you are attending here: https://lnkd.in/gcD9YcfY

Join Jon Barada and IU student and Taptic CEO Drushya Musham for the next installment in the IU Founders and Funders Network Fireside Chat series. Register: https://lnkd.in/gUb5NH7t Drushya Musham is a senior at Indiana University, triple majoring in Management, Entrepreneurship, and International Business, and serves as a client manager for IU Innovates' SparkLabs program. She is the founder of Taptic, an app enhancing accessibility for Deaf individuals by transforming audio alerts into tactile and visual notifications, and NiCE: Name on Rice, a micro-art jewelry business specializing in personalized designs. Her work reflects a commitment to innovation, accessibility, and creative entrepreneurship. The IU Founders and Funders Network Fireside Chat series is presented by Kelley Direct Online MBA. Get started at kelley.iu.edu.