Brian Smiga

Last week, I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion on navigating FOAK in climate tech at the Greentown Labs Summit in Boston (which had >600 people!!). Here’s a quick rundown of what was shared by Katherine St. James of Spring Lane Capital, Paris Smalls, PhD of Eden GeoPower, and Hannah Friedman of Planeteer Capital: 🌱 What is the definition of FOAK? We discussed how the term can be controversial - it's almost too general because it doesn't identify what kind of "First" FOAK refers to - first team project? First geography? First of a technology in a sector? First time for the integration of a system? It's also too specific because it has the word "first" in it, which can be anathema to later stage / project finance investors. 💰 Partnerships for Funding FOAK Projects We discussed how important it is to build a blended capital stack & use off-balance sheet capital for a project so you're not using the most expensive equity dollars to fund an infrastructure project with low-ish IRR. We also talked through being creative about using corporate partners to provide in-kind services or ink some agreement (at least an LOI) to attract this funding. 🏛 Role of Government We talked about how government capital is seen by investors & how it can be catalytic for FOAK. Government capital can provide validation that a startup has passed a rigorous diligence process by a third party - and incentives like grants or credits can help improve returns for the first project- but it's important to be doing this in conjunction with getting customer validation and to be able to present line of sight to competitive economics without concessionary capital. 👥 Advice for FOAK startups The panelists offered some very specific pieces of advice for startups going through FOAK: how to get creative with things like revenue sharing agreements or convertible notes, getting smart with project development early on (like with DeveloperU), being careful about using FOAK too liberally with certain investor groups, getting the right commercialization / FOAK talent in and around you early Huge thanks to the panelists and the team at Greentown Labs (Jill Kirkpatrick, Julia Travaglini, Aisling Carlson, etc you rocked it!!) for hosting this discussion on bridging the FOAK gap. Also immensely enjoyed the rest of the agenda. Check out the full recap & videos here: https://lnkd.in/d9ApYe9Y #ClimateTech #FOAK #ClimateFinance #ProjectDevelopment #GreenTech #CleanEnergy

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Wonderful article about Emily Knight and the whole The Engine Accelerator team on the amazing work their doing changing the world with #ToughTech!

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Excited for DCVC portfolio co Alta Resource Technologies to emerge from stealth! The design space of biology is many orders of magnitude larger than inorganic chemistry, and Alta uses it to massively reduce the cost of extracting rare earth metals. https://lnkd.in/g_q5UwRF

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True partnerships are transformative catalysts for change. They transcend mere funding, embracing deep listening, dynamic collaboration, and vibrant community-building. Recent experiences at the MARGULF FOUNDATION Grantee Convening, Culture Shifting Summit, EdLoC, and Google Impact Summit have reignited my passion for reimagining how funders can evolve to genuinely empower social impact leaders. In my latest Camelback Ventures blog, I dive into the heart of this crucial conversation: ➡️ How can we build partnerships that fuel innovation? ➡️ What does holistic support for entrepreneurs of color and women really look like? ➡️ How might we create an ecosystem where visionary ideas thrive? Join me in exploring how we can reshape the landscape of social impact. Together, we can craft a future where diverse voices lead the charge in solving our most pressing challenges. Read the full article and let's continue this vital dialogue. How are you reimagining partnerships in your work? 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eW7UrGXu #SocialImpact #EquitablePartnerships #InnovationInFunding #DiversityInEntrepreneurship #SystemicChange

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I'm beyond excited to announce that Clifton Choiniere, Mark Zheng, Exa Nexus and I will be launching the world's first series of Agentic Human Accelerator / Hackathons. Visit: https://lnkd.in/eUitAA_W for more information Introducing LaunchAthons (Agentic Hackathons that Scale). The first LaunchAthon will take place in Cambridge at Microsoft. Next up is Providence, RI. Why LaunchAThons ? ​ The prize money is the least interesting part! But it rocks! ​ First Place Team: $3000 Second Place Team: $2000 Third Place Team: $1000 ​ LaunchAthons: Where techSTARtups are Born   LaunchAthons are like nebulas—the cosmic cradles where stars are born—because they serve as fertile environments where raw ideas come together, fueled by the power of AI, to form something entirely new and innovative.   Just as nebulas are chaotic yet full of potential, a LaunchAthon provides an intense, high-energy atmosphere where diverse minds and cutting-edge technologies collide, igniting the creation of new solutions and breakthroughs.   Agentic Human Hackathon + Accelerator   In the same way nebulas give rise to stars that light up the universe, LaunchAthons give rise to startups and products that can illuminate the future of technology and entrepreneurship. ​ Joining one of our AI-powered LaunchAthons gives you a front row participatory seat where you experience and develop future-forward innovation, the implementation of cutting-edge technology and critical mass-level creativity. At their core, LaunchAthons are designed to help    When you join a LaunchAthon, you and your team are required to use AI to code and build at least 60% of your project, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in rapid prototyping and development.   Build and Meet Your Agentic AI Twins ​ By integrating AI, you’ll supercharge your ability to innovate, drastically reduce development time, increase your output potential ten-fold and enhance your project’s potential. ​ In a LaunchAthon, participants are building their very own Agentic AI Twins—digital doppelgängers that serve as powerful extensions of their abilities. ​ By harnessing AI, they are not just coding faster but effectively creating intelligent counterparts that can automate tasks, optimize processes, and even generate innovative solutions independently. These AI-driven digital twins act as force multipliers, allowing participants to 10x their productivity, creativity, and problem-solving capabilities.   With your Agentic AI Twins by your side, you can explore complex challenges, scale your projects quickly, and unlock new levels of potential that would be impossible through individual human effort alone.   The result? A transformative leap in both speed and capability, pushing the boundaries of what they can achieve.

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Culture is code. What does it mean to you? Comment below! In my latest #podcast episode with Brian R. Yurachek, CEO of New York Culture Club™ and new addition to the Beyond Form portfolio, we discuss the how fashion IoT and the experiences wrapped around the tech can create a new way of connecting between consumers and brands: 1️⃣ The Power of Authentic Self-Expression: success is rooted in the ability to authentically express passions and ideas, even when facing challenges. By being genuine, Brian has been able to connect with people and build strong relationships within the #fashion industry. Not an easy task as Brian tell us how he left his job in banking on Wall Street to enter this very opaque industry. 2️⃣ The Value of Continuous Learning: Brian emphasises the importance of ongoing learning and research. He actively seeks out new information and trends, which has allowed him to stay ahead of the curve and develop innovative solutions to foster human connection. 3️⃣ The Potential of Technology to Enhance Experiences: NYCC's IoT and #blockchain #technology, can be used to enhance consumer experiences and create new value propositions. This means improving product authentication, storytelling, and customer engagement. 🎧 Listen here https://lnkd.in/eayMQ4V9 or on your fave podcast platform. #FashionTech

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This week on Future Back Drinking, host Dr. Athina Kanioura dives into what human-centered AI looks like in action! She’s joined by Panos Madamopoulos-Moraris, the first Managing Director for Industry Programs and Partnerships at the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI) for a fascinating conversation about the future of AI. Together, they explore how strategic collaborations are fueling innovation and how AI can amplify human ingenuity to benefit us all. It’s an inspiring episode that showcases the importance of keeping people at the heart of tech innovation. Brought to you by PepsiCo and TIME, tune in on your favorite platform below! #FutureBackDrinking Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eXe-Uvgz Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/eHdaN87Q

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Incredible and incredibly helpful corpus of board diversity research from Invest Ahead (formerly Thirty Percent Coalition): https://lnkd.in/gNYPbzZs, the majority of which are academic and show positive outcomes. I appreciate the collection includes the range of outcomes and types of research however. It's so important to be precise and thoughtful. Mostly, we all know you cannot change what you do not measure.

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Although female founders are typically in the minority compared to male founders, we do our best to include them for MELT in NY! Allow me to introduce some remarkable and innovative female founders 🙋‍♀️ ☞ Co-Founder & CEO @ Blanka Stage: Seed Blanka is a platform that automates the process of launching a branded beauty line. With high-quality products manufactured in North America and with no minimums or upfront costs, our technology unifies the process of launching a brand - from product selection through order fulfillment. ☞ Founder & CEO @ FemiSpace Co. Stage: Pre-seed AI doctors for women’s health. ☞ CEO / Founder @ Parrot Finance Stage: Seed Copy trading platform. ☞ Founder and CEO @ InstantReplay Stage: Pre-seed The in-store “cookies” for retail. ☞ Founding Product Manager @ Stealth Stage: Seed Payment management with AI. ☞ Founder @ Copy trading consumer investing platform Stage: Seed Copy trading consumer investing platform. ☞ CEO/Founder @ Bonde Stage: Seed Member-only platform to support the advancement of professional women. ☞ Co-founder @ usebeams com Stage: Seed The next-gen productivity and automation platform for meaningful insights and seamless workflows. ☞ CEO/Founder @ LinSha Techworks Stage: Pre-seed We are improving the speed and safety of flanged pipeline maintenance by bolting/unbolting flanges autonomously. ☞ Co-founder @ Poldit Stage: Pre-seed Poldit is a community for sharing knowledge through interactive livestreams and Q&A, aimed at fostering human connections and reducing misinformation. ☞ CEO @ NaviGuide Stage: Pre-seed Equitable AI guidance counselor. ☞ CEO & Founder @ Transformers Academy Stage: Pre-seed AI-Driven LMS that transforms BORING manuals into ready-to-study employee or client courses in minutes. ☞ Co-founder @ Index Network Stage: Pre-seed Index allows you to create truly personalized and autonomous discovery experiences across the web. ☞ Founder and CEO @ TAMMIRA, INC. Stage: Pre-seed An evidence-based livestreamed health, wellness & beauty programming for kids & young women. ☞ Founder and CEO @ Bridgit Health Stage: Pre-seed Centralized AI-enabled social worker platform for hospitals to reduce delay of discharge. ☞ Chief of Staff (Founding Team) @ Mattermore Stage: Pre-seed Mattermore empowers managers with AI, automating 1:1 call data to boost performance, save time, and reduce stress, productivity loss, and turnover. 【💎 VIP Sponsored by】 ​Bradley Kam ​・Founded 2 companies Unstoppable Domains & Talkable ・Raised over $70M ・Unstoppable Domains recently raised $65M in a Series A round led by Pantera Capital, reaching a $1B valuation. Aquibur Rahman ​Founder of Mailmodo, has received funding from Sequoia and is an alum of Y Combinator S21 ​Nathan Stevenson ​CEO and Founder of ForwardLane Inc. has been featured by Forbes, the World Economic Forum, and American Banker Event link 👉 https://lu.ma/ldbfgkez

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How does an institutional LP decide which GPs to back? UTIMCO alum (and now partner at Foundry) Lindel Eakman opened up about how he picks on Samir Kaji's Venture Unlocked podcast 👇 (episode linked in comments) 🎣 "Would you trust them with your children?" Questions like this one tend to elicit genuine reactions and a real sense of a GP’s character and capabilities. Non-answers or silence in response to a pointed question like this one can be telling. 🤨 "Who fires who?" Questions like this help him evaluate governance and conflict resolution dynamics and the overall stability of the partnership. 1️⃣ Unlike some LPs, Lindel is very open to backing solo GPs. One of the reasons being that partnership risk -- which is one of the biggest when investing in VC funds -- is by definition, eliminated. 👍🏻 Lindel shies away from backing investors who may have potential to be top performers but are divisive or unpleasant to work with. Life is too short! Follow me - John Gannon - to learn more about the ins and outs of the VC market from all 3 sides of the table.

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🚀 Calling All Founders! I’m thrilled to host a series of free, intimate networking events for founders—hosted in NYC. These gatherings are designed to foster an environment where we can connect, learn from each other, grow together, and build meaningful, lucrative partnerships through collaboration. Whether you're based in NYC or beyond, if you’re looking for an opportunity to exchange ideas, share insights, and spark new business opportunities, these events are for you. Interested? Or know someone who might be? Drop a comment below, and I’ll share the details. Let’s grow together! 🌟 #Networking #Founders #BusinessGrowth 

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If you’re a wealth manager, has a client ever asked you “what happens when I’m not here?”? This seemingly simple question is often one of the most elusive to answer. Even with relatively simple estate plans, understanding beneficiary access and distributions can be a tangled web of documents and legal jargon, leaving clients and family members with uncertainty and stress. With Luminary’s recent launches of automated beneficiary data extraction and beneficiary reporting, advisors can now answer this critical question with ease, precision and confidence. 

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Digital assets are meant to be used. Not hoarded. Not endlessly flipped in pursuit of speculative riches. They’re to be used—for the unique purposes for which they were designed. That’s why Ayre Group is the world’s largest venture capital investor in Metanet apps. What is Metanet? Metanet represents the vision of a better, more inclusive and dynamic internet, an economically integrated online system that enables cost-effective, instant micropayments. Metanet will restore the original promise of a peer-to-peer internet model. Silicon Valley giants hijacked the original internet model by forcing all traffic through their centralized (and proprietary) hubs. Metanet will undo this sabotage. Metanet will bring a global democratization of access to data and services. Creators will be able to engage in an economically feasible direct-to-consumer model—no middlemen—allowing them to succeed on their merits, unconstrained by bureaucracy. Metanet will upend cross-border transactions by eliminating intermediaries. Remittances will be cheaper and more secure, as Metanet’s decentralized nature will enhance trust in digital transactions and offer greater control over personal data. Metanet is the marriage of IPv6, AI and the BSV Blockchain. IPv6 is bringing an exponential rise in the number of IP addresses, with a similar rise in the number of unique devices connected to the internet, including an army of Internet of Things (IoT) devices. All of these devices are talking to each other, many of them autonomously. AI’s assistance will be required as a traffic cop, helping to ensure that all these digital messages arrive where and when they should. The final piece of Metanet’s puzzle is BSV. BSV can process a huge volume of transactions swiftly and securely, at a cost measured in fractions of a cent, allowing the monetization of every piece of online data. BSV is the base value transfer token of the future internet. Developers can build with confidence on BSV. BSV is legally-and regulatory-compliant, with a locked protocol that traces its unbroken lineage to Bitcoin’s Genesis block, so what’s built today won’t be undone by unnecessary protocol tinkering. Metanet’s potential is too great to ignore. Learn more about how AI, IPv6 and BSV—the only public proof-of-work enterprise blockchain that can scale to make Metanet a reality—are building the internet of the future. https://lnkd.in/gxFM_jrW

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Massachusetts has firmly established itself as a leader in innovation, with three standout sectors fueling its tech-driven economy: biotech, robotics, and cybersecurity. Here’s a look at why the state excels in these fields: 🔬 Biotech: Massachusetts is at the forefront of biotech, thanks to world-class research institutions and a thriving startup ecosystem. With companies like Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc.—Massachusetts continues to shape the future of healthcare, from groundbreaking vaccines to genetic therapies. Robotics: Home to pioneers like Boston Dynamics, Massachusetts has become a hub for robotics innovation. From autonomous robots to robotic prosthetics, the state’s ecosystem supports advancements that push the boundaries of human-machine interaction, transforming sectors from healthcare to logistics. Cybersecurity: Massachusetts is also a leader in cybersecurity, providing critical solutions to protect data and infrastructure in an increasingly digital world. With companies like Rapid7 driving research and product development, Massachusetts is at the heart of cutting-edge cybersecurity innovation. Together, these sectors position Massachusetts as a global tech powerhouse. #MassachusettsInnovation #Biotech #Robotics #Cybersecurity #TechEconomy #InnovationEcosystem #FutureTech #BostonTech

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3D printing is having a breakout moment, turning its long held promise into a reality that is arriving at pace and at scale. Over the next 5 years: - Consumers will expect customized products at scale - Computers will surpass human creativity and skill in product design - New infrastructure is needed to protect IP if anything can be printed anywhere  - Global supply chains will be meaningfully dismantled as products get printed at their point of sale I sat down with Philip DeSimone, Co-founder of Carbon, the most advanced 3D printing company already operating at scale serving customers in 17 countries ranging from Adidas to Ford. With over 300 patents filed, Carbon has raised $680M from the likes of Sequoia, Temasek, and Google. Check out 5YF Episode #14: 3D printing breakthroughs, AI designed products, mass customization, spare body parts, dismantling global trade, IP piracy, and the future of production w/ Carbon Co-founder Philip DeSimone https://pod.fo/e/234185 #3Dprinting

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What an amazing discussion! From regulations and implementation to finding news ways to utilize AI to save money, hyper scale your business and dominate your market, AI has tremendous potential if used judiciously. Gentreo @Alineaventures AuditMate

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Cambridge Future Tech builds DeepTech ventures and last week we hit another milestone; we're co-founding our 15th venture 🤘 It's awesome building new ventures from the ground up. It's why we started CFT in the first place. It always feels great to be at the start of the build phase, helping founders articulate a new venture’s tech and potential, building a strong narrative. We’re collaborating closely with founders to transform groundbreaking ideas into companies. 🚀🚀🚀 More to come on this. I'm hyped to share what we're building 🤘 #venturebuilder #deeptech #startups #cambridge

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Check out my recent post on why President Trump is the forcing function for us to solve the “Missing Middle” and catch the industrial Tsunami of onshoring coming to the US!

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