Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
Founder-led Sales: From Customer Discovery to Your First Paying Customers
Most early-stage founders are still their company's best salesperson, but few have a process they can repeat.
Sessions · Archive
Past session archive.
Explore the topics, speakers and public descriptions from past VEN and FounderNexus sessions.
104 past sessions.
Past session · 2–3 PM PDT
Pitch Deck Review with Martin Tobias
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned pre-seed VC open up real founders' actual pitch decks, slide by slide, and react the way he would when deciding…
Past session · 4–5 PM PDT
Turning Conferences into Customers: Founder-Led Selling Before, During and After the Show.
A trade show can eat a big share of an early-stage budget and a full week of a founder's time, and too often it ends with badge scans instead of pipeline.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Sell, Merge or Partner? Weighing Your Deal Options with an M&A Attorney
An acquirer reaches out, or a larger partner proposes a joint venture. Most founders face that conversation once, with no playbook and a lot riding on the first few decisions.
Past session · 10:30–11:30 AM PDT
Peer Roundtable: Customer Acquisition Today
A small peer roundtable for founders who recently raised: an open, moderated conversation on what is working (and what isn't) in customer acquisition right now.
Past session · 3–4 PM PDT
Pitch deck review with Isaac Kato
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned VC open up a real founder's actual pitch deck - slide by slide - and react the way he would in a real partner…
Past session · 2–3 PM PDT
How to Time and Structure a Seed Raise That Closes
Most founders start raising before their story and metrics can carry the round, then burn months learning the investor bar the hard way.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Building Your AI for GTM: From Experiments to Workflows That Actually Run
Most go-to-market teams have tried AI tools. Far fewer have AI woven into how they actually prospect, research accounts, follow up, and keep the CRM clean. This session is about closing that gap.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
Pitch deck review with a Bay Area VC
Most founders never find out why a VC passed. In this session, two founders pitch to Bill Bryant, who spent 17 years as a partner at Threshold Ventures, the Palo Alto firm formerly known as DFJ.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Why Isn’t AI Making Your Engineering Process 10x Faster?
Most engineering teams are already using AI tools like Claude, Cursor, and CodeRabbit. They make coding 10x faster - but the overall process of turning an idea into reliable production software often…
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How to Build an AI-Powered Go-to-Market Motion That Repeats
Most early GTM works once and then stalls, because the pipeline lives in the founder's head instead of in a system.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How to Sell Your Startup - Even When It's Small
Not every company gets a banker and a process. Sometimes growth stalls, the next raise stops making sense, and the question becomes what happens now.
Past session · 2–3 PM PDT
How to Run a Startup Pilot That Converts
Getting a company to agree to a pilot is only the beginning. The hard part is running it in a way that creates a clear path to a real customer relationship.
Past session · 10–11 AM PDT
Should You Exit - And When?
Most exit conversations happen too late — once a banker is hired and the process is moving. The harder questions come earlier, and founders rarely have anyone to ask.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
Before You Build It: Testing an Idea Before You Bet a Year on It
Every founder hits a point where the path forward isn't obvious. Maybe the product works but the market doesn't. Maybe there are two directions and no clear reason to pick one.
Past session · 2–3 PM PDT
What Should I Charge? Pricing Your First Customers Without Getting Trapped
Every founder sets their first price by gut feel — and it's one of the highest-leverage decisions you'll make. Price too low and the deal you were trying to win becomes the ceiling you can't escape.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Pitch Deck Teardown LIVE: A Real VC Reviews a Real Founder's Deck
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned VC open up a real founder's actual pitch deck - slide by slide - and react the way she would in a real partner…
Past session · 2:30–3:30 PM PDT
One Vertical or Many? FounderNexus Roundtable
When is the right time to enter a new vertical, and does pursuing several at once ever make sense?
Past session · 3–4 PM PDT
The Inner Game of Founding: pressure, risk and performing when the work doesn't stop
The Inner Game of Founding: pressure, risk and performing when the work doesn't stop
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Turning early traction into a repeatable sales motion
You closed your first customers on hustle alone, but you're still the entire sales team. Join FounderNexus and Mike Pinkel of the P.S.I.
Past session · 1–2 PM PDT
Finding Your First Check: Angel & Pre-Seed Capital
This is a working session on early-stage capital strategy, led by Jonathan Azoff, Co-founder & General Partner at Snocap VC, whose focus areas include Venture Capital and Deeptech & Climate.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Funding without the VC train: SAFEs, angels & syndicates, venture debt, grants, mission-aligned capital
Funding without the VC train: SAFEs, angels, venture debt and non-dilutive capital
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Pitch Deck Teardown LIVE: A Real VC Reviews a Real Founder's Deck
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned VC open up a real founder's actual pitch deck - slide by slide - and react the way she would in a real partner…
Past session · 2–3:30 PM PDT
FounderNexus Roundtable: Scaling from 10M to 100M ARR
You've built before. You know the playbook. And you also know the uncomfortable truth: most of it expired.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How to hire and build the right sales team
Hiring your first salespeople is one of the hardest, and highest-stakes, moves a founder makes. Bring the wrong person on too early and it costs you months; bring the right one on and it changes your…
Past session · 3–4 PM PDT
GTM for Technical Products in Non-Tech Verticals
You built a technical product, but your buyers aren't tech people. They're operators, engineers, and industry veterans in traditional sectors. And the standard SaaS playbook? It doesn't transfer.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
B Corp certification and choosing the right structure for a mission-driven company
Mission Meets Structure: B Corp Certification and Building a Company That Stands for Something
Past session · 1–2 PM PDT
Pitch Deck Teardown LIVE: A Real VC Reviews a Real Founder's Deck
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned VC open up a real founder's actual pitch deck - slide by slide - and react the way he would in a real partner…
Past session · 1–2 PM PDT
Pitch Deck Teardown LIVE: A Real VC Reviews a Real Founder's Deck
Most pitch deck advice is generic. This isn't. For one hour, you'll watch a seasoned VC open up a real founder's actual pitch deck - slide by slide - and react the way he would in a real partner…
Past session · 4–6 PM PDT
The Right Story for the Right Sale: A founder's guide to win customers, investors, and talent
Selling your vision and product to potential investors, customers, and talent is mission-critical to your company's survival.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Debt 101: How Debt Can Fund Your Business and Preserve Your Ownership
Equity is expensive. Every dollar raised dilutes the founders, employees, and existing investors who built the company.
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner with Tony Huang
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
Fireside Chat with Tony Huang
What does it really take to build a company that lasts? In this intimate fireside chat, Court Lorenzini sits down with Tony Huang - Co-Founder & CEO of Possible Finance - to go beyond the highlight…
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner with Ramez Naam
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
A Contrarian but Optimistic Take on AI
The AI debate is broken. On one side, utopians promise a world of infinite abundance. On the other, doomsayers warn of existential catastrophe. Both are wrong.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
83(b) elections, founder vesting, and option pools
The decisions you make around equity in the first year of your company can have six-figure tax consequences — and most founders don't realize it until it's too late.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How to sell to the CIO
Selling to a CIO is one of the hardest things a founder can do. They're balancing legacy systems, security mandates, internal politics, and a hundred competing priorities — and they've seen every…
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How Startups and Founders Can Navigate Today’s Immigration Shifts
This talk empowers founders with the latest insights, alternative pathways, and strategic frameworks to navigate today’s complex environment.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 9–10 AM PDT
Venture Insights with Two Ravens (Members only)
This is your chance to sit down with a founder-turned-VC who's built, scaled, and exited - multiple times.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Artificial Intelligence and Diagnostic Inventions: Significant shifts in the Examination of Patent-Eligible Subject Matter
The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) systems offers paradigm-shifting advances in many areas of human endeavor, including healthcare.
Past session · 7:20–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner with Laura Malcolm
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
Story as Strategy: How Founders Win Hearts, Funding, and Exits
As a first-time female founder in a B2C impact marketplace, the odds weren't exactly stacked in Laura's favor.
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM PDT
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Term sheet red flags in preferred financings
Not every term sheet is founder-friendly — even when it looks like one. Preferred financings come with layers of terms that can quietly shift the balance of power if you don't know what to look for.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Why Your Funnel Is Leaking
Every seed-stage business that's getting traffic is losing out on valuable customers due to a few key errors. When you're wearing seventeen hats, those leaks are easy to miss.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Insights with Elevate Capital
This is your chance to sit down with an investor who brings a scientist's precision and a builder's empathy to every deal he evaluates.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Insights with Foothill Ventures
This is your chance to sit down with a deep-tech investor who's been on both sides of the table — as a builder and as a backer.
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
Fit before you Commit-Founder's guide to PMF diligence before the first yes
You landed the client. You started building. You said yes to every ask. Then they walked.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
How to Sell When You're Not a Salesperson: GTM for Early Stage Founders
You built the product. Now you have to sell it. But nobody taught you how. How do you find leads? What do you say in cold outreach? When do you show a demo, and how do you actually close?
Past session · 12–3 PM PDT
AI for Founders & CEOs: The Five Levels of Thought Partnership (Remote only)
"Incredible event that taught me a LOT about how to use AI to help me be a better leader."
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner with Gururaj Pandurangi
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
Navigating the SaaSapocalypse: AI, GTM and Pricing
As AI agents replace human seats, the $1T "SaaSpocalypse" of February 2026 demands a total pivot - from selling software licenses to monetizing autonomous outcomes.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Insights with OneSixOne Ventures, Pablo Casilimas (Members-only)
This is your chance to sit down with a VC who's been in your shoes. Pablo Casilimas is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at OneSixOne Ventures, one of the most active pre-seed firms in the country with…
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Insights with Snocap Ventures (Members only)
Building a deeptech company? This is your chance to sit down with a VC who gets it.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Venture Insights with Alumni Ventures (Members only)
Building with AI, media, or decentralized tech? This is your chance to sit down with a VC who's betting big on the next wave.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
AI-Powered Marketing for Lean Teams: Practical applications of AI tools to punch above your headcount
In this AMA, we’ll go behind the scenes of how high-performing marketing teams are actually using AI to drive real growth.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
SAFEs vs. Priced Rounds: What Every Founder Needs to Know Before Their Series A
You raised on a SAFE. It felt fast, simple, and founder-friendly. But what happens when the Series A term sheet lands and the math doesn't look the way you expected?
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PDT
Founder's Dinner
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 3:30–7 PM PDT
AI for Founders & CEOs: The Five Levels of Thought Partnership (In-Person only)
300+ Founders & CEOs have taken this workshop. Their verdict: 'Best one this year by far.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Tax Strategies for Founders and Founding employees
Most startup founders and early employees leave significant money on the table. Not because they earn too little, but because they don't plan around equity.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Tax Strategies for Founders
Most startup founders and early employees leave significant money on the table. Not because they earn too little, but because they don't plan around equity.
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PST
Founder's Dinner with Seth Taylor
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
How to go From Venture-Backed Founder to World-Class Exec in the Age of AI
You've raised the money. You've built the team. You've survived the chaos that kills most startups. But here's the question no one in your cap table is asking you: Are you actually becoming the…
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
How to Sell When You're Not a Salesperson: GTM for Early Stage Founders with Collin Stewart
You built the product. Now you have to sell it. But nobody taught you how. How do you find leads? What do you say in cold outreach? When do you show a demo, and how do you actually close?
Past session · 5–6 PM PST
Artificial Intelligence and Diagnostic Inventions: Significant shifts in the Examination of Patent-Eligible Subject Matter
The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) systems offers paradigm-shifting advances in many areas of human endeavor, including healthcare.
Past session · 7:15–9 PM PST
Founder's Dinner with Dave Hersh
If you want to continue the conversation over dinner, we're gathering informally at a restaurant nearby, afterward.
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
Founder Blind Spots: The Psychology of Outliers
You've built something remarkable. You've scaled revenue, hired great teams, and you're approaching or thinking about an exit.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
From SAFEs to Preferred Stock: A Founder's Guide to Fundraising Instruments with Becki Degraw, Wilson Sonsini
Raising capital? Let's talk about what you're actually signing. When you're fundraising, the documents matter—and not just the valuation.
Past session · 7:30–9 PM PST
Dinner and Hang
Enjoy a relaxed dinner with our featured speaker and members of the FounderNexus Community.
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
Building Your Exec Team: The Decisions That Determine Your Company's Ceiling
You're drowning in growth. Every decision lands on your desk. You know you need help, but the thought of handing off terrifies you.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
How to properly structure Equity Compensation for Early Stage Founders ($0-$2M ARR)
Join us for an exclusive, intimate discussion on equity compensation, the critical decisions that shape your startup's culture, cap table, and long-term success.
Past session · 3–4 PM PST
AMA: FounderNexus Tiered Membership Model
Court will answer any questions you might have about the FounderNexus tiered membership model. We want everyone to have a clear understanding of the current structure and feel confident in the best…
Past session · 7:15–10 PM PST
FounderNexus Dinner Social
Join an intimate gathering of exceptional founders for an evening of unfiltered conversation, hard-won insights, and the kind of connections that only happen when the right people are in the room.
Past session · 4–6:30 PM PST
Making the Most of Limited Resources
Every startup faces the problem of limited resources (time, people, and money). Come learn a simple model for how to make your resources go farther, and also how this approach can help you with…
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
How to properly structure Equity Compensation for Early Stage Founders ($0-$2M ARR)
Join us for an exclusive, intimate discussion on equity compensation, the critical decisions that shape your startup's culture, cap table, and long-term success.
Past session · 7:15–9:30 PM PST
Founders Dinner & Hang
Gathering of founders in an informational way for casual drinks and food at Marin (No host). This is a great way to get to know other members of the FounderNexus community and have a great time…
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
How to Responsibly Build our AI Future
This presentation will discuss some the challenges that the AI boom is facing as demand is outstripping Power and straining the supply chain.
Past session · 4–5 PM GMT
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic) - London
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 9–10 AM GMT
Fundraising: Setting up A Successful Raise (All funding levels-London)
Court will review his 'best practice' guidance for setting up a successful fundraising campaign. This includes a recommended pitch deck format, how to determine the amount to raise, how to set proper…
Past session · 4–7 PM GMT
Triple Your Odds of Venture Success (London)
Court Lorenzini is a world-renowned founder, investor and philanthropist. He was the founding CEO of DocuSign, along with several other venture-backed companies.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
Intellectual Property Licensing Agreements and Potential Pitfalls
This session will cover potential pitfalls related to IP licensing agreements, including both in-bound and out-bound licenses.
Past session · 12:30–1:30 PM PST
AI Governance in Practice: Mapping, Measuring and Monitoring with Fenwick
In this session, we’ll engage in a focused discussion on the practical realities of AI governance, centering on how organizations can identify, measure, and monitor risks inherent to advanced AI…
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 6:30–10 PM PST
Aces & Elegance: FounderNexus Casino Royale
Trade your hoodie for a bow tie (just for one night, we promise) and join fellow FounderNexus founders for an unforgettable evening of calculated risks and refined revelry in Woodinville wine…
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
How Startups and Founders Can Navigate Today’s Immigration Shifts
This talk empowers founders with the latest insights, alternative pathways, and strategic frameworks to navigate today’s complex environment.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
Data Rooms and Financial Controls for Due Diligence
This session covers building an investor-ready data room that builds trust and speeds up your fundraising process.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
From Stealth to Spotlight: Securing Press Coverage for Your Pre-Seed & Seed Raise
In this session, we'll explore how early-stage founders can build authentic brands that resonate with press, investors, and their communities—before they have a massive revenue number to rely on.
Past session · 1–2 PM PST
Building AI Agents from Prototype to Production with Google
Join Google AI experts for a small-group exploration of AI agents and generative media—limited to just 6 participants for deep, personalized discussion.
Past session · 11:30 AM–12:30 PM PST
Fundraising: Setting up A Successful Raise
Court will review his 'best practice' guidance for setting up a successful fundraising campaign. This includes a recommended pitch deck format, how to determine the amount to raise, how to set proper…
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
Grand Opening: FounderNexus--San Francisco
A community dedicated to raising the odds of success for venture-scale founders. This is NOT an incubator or accelerator. There are no cohorts or task assignments.
Past session · 4–5 PM PST
Fundraising: Setting up A Successful Raise
Court will review his 'best practice' guidance for setting up a successful fundraising campaign. This includes a recommended pitch deck format, how to determine the amount to raise, how to set proper…
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
BYOT (Bring Your Own Topic)
B.Y.O.T. - Bring Your Own Topic: This event will be online only, and allow members and prospects to raise timely issues you're facing and get input from the other founders present.
Past session · 12–1 PM PST
Effective use of AI in Sales and Marketing
Dave Jones, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Altus Alliance, a leading Revenue Growth Services Firm, will lead a timely discussion around the use of AI in Sales and Marketing.
Past session · 4–7 PM PST
Founder’s Mentality: The Scalable Alternative to Heroics
Much has been written recently about the trade-offs between running a startup in “Founder Mode” an intense, hands-on operating style, compared to shifting into “Manager Mode” to enable rapid scale.
Past session · 11:30 AM–12:30 PM PST
How to Properly Structure Equity Compensation for the $0-2M ARR with Daniel Newman, Carney Law
Join us for an intimate fireside chat with Daniel Newman from Carney Law, designed exclusively for early-stage founders.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Fundraising: Setting up A Successful Raise
Court will review his 'best practice' guidance for setting up a successful fundraising campaign. This includes a recommended pitch deck format, how to determine the amount to raise, how to set proper…
Past session · 12:30–1:30 PM PDT
IP Basics for Startup Founders with Zack Ruby, Scale LLP
Demystify intellectual property for your startup. This practical session breaks down the fundamentals: what patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets actually protect, which parts of your…
Past session · 11 AM–12 PM EDT
Stock Structure & Term Sheets for Early Stage Startups (>$2M ARR)
Once your startup reaches $2M+ in annual recurring revenue, you're entering serious fundraising territory where sophisticated investors expect professional deal structures.
Past session · 12–1 PM PDT
Early Stage Tax Issues ($0-2M ARR)
As your startup grows from idea to $2M ARR, the tax decisions you make early can save—or cost—you hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Past session · 4–7 PM PDT
Security That Scales: Building Trust and Compliance into Your Startup DNA
Cybersecurity for founders who want to build something that lasts, not just something that works.
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For companies that have raised at least $1M from venture firms.