DealMakers: Entrepreneur | Startups | Venture Capital

Michael Bronfein got his start as a butcher in a family supermarket. Since then he has built a billion dollar business, run a multibillion dollar private equity fund, and is now operating a growing wellness company with an emerging portfolio of cannabis based products. The venture, Curio Wellness, will invest in over 50 startups backed by women, minorities and disabled veteran entrepreneurs.

Mikhail Kokorich has created some incredible companies, against great odds. From retail to space, to hydrogen fueled transportation, he has been breaking ground all over the earth, and beyond. His startup, Destinus, has raised funding from top-tier investors like Liquid 2 Ventures, Cornelius Boersch, Quiet Capital, and Cathexis Ventures.

Rajiv Khemani has now raised over $500M for his string of successful startups. Including building more than one billion dollar company, and achieving multiple exits. His latest venture, Auradine, has attracted funding from top-tier investors.

Trevor Best ditched the oil fields to take up his role in the fight for climate change. His startup has now raised over $100M on their journey, as they set a fast pace for fueling the transition to greener sources of energy. The venture, Syzygy Plasmonics, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, Equinor Ventures, Goose Capital, and The Engine.

Srikanth Velamakanni has raised over $685M for his AI startup. A company that has now been working in this space for over 20 years, and raised funding from top-tier investors like TPG Capital Asia, Khazanah Nasional, Apax Partners, and TA Associates.

Sundie Seefried saw the opportunity to step up and help the underserved cannabis industry with the financial solutions they needed. That has since turned into a public company operating in 40 plus states. The venture, Safe Harbor Financial, has attracted funding from top-tier investors and has recently acquired Abaca.

Nick Boyle has created one of the biggest renewable energy companies in the world. Helping us make the shift from old sources of energy to more sustainable ones. His startup, Lightsource BP, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Entergy Arkansas Llc and NatWest Group.

After successfully launching and exiting his own startup, Cem Sertoglu has gone on to manage a 200M Euro fund. From which he is looking to write other entrepreneurs their first $5M to $10M checks. The venture, Earlybird Venture Capital, has invested in startups such as TastyUrban, Nosh, and Ariceum Therapeutics.

Amit Haller has had startups acquired, taken them public, and is now onto his biggest venture so far. His new startup, Veev, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Khosla Ventures, Western Technology Investment, Bond Capital, and Eclipse.

Jamieson Christmas has been inspired to make holographic displays a reality since his youth. After starting out bootstrapping his first company, he has since raised over $100M to put his augmented reality technology into the next generation of vehicles. His venture, Envisics, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Arcadia Investment, Hyundai Mobis, GM Ventures, and Stellantis Ventures.

James Tan has gone from startup founder to operating an $80M venture capital fund to fuel the growth of other early-stage ventures today. Now on his third fund, he’s already helped create four unicorn companies. His investment company, Quest Ventures, has funded ION Mobility, Carousell, Carro, and Hepmil.

Muddu Sudhakar has already enjoyed several of his companies being acquired for hundreds of millions of dollars in value. His latest startup, Aisera, has already raised well over $100M and is on its way to disrupting yet another industry. Which may also be one of the few companies out there that are currently hiring, and in every department. The venture has attracted funding from top-tier investors...

Rob Biederman has gone from founding his own startup to leading a $100M plus venture capital firm that is eager to fund great entrepreneurs, even at the pre-seed stage. The firm, Catalant, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like General Catalyst, Morningside Venture Investments, 40 North Ventures, and Highland Capital.

Jacob Krogsgaard continues to lead the way in renewable energy through hydrogen. A journey that has seen him start companies, fund and scale them, and take them public. His latest startup, Everfuel, raised funding from top-tier investors like European Commission, Swedish Energy Agency, Force Technology, and Danish Energy.

With a presence on every continent, Jussi Salovaara’s firm already has $700M in assets under management, across 15 early-stage startup funds. His funding platform has attracted investors like Eduardo Saverin, Canica, Credit Saison, and Christen Sveaas.

Daniel Yu has been championing a huge problem in what may be one of the biggest markets in the world. His startup, Wasoko, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Avenir Growth Capital, Binny Bansal, Catalyst Fund, and Growth/Expansion.

David Waxman sold his first company to Microsoft, took his second public for $1B in just 12 months, and then launched an $18M fund to support other investors to capitalize on their startups. His venture capital firm, TenOneTen Ventures, has several co-investors like Act One Ventures, Amplify Private Equity, Correlation Ventures, and Greycroft.

Before others saw the need or believed it was possible, Ajay Kochhar was working on how to recycle EV batteries. He’s now turned that into a billion-dollar, global, and public company. The venture, Li-Cycle, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like US Department of Energy, Koch Strategic Platforms (“KSP”), and Glencore.

Ben Lamm has already started a handful of companies, with just as many exits. He is now onto his biggest adventure year. An effort to rewild the planet, which has already attracted $225M in capital and 50 advisors. The startup, Colossal Biosciences, acquired funding from top-tier investors like Thomas Tull, Breyer Capital, Draper Associates, and At One Ventures.

Gautam Gupta has gone from VC investor to startup founder and is now back to investing in other entrepreneurs. His $460M fund is open for business and may be one of the few actively looking to fund good startups right now. The fund, TCV, has invested in companies like ByteDance, Cognite, Celonis, and Klarna.

Don Muir made the leap from traditional investment banking and private equity, to disrupting the traditional financial services space for the tech ecosystem. His startup, Arc Technologies, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Bain Capital Ventures, Torch Capital, Y Combinator, and Clocktower Technology Ventures.

Joe Spector has helped take his first startup from zero to being worth over a billion dollars. Then after taking that company public, he decided to apply his experience to helping pet owners and veterinarians too. His latest, startup, Dutch Pet Inc., has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Forerunner Ventures, Adapt Ventures, and Eclipse Ventures.

Nadayar Enegesi has gone from building companies out of Canada, back to the entrepreneurial hotbed of Nigeria for his biggest startup venture yet. His new company, Eden Life, has acquired funding from top-tier investors like EXPERT DOJO, Goodwater Capital, Village Global, and Google for Startups.

Ramji Srinivasan is now on his second big startup and is working to help people extend their lives. His latest venture, Teiko, has attracted funding from top-tier investors like Altitude Lab, Tau Ventures, Founders Fund, and Pathfinder.

Joseph Riley has become a master of turning challenges into profitable opportunities. Including building a big real estate startup that has raised hundreds of millions of dollars. The venture, Patriot Family Homes, acquired funding from top-tier investors like TRT Holdings and Miramar Holdings.