Oklahoma Venture Forum Podcast

Everything you need to know about Venture Capital with Kevin Moore, Partner at Spur Capital Partners. Moore is one of three VCs on a panel discussion at the April 2022 OVF Power Lunch. This is the second VC panel discussion for the 2021-22 session. We discuss the "big picture" of venture funding plus changes being created by COVID-19, the rise of cryptocurrency, blockchain, cloud computing, etc......

Everything you need to know about Venture Capital with Aaron Webster, Managing Director at Cameron Ventures. Webster is one of three VCs on a panel discussion at the April 2022 OVF Power Lunch. This is the second VC panel discussion for the 2021-22 session. We discuss what leading Oklahoma venture funders look for in pitches, what makes them want to learn more and what gets an automatic "no" respo...

In 2017, the Brookings Institution and Project for Public Spaces completed an 18-month study of Oklahoma City and its Innovation District potential. Katy Boren seized the opportunity to guide the creation of a collaborative ecosystem in Oklahoma City around knowledge-based and STEM economies. Every innovation district is a unique undertaking. Boren shares with us the vision, actions and motivation...

Factory Obscura is an Oklahoma City-based art collective creating immersive experiences that awaken wonder, build community, and make the world better. Factory Obscura, Inc was founded as a B-Corporation, existing to create fully immersive art environments and events that awaken joy and wonder, while supporting artists and arts education. Factory Obscura co-founders Laura Phillips and Laurent Mass...

On this podcast episode, we revisit the teen entrepreneurs responsible for Wristworld AR game and their adult mentors at Loveworks Leadership. Wristworld is an augmented reality puzzle RPG using wristbands. Created by students who are participating in the Loveworks Leadership, a program designed to empower the creativity, resourcefulness, and potential within each student in an effo...

Venture Capital Investors: What do leading Oklahoma venture funders look for? The January 12, 2022 OVF Power Lunch will feature a panel discussion by three VCs in Oklahoma who will discuss what type of deals they are looking for, what make’s them want to “learn more” and what makes them want to say “Yes”! On this podcast episode, we talk with panelist Nathaniel Harding, a managing partner at Corta...

November Power Lunch presenter Devon Laney is President and CEO of 36 Degrees North in Tulsa, OK. Known as Tulsa’s base camp for entrepreneurs, innovators and startups, 36 Degrees North is an entrepreneurial support organization focused on providing the resources, the community and the programs needed to support entrepreneurs as they build, grow and scale businesses. "36 Degrees North is a non-pro...

Rick Nagel is the Managing Partner of Acorn Growth Companies. This small middle-market private equity firm focuses exclusively on ladder stage and growth investments in the aerospace, defense, and intelligence sectors. The company has been around since 2000, starting as the first privately certified incubator in the state of Oklahoma. After 30 deals and on their fifth fund, the firm seeks opportun...

With over 20 years of experience, Melissa Houston has made a career in public service in various roles. She has recently served as the Oklahoma Labor Commissioner, Secretary for Education and Workforce Development, and previously as Chief of Staff for the Oklahoma Attorney General and the Oklahoma Office of Homeland Security. She’s worked under four governors, both Democrat and Republican, and has...

During Jay Martin’s early days of his clinical work in prosthetics, he learned his patients’ functional abilities were limited not as much by their amputation as by the lack of technology available in the field. With his love of inventing, Martin saw an opportunity to advance the field of prosthetics to provide more comfort, more functional abilities, and quality of life back to amputees. “We thin...

While headquartered in Oklahoma City, Daniel Maloney was a transplant born in New York, who grew up in South Florida, went to school in Philly, and then made his career in either New York and Silicon Valley before moving to Oklahoma. When he came to the state about a decade ago, Maloney came with the perspective of needing to build a community, build a friend network, and figuring out how to build...

With the experience of having raised nearly $800 million for companies, and buying and selling approximately 40 companies, Tra Pippin considers himself qualified in the turnaround industry arena. He’s also turned around businesses that ranged from a low of 1 million in revenue to a high of about $150 million. Pippin got into the industry happenstance manner.   “I bought a company back in June...

With a background in government and public affairs, Tom Robins is putting his political knowledge to help Oklahoma grow as a Top 10 place for IT. In the fall of 2019, Robins started the OITA, the Oklahoma Innovative Technology Alliance, to give Oklahoma IT companies a voice in the public policy process. As part of his presentation for the Oklahoma Venture Forum Power Lunch, Robins will highlight t...

Before becoming an International Business Coach, Stacy Eads had been the CEO of a Norman technology company for over a decade when she fell in love with the book, Scaling Up by Verne Harnish. For Eads’ presentation for December’s OVF power lunch, she will teach a tool that helps expedite decision-making processes during stressful times, especially with all of the pandemic’s pivots.    Th...

As a smart truck and trailer movement leader, Drōv Technologies enables intelligent and safe technology in the transportation industry. They're developing the AirBoxOne, which controls tire inflation and deflation on the trailer dynamically based on the vehicle's load.  The Oklahoma Venture Forum (OVF) is the state’s preeminent organization fostering innovation and economic growth. We introdu...

For over 30 years, the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) has been the state’s agency for technology development, technology transfer, and technology commercialization. With Governor Kevin Stitt’s goal to make Oklahoma a Top 10 state, OCAST is doing its part through partnerships and collaborations to stimulate economic development and technology-based economic de...

With origins in the solar-power industry, David Jankowsky saw a problem in the electric vehicle market. With billions going into EV technology, Jankowsky noticed little of that funding was going towards infrastructure. While Tesla Motors may have popularized the electric car and built their superchargers, they’re all closed source.   “We know there’s literally going to be hundreds of car manu...

Diversifying Oklahoma’s economic opportunities via brewing, tourism and taking chances.  What started with “poor decisions and lots of circumstances,” COOP Ale Works has grown into a company with a $20 million expansion plan at the former 45th Infantry Armory. Despite feeling like an outsider in the brewing community from not being a brewer himself, Daniel Mercer, CEO of Coop Ale Works, sees...

Purse Power is now working to become the primary source to find and buy from women-owned and women-led companies in the United States. We dream of playing a part in creating a day when our daughters, granddaughters, sons and grandsons can achieve their dreams irrespective of gender. https://www.pursepower.com/ The Oklahoma Venture Forum (OVF) is the state’s preeminent organization fostering innova...

The Oklahoma Women’s Coalition’s mission is “to champion the collective power of Oklahomans to advance gender equity and justice.” Underscoring this mission are two key initiatives: Pay transparency legislation and a pipeline to politics. “There’s a lot of mania around the topic of pay transparency,” says Liz Charles, who is eager to clarify the language of two bills being considered by Oklahoma H...

Oklahoma startup Viribus VR Labs is a company dedicated to helping people with disabilities and their therapists. By creating a unique platform of fully immersive virtual reality games wirelessly connected to a sensor suit, Viribus makes performing home therapy programs fun! When it’s fun, more gets done...and that makes movements stronger and more controlled. Through a process called “neuroplasti...

Jeff Price has an extensive background in game design, electronic media, interactive communications, and graphic design. Teaching at Oklahoma City University, Jeff draws from 20+ years of experience as an Associate Professor of Gaming and Animation at Sam Houston State University and Oklahoma State University, Assistant Professor of Interactive Design at Virginia Commonwealth University, and his e...

As Matt Williamson swings over the Oklahoma City skyline and grabs hold of the International Space Station, he’s already thinking about his next move.  “I’m definitely like the blue-sky guy,” says the founder and CEO of Clevyr. “My company is aggressive in moving deeper into new technology. We’ve always been that firm in Oklahoma City that says, ‘Cool! We can do that! We’ll figure it out.’” &...

Dr. Vasan is a Board-Certified Otolaryngologist - Head and Neck Surgeon at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Dr. Vasan was born and raised in New Zealand and is a member of The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. He has authored numerous papers and book chapters in the field of Head and Neck Surgery and performs Head and Neck Robotic Surgery.  Dr. Vasan has developed medi...

Dr. Nguyen launched Mimosa Health in May 2017 with a mission to provide expert advice on the use of medications by older adults. Mimosa Health utilizes specialized knowledge in geriatrics and the unique medication-related needs of the senior population. Dr. Nguyen helps seniors reduce medication-related problems, reduce healthcare costs, and improve their quality of life through our community medi...