Coquí Ventures

The Corridor

Technology EN ↓ 7 episodes

Conversations at the intersection of Puerto Rican and Latino culture, venture capital, and the startup ecosystem. A podcast by Coquí Ventures. coquinotes.substack.com

Author

Coquí Ventures

Episodes

Episode 7: The Woman Who Built the Room Before Anyone Knew They Needed It 09.07.2026 49:54

Some founders build a company. Sofia Stolberg built the room the rest of the ecosystem would grow up inside. When she and her brother moved back to Puerto Rico in 2010, they were working internationally, a management consultant and an attorney, both stuck working from home with no place to find the energy and the connections that serious work needs. There was no coworking space on the island to wa...

Episode 6: Come Early or Come Late: What a Global Banking Insider Knows About Latino Founders Crossing Borders 06.07.2026 28:10

There is a version of this conversation that stays safe. A JP Morgan executive talks about products, a founder nods, everyone moves on. That is not the conversation Alejandro Manzanares and I had. Alejandro leads the West Coast for JP Morgan’s Global Passport program, the team built to bank foreign owned startups scaling into the US. Born in Puerto Rico to a Cuban mother and a Spanish father, he c...

Episode 5: Why Ten Years of "No" Made Her Faster 29.06.2026 29:02

Breaking Barriers: The Journey of Maite Caceres from Karting to Endurance Racing and Pioneering Latinas in Motorsport In this episode, we explore Maite Caceres' inspiring journey from growing up in Uruguay to racing in Europe and North America. Maite shares insights on overcoming systemic barriers, funding her racing dreams, and leveraging her entrepreneurial mindset to navigate the competitive wo...

Episode 4: The Two Percent Problem Nobody Wants to Say Out Loud 22.06.2026 27:22

In this episode, Angel León interviews David Olivencia to explore the landscape of Latino venture capital, the challenges faced by Latino founders, and the impact of AI on startup funding. They discuss strategies to increase Latino representation in venture capital and the future of Latino innovation. Key topics - Latino venture capital landscape - Challenges for Latino founders - Impact of AI on...

Episode 3: The First Yes: What Samara Mejia Hernandez Knows About Backing Founders Nobody Else Will 15.06.2026 36:36

Unleashing the Power of Diverse Venture Capital with Samara Mejia Hernandez Discover how Samara Mejia Hernandez, founding partner at Chingona Ventures , is transforming early-stage investing by focusing on overlooked founders, emphasizing community, and leveraging AI to democratize access to capital. This episode offers a bold perspective on investing from a diverse lens, blending cultural identit...

Episode 2: Puerto Rico's Best-Kept Secret Isn't the Beaches. It's the Talent. 01.06.2026 38:46

Creativity as Puerto Rico’s Hidden Infrastructure: An Inside Look with Dianis de JesusUncover how Puerto Rico is rewriting its economic story by turning creativity into its secret backbone. Join us as Dianis de Jesus breaks down how creative talent is transforming sectors beyond culture and why the island’s future depends on seeing creativity as infrastructure. In this episode: Why creativity is t...

Episode 1: Conversations About Power and Progress 21.05.2026 46:18

Breaking Barriers and Building Bridges: The Jose Pinero VC Story Hold onto your hats, folks, because we’re diving into a whirlwind tour of innovation, passion, and relentless persistence with none other than Jose Pinero. This episode is packed with insights on how a corporate veteran is helping rewrite the Latino VC narrative — one connection at a time. In this episode: • How Jose’s 20+ years in c...