Women Who Build

In our first episode, we discussed that 98% of factories in the US are small and medium-sized businesses. But what does it actually take to deploy robots across these factories? It is not only about the technology, but also about financing, deployment, integration, maintenance, updates, and continuous optimization that ultimately drive robotics adoption. Formic Technologies is building exactly thi...

Manufacturing is not new to the US. It has been a core foundation of its economic rise. But the way we think about manufacturing is undergoing a structural shift. While traditional assembly-line production models optimized for low-mix, high-volume output (e.g., automotive) continue to exist, evolving customer and business needs are driving increasing importance of high-mix, low-volume production e...

Technological innovation in industrial automation is strong. But technology alone is not enough, especially when looking to scale your solutions at some of the most sophisticated OEMs in the world. As Adi Prasad puts it, manufacturing is a systems problem! With over a decade of OEM wisdom, in the most recent episode of Humans Who Build, Adi answers the most common questions that industrial automat...

98% of manufacturing firms in the US are small and high-mix businesses. Yet most conversations around industrial automation today are centered on robots and humanoids. What about automation for the businesses that actually make up the majority? Alex Huckstepp is building AI software to accelerate operations of exactly these businesses at his new company, Uptool. Its first product is an AI quoting...

In an increasingly complex investment world impacted by advanced technology, global pandemics, and wars, it has become important to ground our processes in fundamentals, developed through an understanding of how the world works and rigorous stress-testing. Erin Miles, Partner and Member of the Operating Committee at Bridgewater Associates, is guiding her team to do exactly that! As Head of Alpha E...

Very rarely you come across people who define their jobs as building a "movement." We have been lucky to call Loretta McCarthy, Co-CEO and Managing Partner, Golden Seeds, a guest at Women Who Build, as she is exactly that person. Golden Seeds is one of the largest and most active angel investment organizations in the US with ~300 angel investors and invests in early-stage women-led businesses. Lor...

How we dress defines our personality in the eyes of others, but most importantly, in our own eyes! Our Women Who Build guest today, Elizabeth von der Goltz, has been at the forefront of building global fashion companies that dress us. Known for her sharp ability to spot the brands we wear and identify lasting trends, Elizabeth has also leveraged her Sixth sense and her business acumen to drive str...

TikTok’s U.S. usage has surged dramatically, with over 21% of Americans now tuning in weekly. But what does it actually take to grow a brand into a TikTok sensation? We sit down with Neha Jogani Narang, former CMO of Roblox. Under her guidance, Roblox became one of TikTok’s largest brand presences in just two years! Before Roblox, Neha made her mark at Facebook (now Meta), where she transformed it...

Starting and scaling a business is one thing, but leading it through an acquisition is a whole new journey. 💡 Mariah Chase, who led the sale of ELOQUII to Walmart and her first company, Send the Trend to QVC, joins us on Women Who Build to share her insights. Beyond the big outcomes, she dives into the personal growth that comes with integrating a team into a larger company. In this episode, we d...

Hedge funds are known to be one of the most sophisticated capital allocators. They operate multiple strategies. For example, Bridgewater Associates follows "macro" strategy and Citadel follows "global quantitative" strategy, in addition to others. To finance these hedge funds requires an understanding of these sophisticated strategies and the ability to match them with the largest institutions in...

From Goldman Sachs to Gender-Lens Investing: Courtney Leimkuhler's JourneyJoin us on Women Who Build as we sit down with Courtney Leimkuhler, a trailblazer in high finance! With experience at Goldman Sachs, NYSE, and Marsh, Courtney is currently revolutionizing "gender-lens investing" at Springbank Collective, investing in companies building infrastructure that supports working famil...

Many of us live in cities for the convenient infrastructure that they give us access to: Buildings, energy, water, transportation, Citi Bikes. ;) Success and innovation in these areas require multiple stakeholders coming together. Sonam Velani and Laura Fox have dedicated their careers to doing exactly this in the urban climate infrastructure space, and now they are organizing their efforts to bui...

A technology startup, just like any other company, needs financial solutions. The nature of these solutions may vary for it but that is exactly why a startup may need the sophistication and stability of a platform like JP Morgan to help navigate its financial needs. While JP Morgan is traditionally known to work with large corporate clients, it has made its presence felt in the startup world as we...

Be it a startup or a large company, the most important element of any company is its team. In the increasingly productive, multicultural, and rapidly evolving world, it is important to have robust agreements in place, follow regulations of different countries, integrate the workforce effectively during mergers and acquisitions, have protocols for employee communication, and so much more! However,...

In today's world, you may be building the best product or business, but you cannot go far without the right branding. And this is true for both consumer and B2B offerings. There is a reason Salesforce and Shopify are top-of-mind for global businesses. There is a reason why Apple and Lululemon are top-of-mind for American consumers. Therefore, today's CMO is shaping marketing strategies, driving an...

31% Americans say that they are constantly online. Media is an industry that we interact with at least once a day. It provides us with daily news & insights, and largely informs our ideologies and sometimes, our personal identities. Yet we know so little about the media business. On the latest episode of Women Who Build, listen to Megha Garibaldi, Chief Growth Officer, The Atlantic, as she cov...

Almost every day, we have at least 4-5 interactions with AI or about AI. In a world full of AI solutions, funding, companies, and use cases, it takes a master of technology to separate the wheat from the chaff. We spoke to one such master, Urvashi Tyagi, on the most recent episode of Women Who Build. Urvashi is a Former CTO of multi-billion dollar listed companies, ResMed and ADP, and is currently...

It is only the most fortunate of us who are both able to use their skills to benefit their home country. Luisa Sucre, Principal of Collaborative Fund is doing exactly that - she identified the growth potential in Latin America and launched the investment operations in the region at her fund. She is also one of the most active climate investors in the US and has invested in the likes of Artyc and V...

Losing a loved one is painful. But making something impactful using the learning from your journey of caregiving is beautiful.  Alyse Dunn is the Founder of CareCopilot, a platform that takes care of all administrative tasks related to caregiving. She started the company after caregiving for both her parents. Alyse funded her early days by quitting her job at Venmo and cashing out her stock option...

Everyone wants to achieve their highest potential. To achieve it, we often scramble for a new idea or a new set of people to help. However, sometimes best ideas come from helping those around us. Jen Berry and Ryden Brittany of The Mycelorium are doing exactly that. The Mycelorium is a community that connects Bridgewater Associates alumni founders with a network of experts who can help them grow t...

Healthy food is essential to nourishing us. And it does not need to be necessarily expensive, it just needs to be right.  With this thesis, Emily Hochman started Wellory when she decided to NOT embark on a lifetime of medication that her doctors suggested when she was diagnosed with PCOS and hypothyroidism. Wellory, now part of Season Health, offers one-on-one nutrition coaching that shuns calorie...

We are so excited to launch the most recent episode of Women Who Build with Vanessa Larco. While Vanessa is many things to many people, we particularly remember her as someone who doesn’t give up too soon. She got her first pony as a kid. Despite her mother convincing her to take swimming lessons, she had the pony for 22 years - she even took it to college (Georgia Tech). Vanessa is a Partner at N...

With the world’s population likely to increase by nearly another billion people over the next two decades and incomes rising, total food consumption will likely rise by 50-70% by 2050. However, the percentage of people who work in agriculture around the world has decreased by 18% in the last three decades. Therefore, technological intervention is required. Greenhouse farming refers to the practice...

Few of us are lucky enough to recognize very early on what we want to become. Shellye Archambeau decided as a teenager that she wanted to be a Tech CEO and went on to become the CEO of MetricStream, a recognized global leader in governance, risk, and compliance software solutions. She currently serves as a Fortune 500 board member and holds board seats at Verizon, Roper Technologies, Okta and Line...

Everyone wants to achieve their highest potential. And resilience is one of the most important ingredients to achieve that.  Many of us know Sylvia Acevedo as the CEO of The Girl Scouts of the USA, a Board Member of Qualcomm, and the Presidential Commissioner who drove President Obama’s initiative for Educational Excellence for Hispanics in early childhood leadership. However, what makes her speci...