For guest speakers

Speak in the course

Vanderbilt students spend a semester learning how emerging technologies move from research to market. Guest speakers show them what that looks like from the inside.

The format: One 50-minute class session on a Friday afternoon. Spend about 35 minutes on your work, your company, or the technology you are betting on, then take 10 to 15 minutes of questions from the class. Career paths, founding stories, fundraising, and customer discovery all land well.
In person or on Zoom: Join us on campus in Nashville, where David will meet you at Featheringill Hall, or over Zoom, whichever is easier for you.
Site visits: Some sessions happen on location. Classes have visited Nashville Electric Service and the Wond’ry, Vanderbilt’s innovation center.
The students: Undergraduate and graduate students from engineering and business, who spend the semester building a venture around an emerging technology.
Returning speakers: Several speakers have come back for later offerings. John Dodini of Brave Capital has joined all three, and Kyle Caruso of the Wond’ry and Jason Lee of Aravir have each spoken twice.
Topics: Past talks have covered venture capital, quantum computing, cybersecurity and the smart grid, IoT and 5G, electric-vehicle charging, synthetic biology, assistive technology, blockchain, and gaming. New topics are welcome.