Launch Pad

Rob Coneybeer, co-founder of Shasta Ventures and a 24-year veteran of the venture capital industry, joins Professor Karl Ulrich to talk about his three month Sabbatical all around Europe! https://medium.com/theclutchpedal/why-i-flew-my-land-cruiser-to-europe-a35df754f124 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Stephen Lease, the CEO (Chief Executive Octopus) of the sunglasses brand goodr and the co-host of the CULTURE goodr podcast, joins Karl Ulrich to talk about the company's explosive growth, product designs, partnerships and plans for the future! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

David Heath, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bombas joins Karl Ulrich to talk about launching the company, revolutionizing the modern sock, growth, and staying true to their mission of helping those in need! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chris Molaro talks with Karl about NeuroFlow and how it "delivers the actionable behavioral health intelligence you've been missing, so you can deliver the whole-person care that has never been more essential." See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Venture Lab is hosting their 2021 Startup Challenge, sponsored by Eric Aroesty, on Friday, April 30th and Karl interviews five semi-finalists from challenge in this hour long special episode! Nouri -- For expecting families with pregnancy challenges (e.g. conceiving, symptoms, recovery), Nouri provides an Eastern food therapy meets Western nutrition meal plan to help moms feel better at each stage. While meal plans are our first product, we plan to expand on our Eastern therapy philosophy to become the holistic health “one-stop-shop” for life’s most critical stages. Irene Liu, WG22 & Jennifer DoroXoma -- the first social impact distilled pulque agave brand to enter the US marketplace. It is the smoother tasting, more sophisticated cousin of mezcal and tequila that’s sustainable and generates social impact. Anthony Morano, G21, WG21 Iacopo Santini, W15, G21, WG21 Fulton (formally known as Atlas) -- a brand that is modernizing arch support, and is starting by developing an orthopedic insole that is comfortable, supportive, and custom-tailored to the individual wearer. Fulton aims to build a relatable brand that connects with consumers and educates them on the relationship between arch support and overall wellness. Libie Motchan, WG21 Daniel Nelson, WG213Cor Bio has developed a low-cost, rapid, and highly accurate diagnostic platform targeting multiple infectious diseases. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the urgent need for a device that can offer accurate, inexpensive, and rapid diagnosis. Our platform provides a COVID diagnosis within 4 minutes with 97% accuracy for $4.67 per test. Ranjan Pati, C21, W21Altrui Rx is a non-profit venture that facilitates the redistribution of unused short-dated medications to those in need by acting as a conduit between pharmaceutical manufacturers and charitable organizations. We work with our partners to facilitate the distribution of essential medications to victims in disaster areas, uninsured patients in the US, and underserved communities across the world. Within just a few months, Altrui Rx has facilitated the redirection of over 45 million units of medications—worth over $19 million—to patients in need. Sourish Jasti W24; Justin Zhang, ENG’24; Joe Kakkis, C’21; Shreya Kavuru; Rahul Kavuru See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eric Min, CEO of Zwift shares his story with Rob about how he and his team transitioned traditional outdoor cycling to the convenience of ones home. Soon after, the concept expanded and led to a vast social community of Zwifters cycling together from all around the world. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

CEO and Founder, GT Dave of GT Dave's Kombucha shares the story of this medicinal beverage, full of natural health benefits and the path that lead to "Living Foods." See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bonus Episode! Karl Ulrich on Wharton Business DailyKarl Ulrich, Wharton Vice Dean of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, joined Wharton Business Daily host Dan Loney to discuss his new book, Winning in China: 8 Stories of Success and Failure in the World's Largest Economy. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jeff Cavins, Co-Founder and CEO, Outdoorsy shares Rob how his idea became a reality for people to go "Outdoorsy." See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Dick Costolo, former CEO of Twitter explains his journey throughout the business world from Twitter to today as a managing Partner @ 01 Advisors. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Joey Zwillinger, CEO and Founder of AllBirds From merino wool to eucalyptus, Joey tells Rob how AllBirds has evolved to become a leading brand in material innovation. He also shares how the company has adapted to meet customer needs by creating a comfortable facemask you'll actually want to wear. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chris Stadler, Chief Marketing Officer of Tonal tells Rob how to get fit from the comfort of your very own home using digital weights via AI with Tonal. Chris also shares his marketing journey of how he went from building the branding for beauty products to branding fitness equipment as he's been recognized for redefining the CMO role. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hunter Horsley CEO, Board Director of BitWise shares with Karl how the company works to give customers a cryptocurrency index and beta funds. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Michael Baum talks with Rob about his entrepreneurial journey, how he was introduced to software, and how he has worked to help transform data with splunk.. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rob speaks with CEO and Co-Founder of Porch, Matt Ehrlichman about how his company began and how he's tackling the home industry one project at a time. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Keith Bellinger, Founder and CEO of RightRice and former Founder of PopChips explains how he put the pieces together to develop his new product, RightRice - packed with nutrients and a satisfying flavor. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Root Ventures, early stage seed fund investors in tech. Avidan talks to Rob about Root Ventures investment in machine learning, robotics, AI and more. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Karl talks with CEO of Everlane, Michael Preysman and learns more about the philosophy behind the company and their transparent sustainability mission. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Not your traditional farm, Karl talks to Irving Fain, CEO and Founder of Bowery Farming about how he utilities technology in a unique way to elevate their crops. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There's tap, bottled, sparking, and now, Liquid Death... water. Mike Cessario, Founder of canned water company "Liquid Death" shares his story about how the idea came about and where you can get it today. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In The Unicorn's Shadow: Combating the Dangerous Myths that Hold Back Startups, Founders, and Investors, Wharton School professor Ethan Mollick takes us to the forefront of an empirical revolution in entrepreneurship. New data and better research methods have overturned the conventional wisdom behind what a successful founder looks like, how they succeed, and how the startup ecosystem works. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Karl speaks with Lindsay Stewart, CEO and Founder of Stringr, a video platform that allows customers to source, edit, publish and monetize video. Stringr has more than 100,000 videographers who respond to custom video requests in near real time. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Startup studio, Atomic led by Jack Abraham Founder, Managing Partner & CEO helps to actualize people's creative ideas by building dynamic teams. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Karl Siebrecht Co-Founder and CEO of Flexe takes Rob for a deep dive inside his company Flexe. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In an ever changing world and job market, global online learning platform, Udacity provides tools for people to develop skills to advance their careers. Karl speaks with CEO Gabe Dalporto of Udacity, a project based learning platform. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Zach Sims, Co-Founder and CEO of Codecademy talks with Karl about how they teach more than 45 million people around the world the skills they need to upgrade their careers. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Listen to Karl and Rob talk with Blake Sholl about how his company, Boom Supersonic is building the world’s fastest airliner for a dramatically more accessible world. Boom Supersonic is a startup company in Centennial, Colorado. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Aaron Levie, Co-Founder and CEO of Enterprise company Box talks with Rob about how the company originated in his college dorm room and landed in peoples now, home offices just in time for the surge of working from home. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rob and Karl discuss how the Covid-19 pandemic is affecting entrepreneurship globally and domestically, the importance of wearing a mask, and 3 ways to increase creativity levels. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eliza Blank, Founder and CEO of The Sill speaks with Karl about her company, which brings the joys of backyard gardening to the inside window sill of a city dwellers apartment. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: Pawsitive is a pet wellness community in an app.TEAM MEMBERS: SAMAYA SINHA (IPD’20); ECHO WAN (IPD’21)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: Mobility seeks to mobilize the large population of economically-restricted individuals in South Africa to complete deliveries of chronic medicines from pharmacies to individual households in order to tackle the medical last-mile challenge.TEAM MEMBERS: YIWEN LI (C’21, W’21); JACOB CHIDAWAYA (ENG’23); ARIS SAXENA (W’21); SONIA SHAH (C’22); EASH AGGARWAL (C’21)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: ConnectED Mobile works with the nation’s largest 4G LTE mobile provider to offer family plan pricing directly to individuals. We primarily serve international students, who arrive in the US without families with whom to access a family plan, nor the social security numbers and US credit history required for postpaid plans. Plans start at $22.99/month and include unlimited 3G data in the US and 2G data abroad. Since launching in 2019, ConnectED Mobile now serves students at over 20+ leading universities.TEAM MEMBERS: ANDIE KAPLAN (WG’20); COLBY COX (C’20)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE | LINKEDIN See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: SilkBlu Technologies LLC is a software innovation company aspiring to democratize information and empower companies in emerging markets through WiFi-enabled analytics.TEAM MEMBERS: ELIZA CULP(C’20); JOSEPH IWASYK (ENG’20); RANSFORD ANTWI (ENG’20); KYLER MINTAH (ENG’20), JOSEPH KIRANADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: MAR Designs has developed a patient responsive wrist orthotic for the treatment of spasticity in children with cerebral palsy. This device improves wrist function while ensuring patient comfort by dynamically stretching the joint as the child is falling asleep using a specialized motorized system.TEAM MEMBERS: REBECCA LI (GRE’23); ARIELLA MANSFIELD (GRE’23); MICHAEL SOBREPERA (GRE’21)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: SHOWCASE vending machines are a platform for brands to trade products for feedback. Consumers get free items, in exchange for a quick survey, and brands get targeted, quality, in-moment data.TEAM MEMBERS: DANA KIM (WG’20)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We’re proud to announce this year’s Semifinalists for the 2019-2020 Penn Wharton Startup Challenge. Teams consist of students from The Wharton School, The College of Arts and Sciences and The School of Engineering and Applied Science. The Startup Challenge and Showcase attracts the best and brightest entrepreneurial minds from across the Penn community as they compete for a chance to win $135,000 in cash and prizes.BIO: Frutero is a premium quality, tropical fruit ice cream company with flavors including Mango, Guava, Passion Fruit Guanabana, and Coconut. Frutero is made from 100% real fruits grown in Colombia and Thailand, and the best dairy from Pennsylvania.TEAM MEMBERS: MICHAEL WEBER (WG’20), VEDANT SABOO (WG’20)ADDITIONAL LINKS: WEBSITE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tombot develops robotic animals that transform the daily lives of individuals, families and communities facing health adversities. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

CES is the world's gathering place for all those who thrive on the business of consumer technologies. It has served as the proving ground for innovators and breakthrough technologies for 50 years — the global stage where next-generation innovations are introduced to the marketplace. Kirsten Korosec specializes in transportation and automotive technology. In short (in her own words), if it moves people and packages from A to B, she writes about it. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Infatuation's mission is very simple: to bring you the most honest and trustworthy opinions on where to eat around the world, with reviews and guides curated by a small group of highly trained, highly opinionated writers and editors. The startup purchased Zagat from Google for an undisclosed sum in March 2018, exciting the restaurant world with a recently released 40th-anniversary edition of the Zagat New York City guide and, by 2020, a new digital platform for Zagat including an updated website and app. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Watched live by more than 6.5M people each month, Cheddar is the leading post-cable news, media, and entertainment company. Cheddar also garners hundreds of millions of organic video views monthly across Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, LinkedIn and other social & distributed video platforms.The company broadcasts from the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange, its street level studio in the glass corner of the Sprint Store in the Flatiron Building, WeWork in Los Angeles, and the White House. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Revival Rugs believes that buying one-of-a-kind, vintage handmade rugs should be smooth, transparent, and affordable. They handpick a carefully curated selection of rugs and bring them to your door, minus the mark-up. With operations in the US and Turkey, Revival Rugs visits their suppliers regularly to make sure our products meet our quality specifications and that workers are treated fairly. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Super Coffee utilizes healthy fats for fuel! Coconut Oil has become one of the most popular "superfoods" for its powerful good fats, the elusive MCTs (Medium Chain Triglyceride). The fast-burning energy source also has some antimicrobial activity, clearing your gut of bad bacteria. Combined with Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) and organic Colombian coffee, it's the “the key to life". Founded by 3 Brothers, Super Coffee is dedicated to changing your world through positive energy. With three different products, Super Coffee has the clean energy pick-me-up for any occasion. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In America, many of us still don’t have access to high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables. We waste as much food as we eat. Almost half of what our nation’s farms grow is never eaten. Much of this is due to modern-day beauty standards for food. Misfit fruits, misshapen vegetables, and delicious but odd-sized produce are squandered at every level.It’s not healthy, it’s expensive, it’s a problem at a huge scale, and it doesn’t fit with our view of the world. It’s why we started a company to do something about it. Misfits Market is putting fresh produce that might not check all the boxes for perfection into boxes, and sending it straight to you. Sooner than you’d be able to buy it at a store. For half the price. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

SpeedWeed is the largest, most successful medical marijuana delivery service in America. Launched by AJ Gentile, his wife Jennifer and his brother Gene in September 2010 from the living room of their apartment, SpeedWeed now boasts a database of over 30,000 members. With over 70 employees, multiple annexes throughout Los Angeles and Orange County, a strong online presence and highly visible celebrity endorsements, SpeedWeed continues its upward trajectory.Since 2010, it's the only legal marijuana delivery service in California. Yes, just them. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

AND 1 was, and still is, a legendary brand that brought sports and pop culture together in ways never seen before. At its peak, it was the No.2 shoe in the U.S. behind Nike. In addition, AND 1’s entertainment division created the Mix Tape tour and Streetball, an ESPN series that was the No. 1 rated show among male teens, eclipsing SportsCenter. The company was started by Berger as a graduate student at Wharton, who went on to sell the brand in 2005. Now, Berger is the Managing Director of Sixers Innovation Lab, a 8,000 sq. ft. lab in the base of the Philadelphia 76ers training facility, with investments in companies spanning the esports, daily fantasy sports, pet care and digital cause media industries. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Spatial Computing age is coming and businesses need to adapt. Infinite Retina is a full-service agency that exists to help companies enter and succeed in Spatial Computing – from building a company vision to getting funded to developing an industry and customer strategy and more. As a full-service agency, Infinite Retina also designs, produces and develops Spatial Computing apps and experiences. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Vital Proteins helps people feel better and live fuller lives through sustainably-sourced nutrition products, promoting health, fitness and natural beauty. Our bodies’ collagen production slows as we age, our need for it only grows as our bodies become less efficient and we maintain a vibrant life.Vital Proteins accomplishes this by providing nourishing collagen and promoting our production of collagen - an essential nutrient stripped from our diets by modern food-processing. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Inspired by their Pacific Northwest roots - and trusting their instincts to trailblaze - brothers Ryan and Andrew Beltran set forth on a mission in 2013: Create an entirely unique timepiece out of wood and steel. The seamless fusion of all-natural, sustainable hardwoods and stainless steel proved to be an instant and enduring smash, both on Kickstarter and in the wild, but it was the bold stroke to use reclaimed wood - wood with a story - that redefined what one should expect from a watch. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In 2013, Mickey Ashmore created a magical pair of leather shoes with a family of craftsmen in southeast Turkey. He called them Sabahs, an original shoe based on a traditional shoemaking method that's nearly 1,000 years old. Celebrated for their quality, comfort and unique look, Sabahs are still entirely handmade by that same family and we now travel the world selling them, one pair at a time. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Justworks' mission is to help entrepreneurs and businesses grow with confidence. With a simple and friendly platform, expert support from real people when it’s needed, and access to corporate-level benefits that ensure people feel secure and valued, Justworks provides access to payroll, benefits, HR, and compliance - all in one place. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.