PHL Inno, the Philadelphia Business Journal vertical focused on technology and innovation, will host its inaugural event on May 18. “Steering Startups” will feature one-on-one discussions with three local figures involved in various phases of building startups.
The event will be held at One Cathedral Square in Center City and hosted by PHL Inno and Business Journal Reporter Ryan Mulligan, who will lead separate sessions with special guests John Fry, Adit Gupta and Allison Goldberg.
Fry is the president of Drexel University, the region’s fourth-largest university by enrollment. Long a leader in innovation, Fry in January said the university is “doubling down” on innovation and launched its Innovation Fund – which will award up to four startups with $150,000 annually – and associated entrepreneurship courses.
Drexel alum Gupta will address the industry from the perspective of a startup leader. He and partner Tom Falzani co-founded Lula Convenience, which launched in June 2020. The convenience store delivery platform has found ample success, raising more than $5.5 million in an oversubscribed seed round last year. The company has grown to about 1,000 stores across all 50 states and by the end of this year plans to as much as triple that figure.
Funding and growth is top of mind for Goldberg, who is senior vice president and managing partner at Comcast Ventures and Startup Engagement. Comcast Ventures is an investing arm of the Philadelphia-based telecommunications giant, which has a portfolio of more than 120 companies. Its areas of focus are companies “redefining the next generation” in spaces like digital health, energy, work, proptech and fintech.
Each will offer their expertise on topics like fundraising, growing and scaling a business, and overall insight into the innovation ecosystem across the region.
Tickets for the event, which takes place from 4 p.m.-6 p.m., can be purchased here. Use the promo code lastchance10 for 10% off the ticket price.
