Julia Landauer's competitive spirit infuses every facet of her life. The 24-year-old champion NASCAR driver and former Survivor contestant has leveraged her success into a business to combine her racing with her interest in technology and advocating for women in STEM fields. It's those efforts that make her the ideal emcee and host for the Vinetta Project pitch competition in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, where three local women-led startups will vie for a $20,000 prize from GSP Financial Services along with a free month of office space at Cove and other in-kind awards.
"No one knows what we [women entrepreneurs] go through better than each other," Landauer told me in an interview. "I want to be part of the movement of women helping women in business, fighting the urge to compete against each other and instead advancing together. Groups like Vinetta are so important that way."
Landauer can certainly speak to the role of competition. She started racing at the age of 10, winning her first championship at 14, the youngest and first woman to ever win the Skip Barber Racing Series. It's the kind of record she's made over and over again, becoming the first NASCAR Track Champion in her division last year, while still finding time earn her degree at Stanford in science and technology.
She earned the degree in four years despite taking time off in 2012 to be a contestant on Survivor, appearing in the 26th season, set in Cameroon. She made it about halfway through the season, getting voted off on day 19 out of 39.
"There are a lot of good lessons I took from being on Survivor," Landauer said. "The stories often illustrate the points I want to make."
The larger point revolves around how important the intersection of technology and community are to so many aspects life. Racing in particular serves as a kind of ideal example of that mix, Landauer explained.
"Racing is one of the most tech-centered sports," Landauer said. "Tech is integral to what I'm doing and one of my goals is to make that more evident to racing fans. Education is where it starts for everyone. I'm excited to see how D.C. functions in [bringing together] tech and entrepreneurship."
It was in her role as an advocate for STEM education that Landauer first met and befriended D.C. Vinetta Project co-director Amelia Friedman. That connection made Landauer an obvious choice for the event, but Landauer said Vinetta's goals dovetail neatly with her own work.
"Tech is such an important tool for society, and I advocate for STEM education across the board," Landauer said. Amelia is such a role model for big visions and illustrating the diversity of voices in tech. She's inspiring."
