Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management
Mayo Center - Events - Venture Capital Conference - Program2026
UVA Venture Capital Conference Program 2026
Event Program
| 9 a.m. |
Check-in & Breakfast |
|---|---|
| 9:30 a.m. | Welcome Remarks (Potomac River Room) |
| 9:45 a.m. |
VC Market Outlook & Washington DC Policy Update (Potomac River Room) |
| 10:45 a.m. | Networking Break |
| 11 a.m. |
Break Out Sessions (Select One)
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| 12:15 p.m. | Lunch & Fireside Chat |
| 1:30 p.m. |
Break Out Sessions (Select One)
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| 2:45 p.m. | Networking Break |
| 3 p.m. | Keynote Session (Potomac River Room) |
| 4 p.m. | Networking Reception (Rooftop) |
Speakers
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Bobby Franklin President & CEO, National Venture Capital Association Bobby Franklin has served as President and CEO of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) since 2013, acting as a leading advocate for the U.S. startup ecosystem and innovation policy. His visionary leadership led to the creation of Venture Forward, NVCA’s connected organization dedicated to supporting emerging managers and empowering VC leaders. A graduate of the University of Arkansas, Bobby’s career in public policy includes senior roles at CTIA and Alltel, as well as foundational years on Capitol Hill with Senator David Pryor. |
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Scott Headd, Moderator Managing Director, Sands Capital Scott Headd helps lead fundraising for Sands private strategies. Prior to joining Sands, he spent nearly 10 years at the Private Bank where he was Managing Director and 5 years at FBR Capital Markets prior to Darden. |
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Jeff Barnes Director, UVIMCO Jeffrey Barnes is a Director at the University of Virginia Investment Management Company ("UVIMCO"). Prior to joining UVIMCO, he was a Vice President in the Investment Management Division at Goldman Sachs. Jeffrey holds a BS in Finance from Pennsylvania State University and a MS from Villanova University. |
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Beth Bruni Director of Private Equity, UTIMCO Beth Bruni is a Director of Private Equity at UTIMCO, where she focuses on investment strategy and portfolio management. She brings prior experience from roles at UTIMCO, Amgen, and Cambridge Associates, building a strong background across healthcare and investment advisory. Beth earned her MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, where she concentrated in entrepreneurship, strategy, and healthcare. |
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Aurelia Flores Investment Director, Virginia Venture Partners Aurelia is a senior member of the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC)’s Investment Office, Virginia Venture Partners (VVP). VVP is VIPC’s strategic investment platform pursuing complementary direct and indirect investment strategies to further the economic development objectives of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Aurelia works closely with the CIO and other senior members of VVP. She is the Director of Virginia Invests, VIPC’s fund of funds investing into early-stage venture capital fund managers. Through Virginia Invests, Virginia Venture Partners backs GPs aligned with VVP’s investment mission and committed to the development of Virginia's risk capital ecosystem. Within this role, she is responsible for fund screening and selection, portfolio construction, and management and strategic leadership of Virginia Invests. As Virginia Invests is a relatively new program of VVP, Aurelia has crafted the process and procedures around the program, including the intake, screening and diligence process for Virginia Invests and has implemented systems to oversee and track VVP’s fund managers. Aurelia has led outreach to hundreds of funds, screening and selecting managers to take into fuller diligence. After conducting diligence, analyzing track records, and writing memos on a variety of fund managers, Aurelia leads the legal negotiations to allow VVP to invest in multiple funds. Aurelia has been involved in the startup and venture ecosystem for over two decades and has assisted early-stage businesses in obtaining funding since the late 1990s. She has supported early-stage businesses for nearly 25 years and has played an important role in various capital access programs, including incubators and accelerators. Prior to becoming a professional investor, Aurelia played a key role on corporate acquisition teams for a Fortune 500 company. Aurelia holds a BA from Colorado College and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. |
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Jinny Lee Associate Director of Investments, National Geographic Jinny Lee is currently an Associate Director at the National Geographic Society. Prior to joining the team 18 months ago, Lee was with the University of Chicago's Investment Office for 10 years, primarily covering private credit, buyout and venture. Lee graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in Economics and Political Science and is currently pursuing her MBA at Chicago Booth. Lee currently reside in McLean with my husband and two daughters. |
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Ralph Pisani, Moderator CRO, Noma Security Ralph Pisani is Chief Revenue Officer at Noma Security, where he leads global sales strategy and revenue growth to support enterprise adoption of AI security solutions. He brings decades of cybersecurity leadership experience, including senior roles at Protect AI, Imperva, and CipherTrust, and previously served as president of Exabeam, where he helped scale the company into a market leader. Widely recognized as a top Silicon Valley security sales executive, Pisani is known for building high-performing teams and driving sustained growth in competitive markets. |
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Chris Eng Partner, Sands Capital Chris Eng is a Partner on Sands Capital’s early-stage venture fund, where he focuses on investments in the applied AI and cybersecurity sectors. Prior to joining Sands Capital, Chris worked as a consultant at Promontory Financial Group, where he helped financial institutions investigate instances of financial crime including money laundering, terrorist financing, and sanctions evasion. Chis holds a BSFS from Georgetown University and an MBA from the University of Chicago. |
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Guy Filippelli Managing Partner, Squadra Ventures Guy Filippelli is an experienced CEO turned investor with a background that began in military and intelligence work. He co-founded and bootstrapped a services company before going on to lead a venture-backed product company, gaining deep operational and entrepreneurial experience along the way. Now focused on investing, Filippelli brings lessons from both successes and setbacks and is energized about building and supporting companies in the years ahead. |
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Richard Seewald Managing Partner, Evolution Equity Partners Richard Seewald founded Evolution in 2008 and leads investments in cybersecurity, enterprise software and data analytics and brings over three decades of investment, operational and entrepreneurial experience to his role. Richard is a member of the firm’s investment committee. Under his leadership, Evolution has become a premier venture capital firm raising over $ 2 Billion of capital to invest in category-defining software companies including SecurityScorecard, Quantexa, Pentera, Carbon Black, Talon, Arctic Wolf, Aqua Security, AVG Technologies, OpenDNS and ProtectAI, in organizations where Richard serves as a member of the boards of directors. Prior to establishing Evolution, Richard was a Partner at Alpha Associates, a venture capital and private equity firm where he led a multibillion dollar investment platform with investments in software, media and infrastructure companies including as founding investor in NejTV and Sixty-K. Richard holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, a Juris Doctor from the New York Law School and a B.A. from Pace University. He was awarded a Kauffman Fellowship by the Palo Alto based Society of Kauffman Fellows. He sits on the global advisory board of the University of Chicago Booth School Of Business. |
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Justin Wilder Partner, In-Q-Tel Justin Wilder is a Partner at IQT, the independent, non-profit, strategic investor created to bridge the gap between emerging commercial innovation and the technology needs of the U.S. Government and its allies. In this role, Mr. Wilder is a strategic investor engaging early-stage venture-backed startups across the United States developing technologies that provide ready-soon innovation vital to IQT Partners. |
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Alex Elmore Corporate Associate, Cooley Alex Elmore brings a unique perspective to his legal practice, shaped by his experience as an entrepreneur. Before joining Cooley, Alex co-founded a communications technology startup, where he navigated the challenges of early-stage growth, product development and fundraising. This firsthand experience showed him the value of practical, business-minded advice in helping startups turn their ideas into thriving businesses. At Cooley, Alex advises companies and investors across the full venture life cycle – from formation and fundraising to strategic transactions like venture financings, acquisitions and exits. He helps startups and investors build and scale transformative companies in a range of industries, including technology, cybersecurity, agtech, biotech, insurtech and consumer products. In addition to his work with high-growth companies, Alex regularly advises nonprofit organizations on formation, corporate governance and compliance matters. |
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Patrick J. Sweeney II Entrepreneur, Operating Partner & Advisor, ODIN Technologies Patrick J. Sweeney II is a globally recognized keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and expert in high performance and decision-making under pressure. With more than two decades of experience across AI, SaaS, and emerging technologies, he has founded multiple companies, built patented innovations, and led teams at the forefront of rapid-growth industries. Patrick has worked with over 500 CEOs, Fortune-level organizations, elite athletes, and Navy SEALs, helping them transform fear into a competitive advantage. His keynotes combine neuroscience, real-world business experience, and compelling storytelling to deliver practical frameworks that drive courage, clarity, and execution. A Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Fear Is Fuel, Patrick brings unmatched credibility, from building and exiting companies to competing as an elite endurance athlete. His presentations are known for being high-energy, actionable, and deeply transformative, equipping audiences to make bold decisions and perform at their peak when it matters most. Patrick speaks worldwide on leadership, innovation, resilience, and the science of fear, empowering individuals and organizations to unlock their full potential. |
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Rus Abuzov Assistant Professor of Business Administration, UVA Darden School of Business Rus is an assistant professor at the Darden School of Business in the Finance area. His research interests lie in venture capital, private equity, and financial intermediation. His work has been presented at leading academic conferences, such as the American Finance Association, the SFS Cavalcade North America, and the European Finance Association, and has been published in leading finance journals such as Journal of Financial Economics and Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. Since joining Darden, Rus has taught core "Financial Management and Policies", electives on "Entrepreneurial Finance and Private Equity", “Venture Capital Finance”. Before that, he taught courses in finance at HEC Lausanne, where he received a Ph.D. in Finance. He was a visiting scholar at Stanford GSB. Prior to his Ph.D. studies, Rus worked as a consultant at Ernst & Young. |
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Joe Del Guercio Head of Private Investments, Brown Advisory Joe is a partner and Head of Private Investment Advisory at Brown Advisory. Prior to joining the firm, Joe spent 21 years at Clark Enterprises, a $2B family office based in the Washington DC region. Joe started at Clark managing Mr. Clark's single family office private equity portfolio which he and the team grew to over $700mm and then led the $1.4 billion spenddown of the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation. Joe took over managing the entire family office in 2020. Before Clark, Joe worked in strategic planning at LPL Financial and in investment banking at Robertson & Stephens and Goldman, Sachs & Co. |
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Chris Camacho Co-Founder & COO, Abstract Chris Camacho is Co-Founder and COO of Abstract, where he helps lead company strategy, go-to-market execution, growth, and customer engagement. At Abstract, he works closely with customers and the market on how modern security teams can better use security data to improve operations and reduce complexity. Before co-founding Abstract, Chris served as Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Revenue Officer at Flashpoint, where he helped scale the company through a private equity acquisition and multiple integrations, and earlier held senior cybersecurity leadership roles at Bank of America, leading initiatives across security operations, threat management, and incident response. |
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Rebecca Haydock CEO, Venture Central Rebecca Haydock is CEO of Venture Central, an entrepreneurial ecosystem advancement organization in Central Virginia that is home to the 434 Accelerator, the Food & Beverage Production Accelerator, and a growing portfolio of programs that move high-growth companies from concept to capital. Her self proclaimed career of business ADD includes founding and selling two businesses, managing a portfolio of 20 early-stage tech companies, serving as COO of two Virginia biotech firms — one acquired by a pharmaceutical company, and building non profit entrepreneur service organizations. During the pandemic she built the Central Virginia SBDC to achieve top-awarded status in Virginia for five consecutive years, tripling clients served annually and overseeing more than $120M in capital access. She serves on the board of the Charlottesville Angel Network — which reviews 40-60 investment applications monthly — and is currently working to form a statewide Virginia angel investor network alongside exploring a sidecar co-investment fund to deepen the region's capital ecosystem. |
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Tom Roberts Principal, SAIC Ventures Tom Roberts is a 1989 graduate of the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce and earned his MBA from the Darden School in 1995. After four years in strategy consulting in Washington, DC, he spent seven years in investment banking with a Charlotte-based firm before transitioning into venture capital, where he is now in his 24th year. Over the course of his career, Tom has raised three early-stage venture funds and three growth-stage funds, and he remains actively focused on investing in disruptive technologies, particularly in AI and software. He lives with his wife, Pam (UVA Comm ’90), and they have three children: Sam (UVA Engineering ’22), Luke (USC), and Jane (UVA Engineering ’28). |
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Michael Stiefvater Director of the Business Investment Group, Arlington Economic Development Michael Stiefvater is the Director of Arlington Economic Development's (AED) Business Investment Group, where he oversees Arlington’s efforts in business recruitment and retention, international trade, and entrepreneur and tech ecosystem support. Notable achievements during his eight-plus years with AED include the relocation of CoStar Group's corporate headquarters, creation of the award-winning Arlington Innovation Fund, and the recent launch of National Innovation Quarter, an innovation district at the intersection of national competitiveness and technology. |
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Meg Vorland Managing Partner, Dcode Capital Meg Vorland is Managing Partner at Dcode Capital, where she invests from the firm’s inaugural fund in high-growth technology companies bringing mission-critical capabilities into the federal market. She is also Co-founder and Advisor at Dcode, where she built and scaled the firm into a trusted partner helping government adopt and field commercial technology at speed. Meg holds an MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. |
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Bob Creeden, Moderator Managing Director, UVA LVG Seed Fund Bob Creeden, Managing Director of the UVA LVG Seed Fund & New Ventures supports the creation of high-quality ventures based on University technologies and leads the day-to-day operations of two $10 million investment funds. Bob is tasked with building initiatives to identify opportunities for the creation of new ventures based on technologies in the LVG portfolio, recruiting talented executives, and entrepreneurs-in-residence, along with mentoring and advising newly formed companies. In addition to more than 30 years of experience in commercializing new technologies Bob has more than 20 years of experience as an early stage venture capitalist in the Boston area. He served as Vice President of the Massachusetts Technology Development Corporation, an early stage venture firm that funds technology-based companies in Massachusetts, General Partner at Egan-Managed Capital, a $150 million dollar Boston-based venture fund, and in 2005 he established and implemented the Partners Innovation Fund, ($35M) at Partners HealthCare.
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Gerry Brunk Managing Director, Lumira Ventures Gerry Brunk is a co-founder and Managing Director of Lumira Ventures, a healthcare venture capital firm. Based in Lumira’s Boston office, he has led investments in over thirty biotechnology and medical device companies, including HistoSonics, MAKO Surgical (acquired by Stryker), Pharmasset (acquired by Gilead Sciences), Endotronix (acquired by Edwards Lifesciences), Sound Blade Medical, enGene (Nasdaq: ENGN), and SpectraWAVE (acquired by Philips). Prior to beginning his investing career in 2002, Gerry was a founder of several venture-funded healthcare companies, served as an engagement manager in the healthcare practice at Boston Consulting Group, and was a member of the investment banking group of Credit Suisse First Boston.. He holds an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business and a BA from the University of Virginia where he studied biology and economics and sits on the investment committee of the UVA Seed Fund. |
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Ross Dunlap CEO, Ceres Nanosciences Ross Dunlap is the CEO and founder of Ceres Nanosciences, a life sciences company headquartered in Northern Virginia. Ceres develops and manufactures industry-leading products and solutions that enhance clinical diagnostics and biosecurity applications. Prior to Ceres, Ross held senior management positions in the business consulting practices of Arthur Andersen and Washington Consulting. Ross is deeply involved in the life sciences community in Virginia and the broader Capital Region, where he serves on several boards, including as the Chair of the Virginia BIO Association. Ross graduated from the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia. |
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Andy Krouse President & CEO, SlateBio Andrew (Andy) Krouse is the President and Chief Executive Officer at Slate Bio, a biotechnology company focused on immunotherapies. Krouse’s background includes leadership roles within the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors. Previously, Krouse served as President & Chief Executive Officer at TAU Therapeutics, contributing to business strategy formulation and organizational leadership within the pharmaceutical industry. Currently Krouse also serves as Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Virginia, fostering innovation and mentoring startups. Krouse holds a Master's degree from Georgetown University, a Bachelor of Science from the University of Maryland, |
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Kyp Sirinakis Co-founder & Managing Partner, Epidarex Capital Kyp has over 30 years of experience building and leading companies as both an early-stage venture capitalist and a senior start-up executive. She is the Co-founder Epidarex Capital, a transatlantic venture firm investing in emerging hubs managing over $200 million. Kyp has launched six funds to date and is an experienced board and investment committee member. |
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Haley Bryant Partner, Hustle Fund Haley is a Partner at Hustle Fund, investing at pre-seed with a focus on critical industries. Hustle Fund invests early, works alongside founders to support fundraising and customer acquisition through their global 2,500-member Angel Squad community and Redwood School program, and hiring through Ground Floor Growth, Hustle Fund's talent collective. Before Hustle Fund, she helped startups scale as the COO of Animalz and angel invested in 50+ startups, including AngelList, Loft Orbital, Sacra, and Rain. |
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Richard Seewald, Keynote Managing Partner, Evolution Equity Partners Richard Seewald founded Evolution in 2008 and leads investments in cybersecurity, enterprise software and data analytics and brings over three decades of investment, operational and entrepreneurial experience to his role. Richard is a member of the firm’s investment committee. Under his leadership, Evolution has become a premier venture capital firm raising over $ 2 Billion of capital to invest in category-defining software companies including SecurityScorecard, Quantexa, Pentera, Carbon Black, Talon, Arctic Wolf, Aqua Security, AVG Technologies, OpenDNS and ProtectAI, in organizations where Richard serves as a member of the boards of directors. Prior to establishing Evolution, Richard was a Partner at Alpha Associates, a venture capital and private equity firm where he led a multibillion dollar investment platform with investments in software, media and infrastructure companies including as founding investor in NejTV and Sixty-K. Richard holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, a Juris Doctor from the New York Law School and a B.A. from Pace University. He was awarded a Kauffman Fellowship by the Palo Alto based Society of Kauffman Fellows. He sits on the global advisory board of the University of Chicago Booth School Of Business. |
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Joel Flesher, Moderator Exec MBA Candidate, UVA Darden School of Business Joel Flesher is an Executive MBA Program candidate in the Class of 2026 and currently works as a Regional Sales Manager of Strategic Accounts at Splunk, a cybersecurity technology company acquired by Cisco. Before that, Joel was part of a VC-backed startup in NYC that was acquired by ADP. Earlier in his career, Joel worked in management consulting, specializing in go-to-market strategy and commercial effectiveness at Corporate Executive Board (now part of Gartner). During his MBA journey, Joel has served as President of the Darden Professional Degree Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital Club, where he led a team to design and deliver programming that connected students with leading investors and founders for thought leadership and networking opportunities. |
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Rodney Sullivan, Moderator Executive Director of the Mayo Center for Asset Management, UVA Darden School of Business As executive director of the Richard A. Mayo Center for Asset Management, Rodney Sullivan has primary leadership and managerial responsibility for the administration and oversight of all of the center’s activities. Sullivan joins the Darden School from AQR Capital Management, the Greenwich, Connecticut, based investment management firm where he served as vice president and head of investment content. An investment industry leader with an extensive track record of developing and communicating innovative research and ideas, Sullivan helped establish and led the firm’s editorial board and was a founding member of the AQR Asset Management Institute at London Business School. Prior to joining AQR, Sullivan worked as head of publications and editor of the Financial Analysts Journal at CFA Institute for more than 10 years, including oversight responsibilities for a suite of publication services aimed at the investment community. A Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst, Sullivan holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in economics from Virginia Commonwealth University. Rodney also currently serves as an editor for the Journal of Alternative Investments published by CAIA Association. He lives in Charlottesville with his family. |
