Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Alissa Finerman
VC Fireside Chat Panel Event (in-person event) Tuesday June 14th at 6pm PDT
Please join the Wharton Club of Southern California for a special in-person VC Fireside Chat Panel event focused on the critical components of building a successful start-up such as growth, fundraising, hiring, and more. The panelists will share insights and strategies to consider as you start building your company. This event is open to all, in an effort to bring together founders, VC investors, and those interested in the VC space. We hope to see you there!
Date/Time: Tuesday, June 14, 2022, 6 - 8pm PDT
Location: This is an in-person event in Santa Monica, location will be shared after registration
Pricing: Members free; Non-members, $20
About the Panelists:
Brett Brewer
Brett Brewer is a Co-Founder and Managing Director at CrossCut Ventures. Prior to co-founding Crosscut Ventures, Brett was a serial entrepreneur who has built, operated, and sold a number of Internet media companies. In 1998, he co-founded Intermix Media, which launched several online businesses including Myspace.com. Brett sold Intermix to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. in 2005 for $680M. After leaving News Corp, Brett became President and Vice Chairman of Adknowledge, and helped grow the business from $40M to $300M in revenue over the span of seven years.
Brett is an active angel investor and a pillar in the SoCal tech community. He received a B.A. in Business and Economics from the University of California Los Angeles.
Chris Nakutis Taylor WG11
Chris Nakutis Taylor is the Founding Partner of Nomad Ventures, an early stage venture fund focused on consumer technology, marketplaces, and new ways for everyday people to make money on the internet. Notable early investments include: Substack, Cameo, Zoe, Alt, Intro, and ZLeague. Previously, Chris founded and subsequently sold an ecommerce company with fellow Wharton alums, was one of the first 200 employees at both Uber and Bird, and was a member of the Uber Eats founding team. While at Wharton, Chris was the Co-President of the Private Equity and Venture Capital Club. He lives in Brentwood with his wife, Liz, aso a WG11 and COO of an LA-based early stage music startup Encore Technologies, and their 3 children, Caroline, Jackson, and Olivia.
Maria De Santis
Maria De Santis is an Italian/Taiwanese native who began her career in the tech startup ecosystem in Madrid, Spain, working as Head of Business Development for a venture backed seed stage startup building a consumer facing gamified platform in the mobility space. Today, Maria is a Principal at Muse Capital, a seed stage venture fund investing in consumer tech with a focus on underserved markets. Portfolio companies include Clarity Money (sold to Goldman Sachs), Oath Care (telehealth for new mothers), Midi (disrupting the $50bn Menopause space), Mayvven, Motherly, and Beekeepers Naturals. Within Web 3, they are early investors in Metalink & Flickplay. They are staunch advocates for diversity and proud to have a diverse portfolio which is 50% minority/female led. Maria received a Master's degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business in 2019.
About the Moderator:
Alex Poscente W'21
Alex Poscente is a serial entrepreneur from Dallas, Texas who currently lives in Los Angeles, California. Growing up, her passions have always rested at the intersection of art, technology, and impact. At 10, she started a summer camp for kids, at 16, a city-wide art collection company, at 19, an augmented reality platform, and at 22, a remote consultancy for top students and graduates called Ivy Insights. She is a Z Fellow, Launch House Entrepreneur in Residence, and angel investor. Alex attended The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania, where she graduated with a B.S. in Economics and a minor in Creative Writing.
About the Hosts:
Alissa Finerman WG98
Wayne Hao WG11
