Hard Tech Summit

The future is being built in Boston and NYC. Get a first look this Tough Tech Week.

Campus Deep Tech and MassVentures are collaborating with SOSV, Engine Ventures, and Sumitomo Heavy Industries to bring together a curated group of startups, investors, industry leaders, and academics from Boston and NYC, bridging these top innovation hubs to kick off Tough Tech Week.

Experience the most transformative technologies being developed for the physical world and build new relationships with founders, investors, and industry coming from around the world.

Campus Deep Tech accelerates innovation by equipping entrepreneurial researchers and startups with a community of peers across universities and connecting them with the right resources, investors, and people from industry.

Location: 10 Prospect St, Somerville, MA

Parking is available in the garage next door at 20 Prospect (standard parking fees apply). Public street parking nearby is a cheaper alternative.

Startup Pitch Interest Form (Pre-Seed - Series A): https://forms.gle/eU4MPMM5qP7457heA

Researcher Pitch Interest Form: https://forms.gle/eU4MPMM5qP7457heA

The Summit Includes 4 Segments:

Morning Session (9 AM - 11 AM) - Physical AI, Robotics, Sensing, Electronics, Motors, Magnets, and more…

• Featured Panelist, Speakers, and Judges:

• Elaine Chen (Tufts University)
• Trey Hewell (ECM PCB Stator Tech)
• Ben Chostner (Mass Robotics)
• Kimberly Blakemore (ADVentures)
• Mikell Taylor (General Motors)
• Will Koffell (NVIDIA Inception Program)
• Vijay Narasimhan (M Ventures)
• Kazuki Tanida (Sumitomo Heavy Industries)
• Lauren Morimoto (Activate)
• Daniel Slesinski (ARPA-E)
• Oliver Mitchell (FF Ventures)
• Samuel Lipoff (Liminal)
• Sophie Hsiao (Liminal)
• Pete Mathias (General Partner @ Reveille VC)
• Michael Campos (EIP)

Midday Session (11:30 AM - 1:30 PM) Applications for Nanotech: Advanced Materials, Photonics, Quantum, and more…

• Featured Panelist, Speakers, and Judges:

• Allison Hinckley (Thought Partners)
• Susan Schofer (Chief Science Officer & Partner @ SOSV/HAX)
• Jacob Trevino (Nanotech NYC/Columbia Nano Initiative)
• Sara Shabani (Cota Capital)
• Aimee Rose (Managing Partner @ Portmanteau Capital)
• Borja Peropadre (IBM)
• Alaina Hartnett (Engine Ventures)
• David Needle (Fine Structure Ventures)
• Yousef Algoos (Misk Leadership)

Boston Deep Tech Ecosystem Leaders (2:20 PM - 3:00 PM)

• Featured Panelist/Speakers:

• Vinit Nijhawan (Managing Director @ MassVentures)
• Rhett Smith (CEO @ The Engine)
• Caitlin Reimers Brumme (CEO @ MassChallenge)
• Alicia Barton (CEO @ Vineyard Offshore)
• Georgina Campbell Flatter (CEO @ Greentown Labs)

Afternoon Session (3:00 PM - 5:00 PM) Climate Tech, Energy, Critical Minerals, Hard-to-Decarbonize Industries, and more…

• Featured Panelist, Speakers, and Judges:

• Richard Collins (Engine Ventures)
• Apoorv Agrawal (MIT)
• Tomas Villalon (CTO / Founder @ Phoenix Tailings)
• Dena Weinstein (Equinor Ventures)
• Caroline Murray (Turner Construction)
• Ricky Sakai (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries)
• Nick Rancis (National Grid)
• Wynston Reed (Clean Energy Ventures)
• Sebastian Soltysik (Aligned Climate Capital)
• Sarah Istel (Managing Partner @ Cerberus Ventures)
• Sophie Purdom (Managing Partner @ Planeteer Capital)
• Brian Panoff (Shell Ventures)

Why Attend

• Discover breakthrough technologies
• Engage directly with scientists working at the frontier of extreme heat resilience and cooling technologies
• Identify investment and partnership opportunities
• Become part of the region's growing deep tech ecosystem

Programming

1. Breakfast sponsored by Fidelity Private Shares
2. Expert panels and reverse pitch presentations from industry leaders and investors
3. Startup presentations from across MIT, Harvard, BU, Tufts, Columbia, Princeton, Yale, and other leading universities
4. Researcher presentations providing a glimpse of the next generation of technologies being developed in world-class labs
5. Networking reception

Lead Sponsors

• Fidelity Private Shares
• Rho

Sponsors

• DLA Piper
• Insperity
• Columbia Angel Network

USQ is creating a new center for innovation, life sciences, and technology in the heart of Somerville—bringing together ambitious companies, entrepreneurs, researchers, and talent in a vibrant, transit-connected community. Anchored by the MBTA’s Union Square Station, USQ will ultimately encompass 20 acres of lab and office space alongside housing, hospitality, retail, and dynamic public spaces—including 10 Prospect, a state of the art lab sciences building with 60,000 square feet of plug-and-play lab space. USQ is a place where people and ideas converge to shape what’s next.

Learn more at discoverusq.com | Follow LI: @discoverusq   IG:  @discoverusq