Episodes
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Shannon Bradshaw, SVP, Viam: Scaling Robotics Adoption Through Developer Education.
Robotics adoption is increasing, and the talent pool building robotics applications is changing: the ever-curious and experimental software engineer is joining the mix! Recognizing this shift, Viam has launched Viam Education, an initiative led by Shannon Bradshaw, SVP of Product and Education…
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Tim Stuart, CEO, AMP: Scaling Hardware/Robotics for Enterprise & Funding Physical AI Growth.
The first thing we noticed when we spoke to Tim Stuart for our latest episode of Humans Who Build was his calm and clarity of thought.That clarity reflected in his customer understanding, which led Dennis Bagley and his team at SPSA to partner with Tim's team at AMP. In November 2025, SPSA signed…
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Dennis Bagley, Executive Director, SPSA on Government Contracts, Underwriting Tech Risk & Fee Structures.
Public waste authorities are increasingly looking for ways to recover more material, extend landfill life, improve long-term economics, and modernize processing infrastructure. In its 2024 assessment, the EPA estimated that the US needs $36-43bn of investment to modernize recycling infrastructure...
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Saman Farid, Founder, Formic, on RaaS, Scaling from 0-150 Factories, Customer Service for Robotics.
In our first episode, we discussed that 98% of factories in the US are small and medium-sized businesses. But what does it actually take to deploy robots across these factories? It is not only about the technology, but also about financing, deployment, integration, maintenance, updates, and...
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Edward Mehr, CEO, Machina Labs, on Scaling Advanced Manufacturing Factories, Working w/ the DOW.
Manufacturing is not new to the US. It has been a core foundation of its economic rise. But the way we think about manufacturing is undergoing a structural shift. While traditional assembly-line production models optimized for low-mix, high-volume output (e.g., automotive) continue to exist,...
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Adi Prasad, CEO, Matter, on OEM Decision-Making for New Tech Solutions, Autonomous Factories, Physical AI.
Technological innovation in industrial automation is strong. But technology alone is not enough, especially when looking to scale your solutions at some of the most sophisticated OEMs in the world. As Adi Prasad puts it, manufacturing is a systems problem! With over a decade of OEM wisdom, in the...
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Alex Huckstepp, Co-Founder, Uptool, on AI Software for Small Manufacturers, Selling Into Factories.
98% of manufacturing firms in the US are small and high-mix businesses. Yet most conversations around industrial automation today are centered on robots and humanoids. What about automation for the businesses that actually make up the majority? Alex Huckstepp is building AI software to accelerate...
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Erin Miles, Partner at Bridgewater Associates, on Building The Alpha Engine with Tech and Fundamentals.
In an increasingly complex investment world impacted by advanced technology, global pandemics, and wars, it has become important to ground our processes in fundamentals, developed through an understanding of how the world works and rigorous stress-testing. Erin Miles, Partner and Member of the...
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Loretta McCarthy, Co-CEO of Golden Seeds, on Building a Movement, Advice for Raising Angel Money.
Very rarely you come across people who define their jobs as building a "movement." We have been lucky to call Loretta McCarthy, Co-CEO and Managing Partner, Golden Seeds, a guest at Women Who Build, as she is exactly that person. Golden Seeds is one of the largest and most active angel investment...
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Former FARFETCH Chief Fashion Officer, Elizabeth von der Goltz, Shares Secrets of Luxury Fashion.
How we dress defines our personality in the eyes of others, but most importantly, in our own eyes! Our Women Who Build guest today, Elizabeth von der Goltz, has been at the forefront of building global fashion companies that dress us. Known for her sharp ability to spot the brands we wear and...
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How Neha Jogani Narang, Former CMO of Roblox, on Growing Roblox Followers by 15 million in 2 Years, Leading Big-tech Events, Motherhood.
TikTok’s U.S. usage has surged dramatically, with over 21% of Americans now tuning in weekly. But what does it actually take to grow a brand into a TikTok sensation? We sit down with Neha Jogani Narang, former CMO of Roblox. Under her guidance, Roblox became one of TikTok’s largest brand…
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How Mariah Chase Built & Sold ELOQUII to Walmart?
Starting and scaling a business is one thing, but leading it through an acquisition is a whole new journey. 💡 Mariah Chase, who led the sale of ELOQUII to Walmart and her first company, Send the Trend to QVC, joins us on Women Who Build to share her insights. Beyond the big outcomes, she dives...
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Lindsay Costigan, Head of Prime Service Sales (Western Region) at BNP Paribas, on Financing Hedge Funds, Common Traits of Successful Hedge Fund Managers.
Hedge funds are known to be one of the most sophisticated capital allocators. They operate multiple strategies. For example, Bridgewater Associates follows "macro" strategy and Citadel follows "global quantitative" strategy, in addition to others. To finance these hedge funds requires an...
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Courtney Leimkuhler, Founding Partner, Springbank Collective on Investing in Critical Infra for Working Families.
From Goldman Sachs to Gender-Lens Investing: Courtney Leimkuhler's JourneyJoin us on Women Who Build as we sit down with Courtney Leimkuhler, a trailblazer in high finance! With experience at Goldman Sachs, NYSE, and Marsh, Courtney is currently revolutionizing "gender-lens investing" at…
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Sonam Velani & Laura Fox, Co-founder & Managing Partners at Streetlife Ventures on Capital Stack for Startups in Urban Infrastructure and City Approach to Investing in Climate.
Many of us live in cities for the convenient infrastructure that they give us access to: Buildings, energy, water, transportation, Citi Bikes. ;) Success and innovation in these areas require multiple stakeholders coming together. Sonam Velani and Laura Fox have dedicated their careers to doing...
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Melina Bergkamp, Executive Director, JP Morgan Venture Capital Relationships.
A technology startup, just like any other company, needs financial solutions. The nature of these solutions may vary for it but that is exactly why a startup may need the sophistication and stability of a platform like JP Morgan to help navigate its financial needs. While JP Morgan is…
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Natalie Pierce, Partner, Gunderson Dettmer, on How Founders Can Work w/ Law Firms.
Be it a startup or a large company, the most important element of any company is its team. In the increasingly productive, multicultural, and rapidly evolving world, it is important to have robust agreements in place, follow regulations of different countries, integrate the workforce effectively...
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Kim Caldbeck, Operating Advisor at Bessemer Venture Partners and Former CMO, Coursera on 5X-ing Revenue at Coursera and Building Marketing Teams.
In today's world, you may be building the best product or business, but you cannot go far without the right branding. And this is true for both consumer and B2B offerings. There is a reason Salesforce and Shopify are top-of-mind for global businesses. There is a reason why Apple and Lululemon are...
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Megha Garibaldi, Chief Growth Officer, The Atlantic, on Growing Media Businesses.
31% Americans say that they are constantly online. Media is an industry that we interact with at least once a day. It provides us with daily news & insights, and largely informs our ideologies and sometimes, our personal identities. Yet we know so little about the media business. On the latest...
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Urvashi Tyagi, Former CTO of ResMed & ADP on The Why, What, and How of CTOs
Almost every day, we have at least 4-5 interactions with AI or about AI. In a world full of AI solutions, funding, companies, and use cases, it takes a master of technology to separate the wheat from the chaff. We spoke to one such master, Urvashi Tyagi, on the most recent episode of Women Who...
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Luisa Sucre, Principal, Collaborative Fund on Investing in Climate & Latin America.
It is only the most fortunate of us who are both able to use their skills to benefit their home country. Luisa Sucre, Principal of Collaborative Fund is doing exactly that - she identified the growth potential in Latin America and launched the investment operations in the region at her fund. She…
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Alyse Dunn, Co-founder of CareCopilot on Eldercare Market, Personal Finance of Founders, Healthcare Regulations.
Losing a loved one is painful. But making something impactful using the learning from your journey of caregiving is beautiful. Alyse Dunn is the Founder of CareCopilot, a platform that takes care of all administrative tasks related to caregiving. She started the company after caregiving for both...
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Jen Berry & Ryden Brittany, Co-founders & Co-CEOs of The Mycelorium on Investing Syndicates, Working w/ Ray Dalio, Shiny Objects vs Opportunities.
Everyone wants to achieve their highest potential. To achieve it, we often scramble for a new idea or a new set of people to help. However, sometimes best ideas come from helping those around us. Jen Berry and Ryden Brittany of The Mycelorium are doing exactly that. The Mycelorium is a community...
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Emily Hochman, Co-founder and CEO of Wellory on Constructing a Pre-seed Investor Pitch, Business Pivots: B2C to B2B2C, Company Acquisition at Early Stage.
Healthy food is essential to nourishing us. And it does not need to be necessarily expensive, it just needs to be right. With this thesis, Emily Hochman started Wellory when she decided to NOT embark on a lifetime of medication that her doctors suggested when she was diagnosed with PCOS and...
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Vanessa Larco, Partner, NEA on Investing in AI, Rewind Series A, Early Stage to Pre-IPO Boardroom of Robinhood.
We are so excited to launch the most recent episode of Women Who Build with Vanessa Larco. While Vanessa is many things to many people, we particularly remember her as someone who doesn’t give up too soon. She got her first pony as a kid. Despite her mother convincing her to take swimming…
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Gilwoo Lee on Autonomous Greenhouse, Vertically Integrated Business Models, and Positive Reinforcement.
With the world’s population likely to increase by nearly another billion people over the next two decades and incomes rising, total food consumption will likely rise by 50-70% by 2050. However, the percentage of people who work in agriculture around the world has decreased by 18% in the last…
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Shellye Archambeau, Former CEO of MetricStream and Board Member, Verizon on Igniting Ambition, Toughest Leadership Lessons as a Tech CEO, and Working with Vinod Khosla.
Few of us are lucky enough to recognize very early on what we want to become. Shellye Archambeau decided as a teenager that she wanted to be a Tech CEO and went on to become the CEO of MetricStream, a recognized global leader in governance, risk, and compliance software solutions. She currently...
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Sylvia Acevedo, Former CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA; Board Member, Qualcomm on Finding Your Superpower, Creating Opportunities, and Board Memberships.
Everyone wants to achieve their highest potential. And resilience is one of the most important ingredients to achieve that. Many of us know Sylvia Acevedo as the CEO of The Girl Scouts of the USA, a Board Member of Qualcomm, and the Presidential Commissioner who drove President Obama’s initiative...
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Kate Henningsen, Co-founder and COO, Arcadia, on Community Solar, Working with Utilities, and Building for Scale.
In a world where we are bombarded by stories of wars and recessions, if we practice an abundance mindset, we can still grow! This practice helps us to focus on the future rather than the past. Kate Henningsen is one of the few leaders I have met who swear by this practice, and I am excited to…
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Natalie Rens, CEO and Founder, Astrea, on Adventure & Entrepreneurship, Smart Homes on Earth & Mars.
It is often said that the most successful businesspeople follow their curiosity. Blending that with personal experience or association with the problem is a bonus! What is even better is to fight through every logistical hurdle to build towards your dream. I am so inspired by Natalie Rens’ life…
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Joanna Lichter, Associate Director, Venture Investing at Emerson Collective on What Constitutes a Collective, Menopause, and Why Clarity is Kindness.
As investors, we are constantly looking for how we can add value to portfolio companies. While focus is important in company building, thinking systemically about your company can unlock opportunities like never before. And this practice has become increasingly relevant in today's world where...
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Yin Lu, Partner, MCJ Collective on Building a Community at MCJ Collective, Investing in Climate, Finding What you Like.
Companies are made of teams, and these teams not only comprise founders and investors, but also operators, policy makers, and so many other stakeholders. And it is in hard problems like climate change and education that all have to come together to make a difference. Yin Lu loves mobilizing…
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Monica Bhatia, Co-founder and CEO, Equii on Fermentation, Taking Products from Lab to Scale, and Relationships.
The global health and wellness foods market is poised to grow at 6.1% to $1,495bn by 2032. However, purchasing healthy food is complex - sometimes we buy new food types and find it hard to incorporate them into our daily diets and sometimes the food we buy is just not tasty. Monica is solving...
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Sarah Hinkfuss, Partner, Bain Capital Ventures on Climate Fintech, Building Trust in Partnerships, Content that Resonates, Leadership Lessons from Sailing.
Companies are built by people, and when investing in companies, it is vital to bring out the human in you to be the best partner to their people. Sarah Hinkfuss brings humanness and trust to her investments at Bain Capital Ventures. Sarah is a Partner at the fund and works with growth-stage...
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Emma Silverman, Principal, TMV on Building Flamingo within Harry's, Investing @TMV, Creative Writing, Ideating with Parents!
When people think about building, startups come to mind. We often forget that building a new investment firm takes a similar amount of blood and sweat, and most importantly, commitment! In this episode of Women who Build, Emma Silverman shares her journey of building TMV along with her most…
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Amie Patel, Partner & CEO, Elevar Equity on Building for Low-income Communities, Captables for Impact Investments, Happiness as a Path to Success.
There is a nuance to building companies and products for low-income communities. In this episode of Women who Build, Amie Patel covers how she is helping entrepreneurs build for exactly these communities at Elevar Equity. Amie describes herself as a “Motel Patel”, which until now I thought was a...
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Ashley Aydin, Principal, Vamos Ventures on Building a New Fund, Supporting Founders, Culturally Competent Healthcare.
This episode is really close to my heart as I speak with Ashley Aydin who is working to bring more diversity to the world of entrepreneurship and venture capital through her work at Vamos. Ashley represents the true spirit of Women who Build and is one of the most helpful people I know in the New...
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Monica Varman, Partner, G2 Venture Partners on Evaluating Food & Agri Businesses, S-1 Teardowns, Importance of Writing.
Global decarbonization efforts over the next three decades will require a $100tn investment, generating a massive opportunity for private capital to deploy and drive the energy transition. And Monica Varman sits at the forefront of this. Monica is a Partner at G2 Venture Partners. She was most...
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Introducing the Third Edition of the Women Who Build Podcast by Shreya Bakliwal.
Over the last two seasons of Women who Build and two waves of the pandemic, we know when it comes to company building, a few things matters for sure - Building for the long-term from early on Learning from what is happening around the world, sectors, and stages Focusing on personal lives and how...
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Abhilasha Sinha, Chief Product Officer, Open Secret on Connecting the Dots, Readying Companies for Innovation, the Power of Spirituality, Community, and Coaching in Business Success.
We are often asked by our dear ones to build a career around what we “love” doing. What is not talked about is how to find what we love, and this process requires a LOT of reflection. Abhilasha Sinha is one of the few individuals who have done the hard work to ultimately find what she loves and...
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Kanika Mayar, Senior Executive Director, Vertex Ventures on Late to Early Stage Investing, Healthcare in India, Finding Answers to Hard Problems, and Investing in Deep Markets.
Many of us who start our careers in investment banking get drawn towards startup investing. But there are several stages to this investing - early, growth, and late. Kanika Mayar brings her unique experience of investment banking at Goldman Sachs and startup investing across all stages at IFC and...
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Tarana Lalwani, Founding Partner of InnoVen Capital on Venture Debt, Negotiation, State of fintech, Sports and Consistency.
Whenever we think of startup financing, venture capital comes to mind. Coming from investment banking, I realize that there are other ways to fund your company based on your goals and situations. Venture debt is one such instrument and Tarana Lalwani is leading the way in India when it comes to...
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Sneha Biswas, Founder of Early Steps Academy on Importance of Confidence and Real-world Skills, Building Education Products for Kids, Building your Legacy, Thinking Long-term.
If schools, a disproportionate amount of focus is put into cognitive skills. A high achiever is defined as the person scoring the “highest” in Math and Science. But as we grow up, we realize that the most successful people possess strong non-cognitive skills like confidence and collaboration and...
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Sonam Motwani, Founder of Karkhana.io on Manufacturing in India, Modelling Finances Before Starting Up, Having Honest Conversations with Yourself.
As consumers, we always see finished products - from our favourite cars to favourite soaps. One of the most important sectors that impacts what we get in our hands is the manufacturing sector. This episode of Women who Build is extremely special for me as Sonam is probably the only startup…
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Matilde Giglio, Co-founder of Even.in on Health Insurance in India, Building the Best Teams, Innovating as an Outsider.
As Indians, most of us have had this day where we decided to buy an insurance plan and by the end of the exercise, felt hopeless and clueless. Some of us have had to pay extraordinarily large sums for ourselves or our family members, which has often left us wondering why we did not avail…
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Jo Pattabiraman, Founder of Grow Fit on Following your Curiosity, Cloud Kitchens, Right Market Timing, Being a Single Founder.
Neuroscience confirms that to be truly happy, human beings will always need something more. To seek this “more”, we must ensure that our bodies and brains exhibit their peak performance, and what we eat clearly defines this performance. In India, while we like our Samosas and Chola Bhaturas, we...
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Sanna Vohra, Founder, The Wedding Brigade on Creating Adoption for Online Wedding Shopping, >1 million Social Media Followers, Why Customer Experience Matters, and the Power of NOW.
Most of us look forward to the wedding of a relative or a friend where we can dance and eat! For some of us, our weddings got planned by our parents and relatives right after we entered college. Because apparently, it takes a LOT of time and effort to organize one. In this episode of Women who...
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Namita Dalmia, Karuna Jain, Jayshree Patodi of Enzia Ventures on Why Education, Health, Environment; Edtech and Health in the Next Decade; Working Together for Better Outcomes.
We have seen 2, 3, 4, 5 women investment partners at venture capital firms. Have we seen firms where all three investment partners are women? Not too many! I am so excited about today’s podcast with Enzia Ventures. The team at Enzia has been an early supporter of Women who Build. Enzia is an...
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Shruti, Founder and CEO of ApnaKlub on Pivoting during COVID, Resilience and Spirituality in Entrepreneurship, Building the Right Teams, Using WhatsApp as a Communication Tool.
Whenever I complained about “bad luck”, my mom always said that success is about what you make out of a situation, good or bad. Shruti, Founder and CEO of ApnaKlub is a true personification of this. I am so happy to do this episode of Women who Build with her, as I have personally followed her...
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Introducing the Second Edition of the Women Who Build Podcast by Shreya Bakliwal.
Most of you who know me, know that my niece inspired me to start Women who Build. She is a 14-year-old baker who wants to launch her bakery business and wants to learn how. And now, my listeners encourage me to keep it going (see image). In the first edition of Women who Build, we launched >10...
About this show
Vision: To enable women to achieve their highest potential. Mission: Women Who Build inspires young women through a global podcast where women leaders in technology and business share practical steps they follow to achieve their goals.
Hosted by
Shreya Bakliwal
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