HOT DEALS & HIGHER STANDARDS

Great investors don’t just find deals—they earn them. This panel explores where strong deal flow really comes from: networks, founder referrals, and co-investor relationships. But sourcing is only half the story, reputation is the engine behind access. Showing up, adding value, and following through builds trust. And trust makes you a competitive source of capital. When founders and co-investors know you’re reliable, better opportunities come your way.

POWER OF A SMALL CHECK

Small checks can be a strong early-stage strategy for investors and founders alike. It often allows more investors to participate, brings in broader experience into the mix, and builds a community of champions. This panel will share practical ways to make a small check count, especially through diversification. We’ll explore how this can be supported through syndicates and SPVs.

CHASING WATERFALLS

Cap tables look like spreadsheets right up until they decide who made money. This is a conversation for angels who want to go beyond the basic “percent owned” view and get fluent in how dilution, follow-on rounds, and terms shape risk and reward over time. We’ll walk through how different securities and terms can shift outcomes across current and future rounds of financing.

DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS

Every investor and founder has a mistake they’d rather not admit to a crowd—or at least not under normal conditions. In this interactive session, we’ll anonymously crowdsource real missteps and unpack them live on stage. Together, we’ll analyze what went wrong, what could have been done differently, and how to avoid repeating it. Because in venture, the best lessons rarely come from the wins.

DISRUPTING THE GAME

The sports industry isn’t just games, it’s hundreds of billions of dollars globally. This panel sits at the intersection of sports & fitness, startups, and innovation. Come for the sports energy, leave with sharper instincts for which opportunities have real momentum.

DIAGNOSIS: MARKET GAPS

It’s no secret that Minnesota is a healthcare heavyweight. Home to the Medical Alley ecosystem and big players like Mayo Clinic, Destination Medical Center, Medtronic, and UnitedHealthcare, we’re doing what we do best: getting specific. In this reverse pitch, clinical leaders flip the usual format and “pitch” the problems instead of the products. For angel investors, it’s a fast, candid way to sharpen your thesis, spot investable white space, and leave with a short list of build-worthy needs straight from the people who live the workflow.