Angel Rising: Conscious Investing and Catalyzing Technology for Good


Angel Rising organized jointly by startAD, the global startup accelerator of NYU Abu Dhabi and investment platform VentureSouq, has grown to be a leading voice demystifying and encouraging the cause of technology startup investments from the UAE.
This 6th edition of Angel Rising, in collaboration with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Sharjah Entrepreneurship Centre (Sheraa), focused on the topic of ‘Conscious Investing and Catalyzing Technology for Good’. The symposium convened global and local thought leaders in the startup community in order to build awareness, access, and a better understanding of what it takes to become an investor into mission-driven technology enabled companies.
This year Angel Rising took place virtually as the culmination of the core modules of the Conscious Investor Fellowship.
Speakers
Agenda
November 24 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Event | Time | Speaker(s) | Moderator | Description |
Welcome Address |
6:05 – 6:10 PM | John Tate (CEO of Tamkeen) | – | – |
The Acceleration of Impact Investing: The State of the Market | 6:10 – 7:00 PM | Rehana Nathoo (Founder and CEO, Spectrum Impact) | – | In the decade of its existence, impact investing has grown to be a $700 Billion industry. The industry attracted record funding in the year 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic shifted attention to the most pressing challenges of our time. Drawing on her experience with working with the biggest names in the ecosystem, Rehana Nathoo reflects on the evolution and state of the impact industry—its past, present and future. |
Break | 7:00 – 7:15 PM | – | – | – |
When Impact Outlasts your Investment Horizon | 7:15 – 8:00 PM | Vidya Vasu-Devan (Director, Strategic Investment Fund, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), Claudine Emeott (Senior Director, Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund), Ik Kanu (Founding Partner, Atlantica Ventures) | Sonia Weymuller (VentureSouq) | With insights from leading Foundations, Corporate Funds and VCs, this panel explores the spectrum of sustainable investing and how lasting impact is created across industries and asset classes. The panel delves into how impact investing isn’t solely an asset class, but an ethos that can be applied across industries and markets by balancing risk and intentionality. |
November 25 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Event | Time | Speaker(s) | Moderator | Description |
Panel: Optimizing Profit Through Purpose | 6:00 – 6:45 PM | Caitin Dolkart (Co-Founder, Flare), Alexander Gershenson (CEO, SupplyShift), Tito Ovia (Co-founder & Head of Growth, Helium Health) | Aby Sam Thomas (Editor in Chief, Entrepreneur Middle East) | Combining the invisible hand of markets with the invisible heart of markets, this panel offers a showcase of remarkable entrepreneurs who have harnessed the power of technology to solve some of the most pressing issues of our time. Cutting across industries and geographies, these inspiring founders are creating scalable impact alongside profits for their communities and investors. |
Break | 6:45 – 7:00 PM | – | – | – |
Pitching Session 1 & 2 | 7:00 – 8:00 PM | Pulse, Cycled, Jade Autism, Red Sea Farms, UrbanKisaan, Edama | Hana Barakat (Interim Director, startAD) & Jeremy Shorter (Program Lead, startAD) | Watch live pitches from exceptional startup founders leveraging technology for the greater good – this includes a Q&A moderated by seasoned investors, enabling participants to understand how to assess a pitch and what key questions to ask when assessing an investment opportunity in this space. |
Closing Notes | 8:00 – 8:15 PM | Ramesh Jagannathan (startAD) | – | – |