Are you ready to tackle the funding gap for women entrepreneurs?

In this in-depth panel discussion hosted by Bonnie Hacking, Programme Manager at St Andrews Entrepreneurship Centre, we confront the unique challenges faced by female founders—where less than 3% of venture capital funding goes to female-founded firms, despite their massive contribution to the economy.

Bonnie is joined by:

Niki McKenzie, Joint Managing Director of Archangels; Kat Pohorecka, Co-Founder of Mude and Student Enterprise Associate at Edinburgh Innovations; and Simone Korsgaard Jensen, Founder and CEO of an AI company (about to come out of Stealth mode), joining us from Silicon Valley.

Simone shares her experience of running a "hyper-competitive process" to raise a $5 million pre-seed round in Silicon Valley, emphasizing the need for ambition and conviction in pitching. Niki provides the investor perspective, noting that “intellectual curiosity” and being presented with truly disruptive technologies are key hooks for angel investors.

Kat highlights the crucial need for tailored support and representation, discussing programs like Power Her Up and addressing the logistical difficulties women face, such as balancing care responsibilities with building a business. We also explore the complexities of co-founding, and Simone describes how moving fast and being aggressive in fundraising is often necessary to succeed.

Tune in to hear how female founders are navigating this landscape and seizing opportunities!

Thank you to the panel for joining me and to St Andrews University for hosting the event.

Search for "The Connect-Ed Network" on LinkedIn to join our community and access this episode when it drops! The Connected Network Podcast is made possible through funding and support from the Scottish Funding Council, The Challenges Group, The Community Lab and Podplistic.

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