From left to right, top row: John Lanza, Mark O’Toole, Ben Waters, Daniel Theobald, and Joyce Sidopoulos. Bottom row: Ninaad Sridharan, Syed Saquib, Niamh Donnelly, Marita McGinn, and Jeff Linnell.
The Robotics Startup Bootcamp, hosted by the MassRobotics Accelerator, returns to RoboBusiness this year. Spanning two sessions on the first day of the event in Santa Clara, Calif., it will cover topics ranging from the basics every entrepreneur should know at the start of their journey, to the keys to scaling and growing a startup.
During the first part of the bootcamp, which will take place at 11:45 a.m. PT on Oct. 16, experts will share best practices for many of the common challenges that can make or break a company. Experts will speak about topics such as customer discovery, developing a sales pipeline, intellectual property and trademarks, Media and Marketing 101, working with corporate partners, and how to fund a startup.
Speakers during the first part of the bootcamp include:
- John Lanza: Lanza is a partner at Foley Hoag LLC, which offers business-focused counsel on acquiring, transferring, and protecting intellectual property rights. With extensive experience advising both startups and established companies in a wide range of industries, he helps clients successfully navigate diverse business challenges. Lanza has been an adjunct professor and frequent guest lecturer, contributing insights on intellectual property and commercialization at Suffolk University School of Law, Boston University School of Law, Northeastern University School of Law, and the Georgia Institute of Technology.
- Mark O’Toole: Marketing 101 founder O’Toole helps companies build compelling brands and brand stories, develop aspirational rallying cries, create defined and clear messaging, and find the most appropriate channels through which to tell these stories. With deep public relations and marketing experience spanning startups and mature businesses alike, O’Toole is a relentless promoter on behalf of his clients.
- Ben Waters: With more than 10 years of experience working in electrical engineering and robotics, Waters is co-founder and CEO of WiBotic, which develops wireless charging systems for robots of all shapes and sizes. He has a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Washington, where he worked on wireless power technologies for implanted devices. At WiBotic, Waters leads a team of engineers, designers, and business developers dedicated to solving the challenges of powering autonomous robots.
- Daniel Theobald: Theobald is the founder and chairman of Vecna Robotics, a flexible, intelligent materials handling automation provider. He has been at the forefront of robotics for more than 20 years, working closely with DARPA, DoD, NASA, NIH, USDA, and many others to advance the use of robots and AI software to improve supply chain automation. In addition to founding Vecna, Theobald also co-founded MassRobotics, and Twisted Fields, an organic research farm dedicated to the advancement of automation in agriculture.
- Joyce Sidopoulos: Sidopoulos is co-founder and chief of operations at MassRobotics. In her role, she works on initiatives to expand the breadth and depth of the robotics ecosystem and develops high impact programs, highlighting startups technology, matching startups with funders and customers, engaging with robotics adoption, connecting talent to employers and working with academia to commercialize research. Sidopoulos is also a mentor and judge at accelerator and university entrepreneurship programs.
Second part of bootcamp focuses on scale
The Robotics Startup Bootcamp Part 2 will include fireside chats with founders who have raised funds and scaled their businesses. Discussions will include the role of accelerators, fundraising, hiring and team growth, and scaling to net positive revenue. Speakers during this part of the bootcamp include:
- Ninaad Sridharan: Sridharan is the co-founder of brd BOT, the robotic “kitchen in a box” for fried foods. Prior to this venture, he was a hardware engineer at Intuitive Surgical, designing robotic catheters for reprocessing compliance.
- Syed Saquib: Saquib is co-founder and CEO of brd BOT. He got his start in food tech working at KiwiBot, a sidewalk delivery platform.
- Niamh Donnelly: Donnelly is co-founder and chief robotics officer at Akara. The company develops robots and AI tools to help hospitals reduce costs and maximize utilization of their operating rooms. Before starting Akara, Donnelly was a robotics researcher at Trinity College Dublin, where her research featured on the cover of Time magazine. In 2023, she was awarded the prestigious EU Women Innovators Award by the European Commission for her work in robotics.
- Marita McGinn: McGinn is the director of the MassRobotics Accelerator, a program committed to supporting and advancing robotics technology entrepreneurs. She is a longstanding supporter of early stage startups. Previously, McGinn was a technology banker at Silicon Valley Bank, built corporate accelerator programs for the U.S. Air Force and Barclays, and spent time coaching startups on their sales processes.
- Jeff Linnell: Linnell is the founder and CEO of Formant, a cloud robotics platform for businesses. As a serial entrepreneur, he has founded multiple companies spanning the domains of web technologies, 3D animation, post-production, and augmented reality. Before founding Formant, Linnell served as head of robotics at Google X. He previously founded Autofuss, a design/production company, and Bot & Dolly, an engineering studio specializing in automation, robotics, and film.
About RoboBusiness 2024
In addition to startups, RoboBusiness focuses on enabling technologies, robotics innovation, and business and investment topics related to running a robotics company. Keynotes at the event will feature:
- Rodney Brooks, co-founder and chief technology officer at Robust AI, as well as co-founder of iRobot and Rethink Robotics
- Sergey Levine, co-founder of Physical Intelligence and an associate professor at UC Berkeley
- Claire Delaunay, chief technology officer at farm-ng
- Torrey Smith, co-founder and CEO of Endiatx
- A panel on driving robotics innovation with ABB, DHL, NVIDIA, and Teradyne
RoboBusiness will include more than 70 speakers, over 100 exhibitors and demos on the expo floor, 10+ hours of dedicated networking time, the Pitchfire Robotics Startup Competition, a Women in Robotics Luncheon, and more.
RoboBusiness is co-located with DeviceTalks West, which focuses on the design and development of medical devices. Thousands of robotics practitioners from around the world will convene at the Santa Clara Convention Center, so register now to ensure your spot!
For information about sponsorship and exhibition opportunities, download the prospectus. Questions regarding sponsorship opportunities should be directed to Colleen Sepich at csepich[AT]wtwhmedia.com.
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