fnIRL 2025: Fundraising in a Shifting Landscape (May 8, 2025)

fnIRL 2025 brings together seasoned investors and ambitious founders for a one-day conference designed to help attendees navigate the changing tides of fundraising. Whether you're a seasoned investor seeking high-growth opportunities or a founder eager to crack the fundraising code, this conference offers the chance to unlock actionable insights on the latest trends, and forge critical connections with potential partners. The event on May 8th, will feature a range of informative talks, engaging panel discussions, and opportunities for networking and collaboration:

• Access to leading VCs and their investment strategies.
• In-depth discussions on the latest fundraising trends
• A dynamic networking environment to connect with potential partners

Agenda:

8:30 AM – Registration & Continental Breakfast

• Fuel up and start connecting. Ease into the day with coffee, light breakfast, and early networking with fellow founders and investors.

9:00 AM – Opening Remarks & Icebreaker by Kevin Holmes, CEO, Founders Network

• A warm welcome to kick off the day. We’ll set the stage for what’s ahead and break the ice with some founder-first fun.

9:15 AM – Keynote: From Playbooks to Pattern Breakers: The New Era of Fundraising

Mike Maples is a Co-Founding Partner at Floodgate. He has been on the Forbes Midas List eight times in the last decade and was also named a “Rising Star” by FORTUNE and profiled by Harvard Business School for his lifetime contributions to entrepreneurship.

Before becoming a full-time investor, Mike was involved as a founder and operating executive at back-to-back startup IPOs, including Tivoli Systems (IPO TIVS, acquired by IBM) and Motive (IPO MOTV, acquired by Alcatel-Lucent.) Some of Mike’s investments include Twitter, Twitch.tv, Clover Health, Okta, Outreach, Chegg, Demandforce, and Applied Intuition.

Mike is known for coining the term “Thunder Lizards,” which is a metaphor derived from Godzilla that describes the tiny number of truly exceptional companies that are wildly disruptive capitalist mutations. Mike likes to think of himself as a hunter of the “atomic eggs” that beget these companies. Mike is the author of the National Bestselling book Pattern Breakers and host of the Pattern Breakers podcast, which shares startup lessons from the super performers.

10:00 AM – State of Pre-Seed & Seed Fundraising

Peter Walker runs the Insights team at Carta, focused on discovering key narratives across the private market ecosystem. Prior to Carta, he was the Head of Marketing for the media analytics company PublicRelay. He also led the data visualization team at the Covid Tracking Project at The Atlantic during the peak of the pandemic. He and his wife recently welcomed their corgi puppy Penny into the family and are introducing her to every one of San Francisco's many parks.

10:30 AM – Exited Founder Panel

• Real stories. Raw lessons. Hear from founders who successfully scaled and exited, as they share what they learned about funding, navigating tough calls, and aligning with the right investors.

11:00 AM – VC & Founder Panel: Fundraising Strategies for 2025

• What’s working, what’s changed, and how to stand out. A dynamic panel of investors and founders explores tactics and mindset shifts that will define successful raises in the coming year.

12:00 PM – Lunch & Book Signing

• Mingle by sector. Meet the author. Enjoy a catered lunch and connect with founders in your industry niche. Book signing with special guests.

1:00 PM – Crowdfunding in 2025 and Beyond

• New routes to capital. Explore how modern crowdfunding platforms can supplement traditional fundraising and build loyal early adopter communities.

1:45 PM – Open Source and AI: Building fundable startups in a shifting legal landscape

• Structure smarter deals. Learn the investor terms you need to understand, what’s fair vs. predatory, and how to negotiate with confidence—whether it's your first raise or your fifth.

2:30 PM – Scale Member Elevator Pitches

• 1 minute. 1 slide. Big potential. Select Scale members take the stage to deliver crisp elevator pitches in front of fellow founders and investors.

3:00 PM – Emerging Manager Panel

• New funds, new philosophies. Hear how first- and second-time fund managers are evaluating deals, supporting founders, and building the future of early-stage investing.

3:30 PM – Established Manager Panel

• Insights from seasoned investors. Veteran VCs share what they’ve seen across cycles—and what founders should prioritize when fundraising in today’s market.

Wade Pitts, CFP® is a managing director at Fort Point Capital Partners. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) from Cornell University. Early in his career, he worked as a software consultant and product manager with an advisor facing FinTech company. He later worked in two prominent U.S. brokerages as Vice President of Technical Sales and Business Development before joining one of his wealth management clients as an advisor.

Fort Point addresses the unique characteristics of each client's balance sheet and risk exposures. Clients often have complex portfolios that may include substantially concentrated, restricted, or otherwise illiquid assets that require a specialized approach to financial planning and investment management. Wade's clients are predominately in the technology sector.

Wade and his family recently moved to Salt Lake City, UT. While opening a new office there, he splits time between Salt Lake City and San Francisco. In his spare time, he trains and teaches Krav Maga, the Israeli Defense Force's fighting system. He is an avid participant of Spartan Races and looks forward to skiing Utah's world-class mountains, which are just 30 minutes away.

4:00 PM – The Spirit of Fundraising led by Blake Tucker, Boozephreaks

• Wind down the day with a curated tasting experience that blends community, storytelling, and fun.

4:45 PM – Closing Remarks by Kevin Holmes, CEO, Founders Network

5:30 PM – After Party & Networking

Location: SF Brewery Inc | Ghirardelli Square
Raise a glass with fellow founders, investors, and new friends. No slides. No agenda. Just great conversation.

Venue: The General's Residence, Fort Mason Center

Address: 1 Fort Mason, San Francisco, CA 94109

All information shared within Founders Network is strictly confidential. We are built on a foundation of trust, and the community takes confidentiality seriously. Investors, members, and staff all share experiences and opinions off the record. In this roundtable forum, we continue to model our fnValues of Reciprocity, Humility, Authenticity and Inclusivity.