venture dallas

Venture Titans Gather at Circle T Ranch to Power North Texas’ ‘Next-Level’ Growth

by | Nov 9, 2023
The exclusive Circle T Ranch reception—an annual highlight of the Venture Dallas franchise—drew founders and funders for pivotal connections and conversations. But the headliner unfolded on stage as Anurag Jain, Hill Perot, and Brendan Gaffey strategized the future of the startup and venture ecosystem in North Texas.
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Defense Tech Experts: The ‘Military-Industrial Complex’ is Ripe for Disruption
by | Nov 7, 2023
At Venture Dallas 2023, venture capitalists and defense department minds said evolving technologies are creating new opportunities in the defense tech sector for well-financed startups.
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Venture Dallas Names Three Winners in Inaugural ‘Startup of the Year’ Awards
by | Nov 6, 2023
The winning companies were selected from 100+ nominees and eight semifinalists. They reflect "strong themes" in the Dallas-Fort Worth ecosystem: FinTech, DefenseTech, and PropTech, says steering committee member David Evans.
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Dirk Nowitzki Reflects On His Drive for Greatness, Post‑Mavericks Future, and Enduring Bond With Dallas
by | Oct 31, 2023
To cap off the recent Venture Dallas summit—just like he closed out so many Dallas Mavericks games with a buzzer-beating one-legged fadeaway—Dirk Nowitzki shared stories of his journey from Germany to the NBA, his 21 seasons with the Mavericks, his post-Mavs moves as a business investor, and his enduring bond with the Dallas community.
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The Last Word: Clark Hunt On DFW’s Chances To Land a Big, Maybe THE Big, World Cup Match

by | Oct 26, 2023
Dallas billionaire Clark Hunt, owner of the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, sat down with Anurag Jain at the Venture Dallas Summit on Wednesday. Hunt—the chairman and CEO of both the Chiefs and FC Dallas—was the headliner for the first event at the annual summit for innovators and investors at the Bush Center.
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‘Conversations With Champions’: Sports Titans Hunt, Nowitzki to Headline Venture Dallas Summit
by | Oct 16, 2023
The NFL and NBA icons—Clark Hunt and Dirk Nowitzki—will kick off and wrap up discussions on innovation and investment. They add to an "impressive speaker lineup" including Nextdoor Co-Founder Nirav Tolia and other trailblazing speakers. Here's the full roster.
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‘Innovation Meets Investment’: Venture Dallas Sets Sights on National Stage with New Branding, Expanded 2023 Summit
by | Sep 27, 2023
The rebrand "marks the start of our next chapter of growth," says Venture Dallas Chair Aaron Pierce. The nonprofit's 2023 summit, backed by JPMorgan Chase and Perot Jain, is set for October 25.
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The Last Word: LCM Group’s David Luttrell on Why Family Offices Should Look at Startups
by | Mar 16, 2023
In our recent 2023 issue of Dallas Innovates magazine, we reported on a panel discussion about family investment offices that was held late last year at the annual Venture Dallas conference. During the panel session, Luttrell spoke about the single-family-office LCM Group, and how it views startups as driving innovation.
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‘It’s a Different World Out There’: Investors Share Their Insights on the Changing Funding Landscape

by | Nov 14, 2022
At the recent Venture Dallas conference, a panel of leading investors talked market trends and shared insights to help those on both sides of the cap table. Here are key takeaways—from tips for fundraising founders to what startups need to offer to what makes Dallas an exciting place to invest. “As an entrepreneur, just hustle. Don't take ‘No’ for an answer. You're going to get a lot of ‘No’s,’ so just keep at it," said Pialy Aditya, chief strategy officer at Republic.
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Arlan Hamilton talks with Mark Cuban at the 2022 Venture Dallas conference.
Mark Cuban Talks About Pickleball, Pharmaceuticals, and His ‘Addiction to Helping Entrepreneurs’
by | Nov 10, 2022
Whether he's buying a pro pickleball team or disrupting big pharma with his cost-plus drug company, Mark Cuban says he's a "ready, fire, aim" businessman. So he surrounds himself with "ready, aim, fire" perfectionists to keep him from "screwing everything up." That's just one insight the billionaire shared in a fireside chat with Backstage Capital founder Arlan Hamilton at the Venture Dallas conference last week. “There's always going to be somebody smarter, there's always going to be somebody faster, better," Cuban added. "I just try to work a little harder.”
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How Axxess’ John Olajide Built a Bootstrapped Unicorn in Dallas
Axxess founder John Olajide built his Dallas-based healthcare tech company from a fledgling startup in 2007 to a global company with 1,000 employees serving 3 million-plus patients. But the journey getting there wasn’t a straightforward path. 

He tells his own story to inspire others and strengthen the ecosystem. And he's confident that "we'll be celebrating several more unicorns going forward."
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Anurag Jain Shares the Seven Trends Shaping Innovation and His Investment Strategy
by | Nov 8, 2022
Anurag Jain and longtime business partner Ross Perot Jr. talked about the region's high growth with a roundup of innovators and investors at Circle T Ranch in Fort Worth's AllianceTexas development. The VIP reception was the prelude to the 2022 Venture Dallas conference—and one of the most coveted invitations in town.
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‘I’ve Never Been More Bullish on Our Region’: Longtime Dallas Investor Aaron Pierce Joins Perot Jain as Partner

by | Oct 12, 2022
Aaron Pierce, the co-founder and board chair of Venture Dallas, has a deep investment background and a history of supporting the local entrepreneurial community. As partner at Perot Jain, his role is "all encompassing." One item on his agenda is overseeing the firm's investments in Major League Cricket—along with managing the firm's investment portfolio of more than 60 companies.

“We have the ingredients required to be a major player in the national investment landscape," Pierce says, "especially as the family office and private investment focus grows from funds to direct investments in venture-backed companies.”
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Venture Dallas Brings ‘the Premier Venture Capital Conference in North Texas’ to George W. Bush Presidential Center this November
by | Oct 4, 2022
Venture Dallas 2022—a full-day conference to be held Nov. 3 at the George W. Bush Presidential Center—will connect investors from all over the U.S with the “best founders in our region” with the goal of sparking “collisions” and “meaningful connections," co-founder Aaron Pierce says. He adds that those could potentially lead to fundings—and successful exits. Here's a look at why the North Texas startup and VC scene is hopping, and what Venture Dallas 2022 could mean for you.
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Venture Dallas’ Featured Pitch of the Day
by | Sep 15, 2020
The 34-day event is an experience.  One that is connecting startups and investors through a new curated networking platform. Check out Venture Dallas' featured startup pitch of the day.
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Venture Dallas’ Event Sponsors Prepare for 34-Day Virtual Pitch Conference
by | Sep 9, 2020
Meet the supporters of Venture Dallas' upcoming month-long virtual experience that connects Texas founders with active investors. They say now is an ideal time to build the startup ecosystem, investment opportunities, and new relationships.
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