Tacos And Tech Podcast

Neal: Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News by Neal Bloom and Fred Grier from Fresh Brewed Tech. Every Friday at 12:30pm Pacific on Clubhouse and now we record them for you to enjoy as well. Find these episodes on Freshbrewedtech.com and favorite podcast player for Tacos and Tech Podcast I’m Neal Bloom, entrepreneur, investor, and community builder. Fred: I’m Fred Grier, journalist and author of SD Founders substack. I wrote about the tech industry for the San Diego Business Journal for two years. I covered the ins-and-outs of the startup world for much of that time, breaking news on IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A.   6/09/23: Mosaic Series C raise Debut Bio Series B raise  Events: Startup San Diego AI post-event debrief Connect Summer Social - June 13 Evonexus Demo Day - June 26

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Masha gives an overview of what Nullspace is [02:38] Masha shares her background and how she ended up in the industry [04:09] What are some of the different kinds of products and companies Masha has worked on in the past? [06:33] Masha talks about how she jumped from engineering to marketing to company founder  [09:07] Masha shares how she got connected with IERUS Technologies [11:05] Masha explains what a simulation company is and what they do [12:24] Masha talks about the status of IERUS Technologies when she got hired as its CEO, and shares a tip when looking for a job  [13:29] What’s the current status of Nullspace today in terms of commercializing the technology? [15:41] Masha shares the current state of the market in the industry and the technologies they work on [16:48] What can the community do to help Nullspace get to where it’s headed in the next one to three years? [21:05] What does Masha do during her free time? [23:08]

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Zach gives an overview of what Yembo is [02:32] How did Zach get into the tech world? [05:04] Zach talks about his previous job at Qualcomm [07:51] Zach shares how he got started in the startup scene [09:20] How did the startup community help Zach in starting a business [11:57] Zach gives a background on how Yembo started and how he ended up from working on signal bars to moving industry AI [13:15] Zach shares how long it took to start Yembo and the challenges they faced along the way [16:48] Zach talks about some of the real values of the Yembo AI, getting clients, and getting feedback from customers [19:54] Zach shares the story behind the giant screen from their trade shows [25:16] Where is Yembo today? [27:41] Zach talks about the current product usage of Yembo [28:43] Zach shares the evolution of tools for AI he’s been seeing today [31:16] Zach shares his favorite taco spot, Stars & Stripes [33:16]   Follow Zach Link

Neal: Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News by Neal Bloom and Fred Grier from Fresh Brewed Tech. Every Friday at 12:30pm Pacific on Clubhouse and now we record them for you to enjoy as well. Find these episodes on Freshbrewedtech.com and favorite podcast player for Tacos and Tech Podcast I’m Neal Bloom, entrepreneur, investor, and community builder. Fred: I’m Fred Grier, journalist and author of SD Founders substack. I wrote about the tech industry for the San Diego Business Journal for two years. I covered the ins-and-outs of the startup world for much of that time, breaking news on IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A.   6/02/23: Measurabl - $93m raise The TJ Tech Boom  George Hotz’s Tiny Corp $5.1M  Pureboost raises $2.8M Events: 1st Mondays - 250 tickets as of Thursday Founders Hike - June 7 Summer Social by Connect - June 17th EvoNexus Demo Day - June 30th   Subscribe to stay on top of events Read deep dives into startups in San Diego on SD Founders Substack

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Kevin gives an overview of what Tech San Diego is [02:26] Kevin shares the typical companies they engage with [04:03] Kevin shares his journey of understanding the talent needs for Tech San Diego, the talent portfolio they have, and their university talent initiative [05:55] Kevin talks about the issues recruiting local talent and what they’re doing about it [08:59] How does Tech San Diego help in transitioning university talent to the private sector? [11:49] What are the things Tech San Diego is currently focusing on? [13:34] Where does Kevin see Tech San Diego a year from now? [15:47] Kevin explains why they’re more focused on talents fit for technical jobs [17:08] Kevin shares how they make transitioning university talent to the private sector easier [18:42] How can a company looking for talent or students looking for jobs connect with Tech San Diego? [20:06] Kevin shares his favorite taco spot, a taco place in Escondido [20:55]

Neal: Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News by Neal Bloom and Fred Grier from Fresh Brewed Tech. Every Friday at 12:30pm Pacific on Clubhouse and now we record them for you to enjoy as well. Find these episodes on Freshbrewedtech.com and favorite podcast player for Tacos and Tech Podcast.  I’m Neal Bloom, entrepreneur, investor, and community builder.    Fred: I’m Fred Grier, journalist and author of SD Founders substack. I wrote about the tech industry for the San Diego Business Journal for two years. I covered the ins-and-outs of the startup world for much of that time, breaking news on IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A.   For May 19, 2023: SD Tech Hub & next SD Tech Hub event May 23 5pm TuSimple leadership issues and layoffs SD MLS team announced   Events: SD Tech Hub event May 23 5pm The Pitch social meetup June 7 Summer Social June 13 Innovation Week & Petco Park Day Sept 14

  Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Suman gives an overview of what Personal.ai is [02:45] How did Suman get into the tech industry? [03:25] Suman talks about why he decided to continue his education in the U.S. and how it helped him in building a company [04:41] Suman shares the original concept for Aira versus what changed and what it is today [07:34] Suman shares the technical and business aspect of building Personal.ai [10:33] What are some things that Suman learned from Aira to Personal.ai today? [14:44] Suman talks about Personal.ai today, the technology development and product [18:52] Suman gives his insights about AI and its community today, ChatGPT, and the future of AI [22:31] How are people going to be using Personal.ai a year from now? [27:32] Where and how can people make a Personal.ai account? [29:27] Suman shares his favorite taco spots, Las Hadas and Spitfire [30:14] Follow Suman LinkedIn   Personal.ai Website | LinkedIn   Check out our Tacos a

Neal: Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News by Neal Bloom and Fred Grier from Fresh Brewed Tech. Every Friday at 12:30pm Pacific on Clubhouse and now we record them for you to enjoy as well. Find these episodes on Freshbrewedtech.com and favorite podcast player for Tacos and Tech Podcast I’m Neal Bloom, entrepreneur, investor, and community builder.   Fred:  I’m Fred Grier, journalist and author of SD Founders substack. I wrote about the tech industry for the San Diego Business Journal for two years. I covered the ins-and-outs of the startup world for much of that time, breaking news on IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A.   For May 12, 2023: Q1 Venture Capital Report by Fred Grier Viasat: Launch & Merger Upcoming events: Summer Social by Connect

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Valerie gives an overview of what San Diego NFT Friends is [02:35] Valerie talks about Red Rug Edutainment and what they do [03:05] How did Valerie get into the tech industry? [04:00] In what ways did winning an NFT from Gary Vaynerchuk help Valerie? [06:04] Valerie talks about when why she started doing her meetups [07:11] Valerie shares the background of the people that go to her meetups, and their engagement in the community [10:33] Did the San Diego NFT Convention bring more community members and exposure? [13:21] Valerie reflects on the accessibility and inclusivity of the Web3 community [15:48] Valerie shares how she’s finding unique ways to both educate and interact with people about Web3 [17:30] Valerie gives a little onboarding for people interested in going to the meetup, what they can expect, etc. [21:49] Valerie shares her favorite taco spots, Mariscos Jalisco and El Gordo [24:01] Follow Valerie LinkedIn   San Diego

Neal: Welcome everyone to the weekly San Diego Tech News by Neal Bloom and Fred Grier from Fresh Brewed Tech. Every Friday at 12:30pm Pacific on Clubhouse and now we record them for you to enjoy as well. Find these episodes on Freshbrewedtech.com and favorite podcast player for Tacos and Tech Podcast I’m Neal Bloom, entrepreneur, investor, and community builder. Fred: I’m Fred Grier, journalist and author of SD Founders substack. I wrote about the tech industry for the San Diego Business Journal for two years. I covered the ins-and-outs of the startup world for much of that time, breaking news on IPOs, fundraising rounds, and M&A.   4/28/23: Interlock Summit debrief, Fred’s article on it SD Angel Conference Winner - Limber Naturally San Diego Pitch Slam Winner - Root and Splendor The first Techstars San Diego accelerator class applications are open. Apply now!

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. John shares his focus within the Hospitality Network and Blueprint RF at Cox [02:29] How did John get into the tech industry? [03:38] John talks about converting buildings to ethernet in terms of age and why they differ [07:12] John shares how much more load there is on both the consumer and backend side of the systems and how it affects the infrastructures [09:13] How do new customer demands today affect the load on the system? [10:59] John shares what he thinks will be the next function of need going is going to be, including two-way services [12:55] What does success mean for Cox’s clients in terms of implementation? [14:10] Where do Cox and Hospitality Network play a role in the managed service on the video side? [16:20] John talks more about Hospitality Network and how and why it’s more casino and hotel oriented [21:41] How does the hospitality aspect fit into Cox’s investment strategy? [23:21] John shares other areas of techn

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Eric gives an overview of what Haiku is [02:29] How did Eric end up in the cybersecurity and tech industry? [04:26] Eric talks about his working experience in Sentek [08:13] Eric shares how he got started with Haiku, including building his team [10:24] What were some of the things Eric learned from building a past company to know the right customers for Haiku? [14:45] Eric talks about the accessibility of getting a job and alternative career paths in cybersecurity through their program [21:26] Who is playing Haiku and who is it designed for? [24:14] On why Haiku is on desktop only and why mobile is not a great fit [26:08] Does Eric consider himself a gamer even before Haiku? [30:06] Eric shares his favorite taco spot, Me Gusta Tacos [31:59] Follow Eric LinkedIn   Haiku Website | LinkedIn | Instagram   Check out our Tacos and Tech Tacos Database to learn where our local SD entrepreneurs and leaders satisfy their taco crave!   

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Nelli gives an overview of what  Tablecloth is [02:34] How did Nelli get started in the industry? [03:27] Kelly shares his background and how he got started in the industry [05:02] Nelli talks about the history of tech for capital markets and what’s changed [07:14] Nelli explains what impact investing and ESG means and how they differ [09:38] Kelly talks about the use of BI tools and how they integrate them with their business [11:27] Nelli shares how Tablecloth is being used by investors [13:06] Nelli talks about how Tablecloth started, what’s changed in the industry over the last few years and how it helped in updating their product [14:16] Nelli talks about the politicization of ESG [17:13] What are the next steps for Tablecloth in terms of impact investing [18:49] Nelli shares what Tablecloth does to get solid data from their employees, including triangulating data from numerous sources [20:25] Nelli talks about the state of

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Dan Engel gives an overview of what Santa Barbara Venture Partners is [02:50] Dan Engel talks about his background and what the tech community was like in Santa Barbara [05:19] What’s the tech and investment education like in Santa Barbara? [07:46] When did the tech community come up on Dan Hedden’s radar? What made him want to become part of it? [08:33] What made Dan Engel decide to become a full-time investor? [10:17] What attracted Dan Hedden to switch to the investor side after working at a startup? [13:17] Dan Engel shares where they prefer to make investments, and where they usually get and look for deals [15:40] Dan Engel talks about some of the successes they’ve achieved in terms of acquisitions etc. [20:35] Hedden and Engel share the right time to meet companies, what they look for, and the importance of building rapport with founders [22:17] Dan Hedden talks about deep-level data tracking of companies and trends [24:34] D

3/21/23: SD Companies Making Acquisitions Trust & Will Aptera MaxLinear ResMed ClickUp Cloudbeds - whistle   Future stories SVB Fabric8 Labs  JMI new fund 11 of $2.4B Latest FBT newsletter

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Jill gives an overview of what Audacity Health is [02:33] How did Jill end up in the branding and marketing space? [03:52] Jill talks about the advantage of having a PhD and marketing skill sets [05:46] Jill shares the benefits of having a background in both science and marketing in her line of work [08:41] Jill talks about the history of Audacity Health and how it changed over time [09:39] What are the storytelling and communicating tools and approaches today that Jill recommends? [11:53] Jill shares how they work with companies in dealing with anti-vaxxers and other misconceptions in science [14:54] Jill talks about their work setup during the pandemic and how the virtual working environment helped in talent recruitment [16:38] At what stage do companies usually reach out for help from Audacity Health? [17:53] Jill shares her favorite taco spots, Taco Surf and The Fish Shop [20:36] Follow Jill LinkedIn    Audacity Health Linke

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Lucien gives an overview of what Charbon Plus is [02:06] Lucien talks about his background and growing up around entrepreneurs [03:31] How did Lucien end up in the US? [05:49] Lucien shares his student life and getting involved in the startup community [07:19] Why did Lucien decide to create a skincare brand? [08:34] Lucien shares how he started his business, including finding the right formula for their product and selling it online [09:56] Lucien talks about their skin care product and what they do [12:02] Lucien shares the communities and people that have helped him in launching his business [13:33] Lucien recalls what it was like to win a pitching competition, go nationals and represent San Diego [15:59] What is the current state of Charbon Plus? [17:33] Lucien talks about his future plans and goals for Charbon Plus [19:31] Lucien shares his favorite taco spot, Don Roman [20:58] Follow Lucien LinkedIn   Charbon Plus Websi

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Jenna shares where her background and where she was originally from [02:49] Jenna talks about her work experience in DocuSign [05:34] At what point did the idea for Uqora start to come through for Jenna? [06:50] Jenna explains why once you get UTI you’re more likely to get another one, especially in women [09:17] How many tests did Jenna and her team take on their medicine before landing something that looked like a product? [11:04] How did Jenna get started in getting educated to come up with a marketable product? [12:58] Jenna shares the founding story of Uqora [14:44] Jenna talks about Uqora’s official launch and how winning a pitch contest helped them in revenue [17:10] Jenna shares how they got started in developing and rolling out their second product [22:31] Jenna talks about Uqora’s team, and why community building is important [25:06] How did COVID contribute to Uqora’s growth curve, and how did they deal with their custom

  Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. David gives an overview of what SuperSight is [02:06] David shares his background and IoT has iterated over time [04:11] David talks about the direct relevance of consumers wanting to understand their data [06:03] What is calm computing? [07:00] David talks about technology-embedded services and why some companies haven’t offered them yet [08:40] David shares the advantages of having the AR tools we have today for companies [09:46] How do you bring more people into the AR or metaverse environment? [12:02] David explains what Google navigation AR experience is [13:51] Where is David guiding and advising people to focus on when it comes to investing for their own company [17:53] David shares how AR is going to play a part in travel interactions and why he’s excited about companies focusing on how to specialize in critiquing a product. [19:28] What are digital twins and their special features? [21:47] Where is the conversation of

Listen on Apple, Google, Spotify, and other platforms. Paige gives an overview of what Behind Genius Ventures is [03:08] Paige talks about what her life was like at SDSU, and how she figured out what she really wants to do career-wise [05:08] Paige shares her work experience and the things she learned, getting rejected by firms, and dealing with the pandemic [07:13] When did Paige actually write your first check as an investor? [10:47] How did Paige get started with her own investment firm? What was it like raising money for a venture fund? [13:26] Paige talks about the posts she wrote to help people who are going down a similar path as she is, including an FAQ doc and an essential guide to cold outreach [16:53] Paige shares what it was like to write a book and self-publishing it [18:50] Paige talks about growing up with an artist mom and a mechanical engineer dad, how she likes to blend engineering and art, and how she applies that in her work today  [21:59] Paige talks about her love for