Roughly 90 p.c of hard tech startups fail resulting from funding constraints, longer R&D timelines for creating {hardware}, and the complexity of producing their merchandise, in line with a lot of research.
Usually, these startups require as much as 50 p.c extra investor financing than software program ones, in line with a Medium article. Usually, they want at the least US $30 million, in line with a Lucid article. That’s double the funding wanted by software program corporations on common.
To assist them join with buyers, IEEE Entrepreneurship in 2024 launched its Hard Tech Venture Summits. The 2-day occasions join founders with potential buyers and different entrepreneurs. Attendees embrace producers, design engineers, and intellectual property legal professionals.
“Regardless that there are loads of startup investor conferences, it’s arduous to seek out these targeted on arduous tech,” says Joanne Wong, who helped provoke this system and is now the chair. She is a basic accomplice at Redds Capital, a California-based venture capital agency that invests in international early-stage IT startups.
The IEEE member can be an entrepreneur. She based SciosHub in 2020. The corporate’s software-as-a-service and informatics platform automates the data-management course of for biomedical analysis labs.
“Many buyers are targeted on AI software program—which is sweet,” she says. “However for arduous tech corporations, it’s nonetheless arduous to seek out assist.”
The summit additionally features a workshop to assist founders navigate manufacturing processes and regulatory compliance. The occasion is open to IEEE members and others.
IEEE is a pure match for this system, Wong says, as a result of arduous tech is synonymous with electrical engineering.
“Among the domains we’re protecting are robotics, semiconductors, and aerospace technology. IEEE has societies for all these fields,” she says. “Due to that, there are numerous sources throughout the organizations for startups, whether or not or not it’s mentors or guides on learn how to commercialize merchandise.”
There are a number of enterprise summits deliberate for this 12 months. Two are scheduled in collaboration with the IEEE Systems Council: this month in Menlo Park, Calif., and in October in Toronto.
On 10 and 11 June, a 3rd summit is scheduled to happen in Boston on the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society’s International Microwave Symposium.
Extra occasions are being deliberate for subsequent 12 months in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America.
Networking and a pitch competitors
Every summit consists of keynote audio system, adopted by networking roundtables. Every desk consists of individuals from three to 5 startups, one or two buyers, and a service supplier.
That association helps founders construct relationships, which is the summit organizers’ precedence, Wong says. Traders at previous occasions have included i3 Ventures, Monozukuri Ventures, and TSV Capital.
“The reference to the group was improbable, particularly buyers and founders in robotics.” —Mark Boysen, founding father of Naware
Startups current their pitch, which a lot of buyers consider earlier than rating the marketing strategy and product. The highest 10 startups pitch their enterprise to all of the buyers.
On the second day, the startup founders take part in a half-day engineering design–to–manufacturing workshop, at which manufacturing engineers train them learn how to navigate the method and meet laws.
In an exhibition space, individuals can see demonstrations from the startups and join with service suppliers.
The 2025 occasion’s half-day engineering design–to–manufacturing workshop was led by Liz Taylor, president of DOER Marine. The corporate manufactures marine gear.Larissa Abi Nakhle/IEEE
Optimistic suggestions from attendees
In a survey of previous summit attendees, startup founders mentioned the occasion related them not solely with buyers but in addition with different entrepreneurs having comparable struggles.
“The reference to the group was improbable, particularly buyers and founders in robotics,” mentioned Mark Boysen, who based Naware. The corporate, based mostly in Edina, Minn., developed a robotic that makes use of AI to detect and take away weeds from golf programs, parks, and lawns.
“I beloved getting the buyers’ views and understanding what they’re in search of,” Boysen mentioned.
Jeffrey Cook, who attended a summit in 2024, mentioned he met “loads of nice contacts and noticed what the arduous tech enterprise local weather is like.”
Attendees of the Laborious Tech Enterprise Summit spend the primary day networking and presenting their pitch to buyers. IEEE Entrepreneurship
“These locally would profit from coming to the summit,” mentioned Cook dinner, who based Gigantor Technologies in Melbourne Seaside, Fla. It develops {hardware} programs for AI-powered gadgets.
Greater than 90 p.c of attendees on the 2025 occasion in San Francisco mentioned they might extremely suggest the summit to others, in line with a survey.
Traders and repair suppliers even have discovered the occasions profitable.
Ji Ke, a accomplice and the chief expertise officer of deep tech VC agency SOSV, attended the 2025 summit.
“I met loads of younger entrepreneurs tackling some large challenges,” he mentioned. “This is among the finest occasions to fulfill some very-early-stage corporations.”
Making essential connections in arduous tech
Startup founders who need to attend a summit should apply. Applications for this year’s events are open. Individuals have to be founders of preseed, seed, or Sequence A startups.
Preseed founders are searching for small investments to get their companies off the bottom. These within the seed stage have already secured funding from their first investor. Sequence A startups have obtained funding and are creating their product.
Candidates are reviewed by a committee of buyers to make sure the startups can be a superb match. Those that are accepted are matched with buyers and repair suppliers based mostly on their specialty.
“The journey for a tough tech startup may be very lengthy and arduous,” Wong says. “Founders want to fulfill as many buyers as potential and different individuals who assist arduous tech programs in order that they’re capable of attain out to them for recommendation or assist.”
These keen on studying extra about an upcoming occasion can ship a request to entrepreneurship@ieee.org.
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