PAST EVENTS
Sidebar Summit:
Inception to IPO -
The Stories of
Splunk and BILL
April 24, 2024 | San Francisco
What an amazing discussion about the origin stories of Splunk and BILL from the founders themselves! Add to that Mr. David Hornik - the man who funded both companies - and we had what some are calling the "most authentic VC-Founder" discussions in a long time! Congratulations to the Deven Verma Titan Award recipients: Rob Das | Co-founder of Splunk | Titan of Innovation René Lacerte | CEO & Founder of BILL | Titan of Entrepreneurship David Hornik | Founding Partner of Lobby Capital | Titan of Venture Capital Thank you to Bhaskar "BG" Ghosh - Partner at 8VC - for moderating the conversation and hosting at 8VC's beautiful waterfront office. Did you know... 1. René developed one of the first small business B2B SaaS companies 2. Splunk had the first freemium model for enterprise Few key takeaways: 1. Grit, integrity, consistency, and focusing on personal growth were some of the major themes surrounding the formula for success for these groundbreaking entrepreneurs 2. How to raise money today: - Find paying customers that are reference-able and - Show a sales engine that is repeatable 3. To continue to inspire - one must continue to focus on self growth
Panelists
Rob Das | Co-Founder of Splunk
René Lacerte | CEO & Founder of BILL
David Hornik | Founding Partner at Lobby Capital
Moderator
Bhaskar "BG" Ghosh | Partner at 8VC
Special Guest
MC Hammer
CEO Series: Fireside Chat with Dan Springer
March 20, 2024 | San Francisco
The first fireside chat of 2024 featured an interactive, down to earth, and candid conversation with former DocuSign CEO - Dan Springer.
Dan shared some insights on what has helped him succeed and some of the challenges he has faced throughout his illustrious career. Taking 3 companies public is no small task!
To recognize Dan for his leadership, Sidebar Summit presented him with the Deven Verma Titan of Tech Award!
One of the gems Dan shared with us involves his formula for evaluating a potential job candidate...
His formula is (S/E)^W = candidate's impact on the company
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S = Smart - how smart and capable is the person?
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E = Ego - are they able to put their ego aside?
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W = Work - how hard are they willing to work?
The idea is to rate the candidate from 1-5 for each part of SEW and plug it into the formula. From this, you'll be able to see the exponentially positive or negative impact certain candidates on your company
Speakers
Dan Springer - CEO | DocuSign
Host
Bhaskar "BG" Ghosh - Partner | 8VC
Moderator
Louis Lehot - Partner | Foley
Sidebar Summit:
Navigating the Current IPO + M&A Environment
January 31, 2024 | Redwood City
Sidebar's first event of the year featured an insightful conversation on the state of the current IPO and M&A markets. Our esteemed panelists delivered an invigorating discussion on the ever-evolving landscape. Thank you to team at Hogan Lovells for hosting Sidebar!
Also, in celebration of the 49ers reaching the Super Bowl, we welcomed two Super Bowl champions to the event!
Panelists
Bill Curtin - Partner & Head of M&A | Hogan Lovells
Shivani Dasani - Director | Solebury Capital
Kevin Hawkins - Regional Head | NYSE
Sandesh Mouli - Head of Corp. Dev. | ZScaler
Moderator
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
Special Guests
Guy McIntyre - 3x Super Bowl Champion | SF 49ers
Steve Bono - Super Bowl Champion | SF 49ers
Sidebar Summit Holiday Mixer @ 8VC
December 8, 2023 | San Francisco
For our final event of 2023, Sidebar and 8VC teamed up to throw a holiday mixer with a wonderful Q&A session with Senator Maria Cantwell. Senator Cantwell is a avid proponent of governance related to the field of artificial intelligence (AI) that has proliferated throughout society over the past year. It's good to know that the leaders in charge of developing governance for emerging technologies are genuinely open to conversation with the innovators developing the technology.
The holidays are a wonderful time of the year, and we had a fantastic time celebrating with new and old friends. Thank you to BG and the team at 8VC for hosting us at your wonderful waterfront office!
Speaker
Maria Cantwell - U.S. Senator | Washington
Hosts
Bhaskar "BG" Ghosh - Partner | 8VC
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
Sidebar @ New York Stock Exchange
December 7, 2023 | New York City
The Sidebar Summit team and a few of our members had the privilege of attending the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange. Thanks to our host, Brian Baumann, for inviting us for breakfast and a tour of the world's largest stock exchange. What an awesome opportunity!
Special Thanks
Brian Baumann - Director of Capital Markets | NYSE
Sidebar Summit @ RFK Ripple of Hope Award Gala in NYC
December 6, 2023 | New York City
"Each year, the Robert F. Kennedy Ripple of Hope Award honors exemplary leaders across government, business, advocacy, and entertainment who have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to social change and worked to protect and advance equity, justice, and human rights."
Kerry Kennedy and her team at the RFK Foundation have been working tirelessly to promote human and civil rights since 1968!
The Sidebar Summit team attended the Foundation's Gala to show our support for this important cause.
We are honored to have been a part of this gala to celebrate the pursuit of equality and justice. Let's continue to support the RFK Foundation's mission to advance justice and human rights for all.
Sidebar Summit: Coming to El Segundo
November 30, 2023 | El Segundo
We had the privilege of cohosting our inaugural Sidebar Summit outside of Silicon Valley with the City of El Segundo.
We were honored to have our State Treasurer Fiona Ma join us and provide an insightful keynote on the financial standing of California and the new opportunities that are on the way.
Check out this video highlighting Mayor Drew Boyles and his team's phenomenal efforts supporting entrepreneurship and sparking innovation in the City of El Segundo! Read more.
Panelists
Rick Smith - Co-founder | Crosscut Ventures
Daphna Ziman - President | Cinémoi TV
Faraz Fatemi - Partner | Lightspeed
Ben Marcus - Co-founder | UP Partners
Moderator
Drew Boyles - Mayor | El Segundo
Special Guests
Fiona Ma - Treasurer | State of California
John Chiang - Former Treasurer | State of California
Sidebar Summit & Proskauer
Diwali Delight Dinner @
Madera - Rosewood Sand Hill
November 14, 2023 | Menlo Park
Sidebar Summit teamed up with Proskauer to host a Diwali celebration at the fabulous Madera at Rosewood Sand Hill. We hope everyone enjoyed the sit-down dinner and wonderful company.
Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate the festival of lights where positivity and goodness prevails!
Sidebar Summit @ Stanford's
Hoover Institution:
USA - India
Technology Corridor
October 5, 2023 | Stanford
Sidebar Summit, in collaboration with Stanford's Hoover Institution, hosted an engaging discussion on the growing technology corridor between the United States and India.
The event kicked off with a tour of George Shultz's library - in the Hoover Memorial Building - that was full of artifacts from his time as President Regan's Secretary of State. Big thanks to our host, Dinsha Mistree for making the tour possible.
The tour was followed up with an engaging conversation between the panelists and attendees which included a diverse group of members including entrepreneurs, VCs, government officials, and students from Stanford University. Thank you to our panelist for your invaluable insights! Check out key takeaways from the conversation.
Panelists
Sabeer Bhatia - Founder | Hotmail
Bhaskar "BG" Ghosh - Partner | 8VC
Dev Khare - Partner | Lightspeed India
Moderator
Dinsha Mistree - Research Fellow | Stanford University
Fireside Chats:
Steve Jurvetson
Space: The Next Frontier
September 25, 2023 | Los Altos
Sidebar Summit had the incredible opportunity to learn about the future of space from Steve Jurvetson, one of the brightest minds in venture capital. A nuclear power plant on the moon? Colonizing Mars? These are just a few of the topics we discussed. Check out the top 10 key points from the event.
Steve was also presented with Sidebar Summit's inaugural “Titan of Venture Capital” award. As an early investor in Tesla and SpaceX he bet on a vision that few people thought possible.
Speaker
Steve Jurvetson - Partner | Future Ventures
Moderator
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
Sidebar Summit @ Lightspeed - AI 2.0
September 5, 2023 | Menlo Park
Back by popular demand!
Sidebar Summit and Lightspeed Venture Partners hosted a second AI Summit which was a follow up to the scintillating discussion on the future of AI and its impact on our society. So much has changed since we had our first AI event on June 5th.
A few takeaways
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Growth rates of revenue generations of AI companies are unprecedented
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Applications, infrastructure level have many opportunities
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AI is here to stay
The guest-list consisted of expert VCs, successful entrepreneurs, and leaders in the legal and financial sectors.
The room was buzzing as back and forth exchanges unraveled novel insights about regulation, the potential upside and downfalls of the proliferation of AI, its impact on the job market, and the outlook for future generations.
An overwhelming number of attendees have requested round three so look out for a follow up event being organized for December 2023.
Panelists
Adam Cheyer - Co-founder of Siri | Founding Member of Change.org
Guru Chahal - Partner | Lightspeed
Barath Chari - Partner | Wilson Sonsini
Moderator
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
Fireside Chats:
Future of Enterprise
August 24, 2023 | Menlo Park
Sidebar Summit and Benhamou Global Ventures hosted a lively discussion on Enterprise investments in the courtyard before the end of the summer. The guest list consisted of legendary venture capitalists, successful entrepreneurs, and leaders in the financial and enterprise sectors.
Panelists
Deepak Jeevankumar - Managing Director | Dell Technologies Capital
Yash Hemaraj - Partner | Benhamou Global Ventures
Anshu Agarwal - General Partner | Converge
Moderator
Imad Ansari - Venture Partner | Redwood Collective
4th of July Annual BBQ
July 5, 2023 | Los Altos Hills
Sidebar Summit hosted an intimate get-together to celebrate the Independence Day with freshly grilled kabobs, lively conversations, and beautiful views of Silicon Valley. Big thanks to our special guest, Congressman Jimmy Panetta, for joining us for the event!
Special Guest
Jimmy Panetta | Congressman, California District 19
Host
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
Coffee Chat Series:
CA State Treasurer
Fiona Ma
June 24, 2023 | Los Altos
Sidebar hosted CA State Treasurer Fiona Ma and a few members of her team at Los Altos Golf and Country Club for an interesting coffee chat in a serene setting.
There was a great discussion around California's current economy, how to keep California competitive in today’s changing global business environment, and potential areas for growth. A variety of leaders from VC, cybersecurity, and accounting & finance were present to contribute to the discussion.
Sidebar Summit @ Lightspeed - AI 1.0
June 5, 2023 | Menlo Park
Sidebar Summit and Lighspeed Venture Partners hosted a scintillating discussion on the future of AI and it's impact on our society. The guestlist consisted of expert VCs, successful entrepreneurs, and leaders in the legal and financial sectors. The room was buzzing as back and forth exchanges unraveled novel insights about regulation, the potential upside and downfalls of the proliferation of AI, its impact on the job market, and the outlook for future generations. An overwhelming number of attendees have requested round two so look out for a follow up event being organized for August 2023.
Panelists
Adam Cheyer - Co-founder of Siri | Founding Member of Change.org
Guru Chahal - Partner | Lightspeed
Barath Chari - Partner | Wilson Sonsini
Moderator
Vishal Verma - Partner | Redwood Collective
The Rise of India 3.0...
or Wait Is It 4.0?
April 27, 2023 | Los Altos
Special guest and Hotmail founder Sabeer Bhatia shared insights on the mindset necessary to capitalize on the continued emergence of Indian markets. He also touched on leveraging AI technologies to help Indian students tap into their creative abilities in conjunction with their technical training.
Thanks to Redwood Collective and State Bank of India (CA) for sponsoring happy hour at the Los Altos Golf & Country Club.
Sidebar Summit @ RSA
April 25, 2023 | San Francisco
Edgewood Ventures and Stanford University hosted their 3rd annual Security Roundtable at 8VC's headquarters in San Francisco. The event brought together CISOs, CIOs, key policy makers, and leading security subject matter experts to discuss the dynamics of global information security during this period of economic instability and increasing international and domestic threats.
Panelists
Herb Lin - Sr. Research Scholar | Stanford University
Ken Goldman - President | Hillspire
Aanchal Gupta - CVP & CISO | Microsoft
Megan Kayo - Partner | Wilson Sonsini
Special Guests
Congressman Eric Swalwell
MC Hammer