Startup Cornell

This special episode features speakers and attendees recorded live during the 2025 Eclectic Convergence Conference at Cornell Tech in New York City. Listen in as they share advice for new founders, traps to avoid and the stories that motivate them every day.

Hear from Javed Singha MBA ’09, co-founder and president, Fieldwire; Marissa Alden ’06, general manager of recreation, DaySmart; Chris Kirby ’15, founder and CEO, Ithaca Hummus; Erica Belsky ’04, co-founder, Good Inside; Scott Belsky ’02, former Adobe EVP and Behance founder, and others!

Listen in as Tim Chi ‘98, former CEO and co-founder of WeddingWire, which became The Knot Worldwide, talks about forming the ultimate wedding planning company. And find out how his own wedding inspired the idea.

The company serves millions of engaged couples across 15 countries, helping them plan and celebrate their big day by providing an all-in-one digital wedding planning app and website.

Our new episode features John Hui MBA ‘15, former CEO and co-founder of Twiage, a digital health company that provides communication technology solutions connecting hospitals and ambulances. Twiage was acquired by Tiger Connect in November 2024.

Hui is also a co-founder of Rendr, a multi-specialty Chinese physician group serving the medically underserved Asian patient population in New York City. He’s also an active angel investor and founding member of Red Bear Angels, a Cornell alumni-run investor group.

Our newest episode features Jonathan Lowenhar ‘96, founder and one of two managing partners of Enjoy The Work, a company that has worked with more than 200 company CEOs on leadership. He talks to us about the most common mistakes CEOs make and how to avoid them.

Our newest episode features Meredith Oppenheim ‘95, founder of Vitality Society and now a strategic advisor in the senior housing space. Oppenheim, who graduated from the College of Arts & Sciences, worked for 25 years in senior housing and care before starting Vitality Society, a platform offering programming and communuity for people 60 and older. During the podcast, she talks about the trajectory of her career and offers some advice for others whose careers span several lanes.

Our new episode features Kimberle Lau, '01 founder of Bake Me Healthy, a company that offers plant-based, allergen-free and upcycled baking mixes and cookies. Yum!

Our new episode features Van Hamilton Barbeau, AVP at Ochsner Ventures, the venture capital arm of Ochsner Health, which invests in healthcare companies from seed-stage to growth-stage. He has spent his career building, advising and investing in healthcare companies.

Barbeau earned his undergrad degree from Cornell in 2011, where he studied political economy in the College of Arts & Sciences. He also has an MBA from Cornell’s Johnson School and a master’s in healthcare policy and research from Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences.

Our new episode features John Bicket ’02, chief technology officer and co-founder of tech firm Samsara and this year’s Cornell Entrepreneur of the Year 2025. He will be honored on campus April 10 and 11 at the Entrepreneurship at Cornell Celebration Ezra Event.

Samsara offers an AI-powered platform to help physical operations organizations improve their safety, efficiency and sustainability by using data from sensors and connected devices.

Bicket earned his bachelor’s in computer science from Cornell and a master’s in computer science from MIT.

Our new episode includes a chat with Cornell student Micere Mugweru ’25, the founder of Mizoma Africa. Mugweru is an economics and Africana studies major in the College of Arts & Sciences and a member of the eLab student business accelerator.

She's created a Pan-African luxury bag brand dedicated to empowering women by bringing a piece of Africa into cosmopolitan spaces. Each bag is a tribute to African heritage.

Our new episode features Heather Jiang MBA '16, founder of Allegorie, a small-batch accessory company that turns discarded fruits into beautiful wallets, bags and backpacks. The bags reduce food waste and greenhouse gas emissions and are designed and created in New York City’s garment district.