On April 11th and 12th, more than 300 people participated in campus activities celebrating Cornell’s entrepreneurs. This included an event honoring Tim Barry ’93 as Cornell’s 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year.
Cornell University’s Celebrating Entrepreneurship event also included speakers and events exploring everything from artificial intelligence to investing in technology startups to building a more inclusive entrepreneurial community .
“Our annual event gives our graduates the opportunity to witness the energy of entrepreneurship seen on campus every day in our classes and in our many entrepreneurial initiatives and organizations.” said University Entrepreneurship Director Zach Schulman ’87, J.D. ’90. “Additionally, we honored our model Cornell University Entrepreneur of the Year, Tim Barry. His passion for improving our nation’s health care system is evident and genuine.”
Barry, Founder and CEO of VillageMD, shares the ups and downs of his entrepreneurial journey.
“I wanted to tap into the market sentiment that many physicians feel: I’m on a hamster wheel, but I’m not being given the opportunity to provide the kind of care that I went to medical school for,” Barry said. said. “I want something better. I want to focus on getting the best outcome for the patient, not on whether I referred the patient to the hospital’s cardiology group to keep them in the ‘family.’ .”
The 4,000 physicians working with VillageMD in 16 markets collaborate with nutritionists, pharmacists, social workers and patients themselves, especially those with chronic conditions, to provide the best care for patients, Barry said. He says he is “enthusiastic”ly focusing on this.
“There’s a level of health equity that doesn’t exist in our health care system, and we’re trying to address that,” he said. “Our 20,000 employees work in the field every day trying to really see people and understand them. People need to feel loved, so we use the word ‘love’ in our company. I use words a lot. ”
Master’s student Will Hassapis came to hear Barry speak because VillageMD does work he believes in, he said.
“It’s really inspiring to hear him talk about this kind of thing,” Hassapis said. “It’s a sad reality of our current health care system, but it’s good to know that there are people who are making a change and believe that change is possible.”
Another celebratory highlight, eLab Demo Day, was one of the April 11 events where 17 teams from the Student Business Accelerator shared their progress this year. Teams were selected in the fall from a pool of 80 applicants and spent a year taking classes, participating in mentorship opportunities, practicing pitching, and finding, marketing, and selling customers as their business grows. I’m here.
“Starting a business is hard. You have to pick a big problem, build a great team, and spend a lot of time working on multiple versions of an idea that don’t work,” said Kristin Van Vleet, vice president of the company. . The Cornell University research and innovation leader and professor of materials science and engineering welcomed participants to the event and said they are well placed to develop their ideas. “The people at Cornell really live out the mission that the time they spend doing research, the time they spend converting it into world-changing research results, should be for the greatest good.”
Student teams introduced businesses that provide everything from food to software to agricultural production systems. For example, Phytofloc, developed by MBA student Albert Charles, uses grape-based waste products as a supplement for chicken to reduce the need for antibiotics. Founded by Weill Cornell University medical student Kyle Zappi, CranioMag develops a minimally invasive device used to correct craniosynostosis, a birth defect that affects the growth of a baby’s skull.
On Friday, attendees took part in a variety of morning panels, including one focused on startups emerging from university-led research.
“I’m so proud to hear how Cornell supports entrepreneurs and how valuable and important these new products are,” said the Philosophy major in the College of Arts and Sciences. said Marilyn Laverty ’76, a member of the university’s Entrepreneurship Advisory Committee. Cornell. She said she became an “accidental entrepreneur” after working as a publicist for a major record label and founding her own company, Shore Fire Media.
“I think for this generation of students, the idea of doing something adventurous and doing something for themselves is not as scary as it is for us in other generations.”
During Friday lunch, Aunt Flo’s Kitchen, founded by computer science major Armita Jamshidi ’25, was named the 2024 Student Business of the Year, and Esger, CEO of Advait Raykar MEng ’23, was named the BenDaniel Venture winner. I got it. Challenge.
The final event of the conference was the “Inspiring Futures” reception, where attendees were encouraged to think about the challenges founders face and brainstorm ways to personally build a more inclusive entrepreneurial community.
LeeAnne Roberts, director of diversity, equity and inclusion in the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Sciences, said the event was an opportunity for business leaders to talk about diversity, equity and inclusion. He said it helped him think in new ways. “This gave us a way to bring those ideas into the conversation around entrepreneurship: diversity of ideas, diversity of thought, diversity of products, service to diverse communities,” she said. Ta.
Participants brainstormed actions that both the university and individuals can take to support and encourage entrepreneurship among underrepresented groups and diversify Cornell’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The prize included a bag filled with products created by the Cornell University founder.
“As Cornell University works towards Zach’s goals; [Shulman’s] Our vision is for Cornell to become a top-three destination for students with an entrepreneurial spirit,” said Christa B. Downey, director of Cornell University’s Engineering Career Center. “We have a great opportunity to lead the way by supporting a diverse group of founders, which ultimately leads to greater innovation and impact.”
