CED - Center for Entrepreneurial Development

ACG Raleigh Durham Capital Conference & DealSource
2026-04-14 - 2026-04-15

AI for Public Good
2026-04-13 10:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) | The William and Ida Friday Center at UNC-Chapel Hill, 100 Friday Center Drive, Campus Box 1020, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, United States

VCIC Global Finals
2026-04-10 - 2026-04-11 | UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School, 300 Kenan Center Drive, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, United States

Duke Startup Showcase
2026-04-09 16:00 - 19:00 | Duke University – Fuqua School of Business, 100 Fuqua Drive, Durham, NC, 27708, United States

The AI Briefing
2026-04-08 10:00 - 11:00

11th IdeaFest Business Pitch Competition
2026-04-08

BioAgTech World Congress
2026-04-07 - 2026-04-10

Free Coworking Day at The Junction
2026-04-03 08:30 - 17:00 | Innovate Carolina, 136 E Rosemary St, Chapel Hill, NC, 17514, United States

First Friday at Raleigh Founded - North Street
2026-04-03 | Raleigh Founded – North Street, 509 W North St, Raleigh, 27603, United States

NCSU AI in Agriculture
2026-03-31 - 2026-04-02

VC Conf
2026-03-31

Celebration
2026-03-25 17:00 - 18:00 | DPAC Floor 2 Lobby, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Don’t rush out just yet! Join us in the lobby for a celebration honoring our Venture Connect speakers and presenters. Enjoy beer, wine, and non-alcoholic drinks as we toast to Venture Connect 2026.

Early-Stage Investor Reverse Pitch
2026-03-25 16:30 - 17:00 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Early-stage startups navigate some of the most uncertain waters, in search of their true north star of innovation. Let’s hear it from a few of the best groups to see if they’d be a great partner for startups building in these early innings.
Thank you, Deloitte, for sponsoring this event.

Biotech Investor Reverse Pitch
2026-03-25 16:30 - 17:00 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Hear from a few of our most engaged life sciences investors about their investment focus. These firms provide much needed funding and expertise to life sciences companies, propelling their missions to improve global healthcare outcomes.
Thank you, Deloitte, for sponsoring this event.

Ask Me Anything: Go-To-Market
2026-03-25 15:25 - 16:15 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Kelly Breslin Wright returns to the stage for a live GTM Ask Me Anything following her Supercharge GTM session. This open Q&A gives founders and operators the chance to go deeper on go to market strategy, hiring, culture, scaling revenue, and the real impact of AI on sales. Bring your toughest questions.

Signal or Noise: What AI in Biotech is Actually Worth
2026-03-25 15:25 - 16:15 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
This session looks at how AI is actually being evaluated in life science today. Rather than focusing on hype or predictions, the conversation will explore what makes the technology credible, where it is genuinely useful, and why the companies gaining traction tend to be solving fundamental problems in ways that fit real scientific and industry workflows.

Pae Wu, General Partner – SOSV
Marcel Frenkel, CEO – Ten63 Therapeutics
Jason Burke, Chief AI & StrategyOfficer – Creo
Reed Few, Director, Data Science External Innovation, R&D – Johnson & Johnson
Dave Ousterhout, Partner – Cape Fear Bio, will help guide the discussion.

From Lean Startup to the One Person Unicorn
2026-03-25 14:20 - 15:10 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Most founders think “lean” means hiring slowly and using ChatGPT on the side. That’s outdated.
At Ariso, Erkang Zheng works with two “teammates” every day: Ari, an AI operating partner who handles the busywork and helps them grow, and Ivan, an AI engineering partner that ships code while we sleep. Together, they let them do what used to require multiple managers, analysts, and engineers—without the overhead, politics, or burnout.
In this talk, he’ll share how we’re redefining the lean startup: running like a future unicorn with a tiny team by treating AI not as a tool, but as real operating leverage.

Presentation Session | Science for a Healthier Planet
2026-03-25 14:20 - 15:10 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
The companies in this session are confronting some of the most pressing environmental and agricultural challenges of our time. From climate-resilient crops to next-generation water treatment and sustainable seafood, these innovators are using science to build a more resilient and sustainable world.
Thank you, NCBiotech, for sponsoring this event.

Presentation Session | North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
2026-03-25 13:35 - 14:05 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Hear from our area’s youngest entrepreneurs out of the NC School of Science and Mathematics who are designing solutions to tackle global challenges:

Julianna Jones
Anne Boafo
Caroline Wang
Lucas Rodriguez Chiappetta

The Science Leading NC's Next Biotech Wave
2026-03-25 13:30 - 15:00 | NanaSteak, 345 Blackwell St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
The Triangle’s next biotech companies are already taking shape in university labs. This session brings six faculty scientists to the stage to present discoveries at the frontier of venture formation — giving investors an early look at the human health innovations poised to anchor the Triangle’s next wave of biotech companies.

Presentation Session | Human Health — Biotech & Medtech
2026-03-25 13:15 - 13:35 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
From ENT care to oncology, the companies in this session are redefining how medicine is practiced, delivered, and experienced. Whether through novel device engineering, AI-powered diagnostics, or breakthrough therapeutics, these innovators are tackling some of healthcare’s most persistent challenges.

KPMG & Launch Chapel Hill Showcase
2026-03-25 13:10 - 14:05 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Launch Chapel Hill Powered by KPMG presents a live showcase of its inaugural cohort, featuring ten early stage AI and deeptech startups building technical, high impact solutions. Founders take the stage back to back in a fast moving session that offers a clear look at emerging technologies, bold ideas, and the next generation of companies coming out of the Triangle.
Thank you, KPMG, for sponsoring this event.

Lunch Break | Connect & Recharge
2026-03-25 12:00 - 13:00 | DPAC Floor 2 Lobby, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Take a break, grab a bite, and connect organically with fellow attendees. This unscripted, unstructured lunch is your time to step outside, spark new conversations, and build relationships in a relaxed setting. Whether you’re diving into a deep discussion or simply recharging for the afternoon sessions, this is your opportunity to network, unwind, and fuel up for what’s next.

Tech Investor Lunch
2026-03-25 12:00 - 13:00 | NanaSteak, 345 Blackwell St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
We are excited to host an invite-only Tech Investor Lunch during Venture Connect. This is a unique opportunity to network with fellow tech investors over lunch and engage in insightful conversations.
Thank you to KPMG for sponsoring this lunch!

How Fundraising Actually Works
2026-03-25 11:05 - 12:00 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
Most founders think fundraising is a pitch contest. It isn’t. It’s a structured process driven by preparation, evidence, and investor psychology. In this talk, Lesley Ross shares the playbook founders can use to navigate venture fundraising and significantly improve their odds of success.

Presentation Session | Software Innovation
2026-03-25 11:05 - 12:00 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
This session showcases software companies using artificial intelligence, automation, and modern cloud platforms to solve real-world problems across healthcare, construction, education, finance, and beyond. What unites them is a commitment to replacing inefficiency with intelligence — and delivering measurable impact to the people and organizations they serve.

Collaborative Intelligence: Designing the Human x AI Workforce for Maximum Value
2026-03-25 10:00 - 11:30 | NanaSteak, 345 Blackwell St, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
The question is no longer whether AI will reshape your workforce. It already has. The harder question, and one most organizations have yet to solve is: how do you intentionally design how humans and AI work together to maximize value?
Deloitte’s 2026 Global Human Capital Trends research reveals that while 60% of executives are already using AI in decision-making, only 6% say they are making meaningful progress in designing human-AI interactions. The gap between deploying AI and deriving value from it isn’t a technology problem. It’s a design problem, and it starts with being deliberate about what humans do, what GenAI and Agents do, and how the two operate as a total workforce.
In this facilitated session, Chloë Domergue, a principal in Deloitte Consulting LLP’s Human Capital practice and a leader at the forefront of AI-driven workforce transformation, will introduce Deloitte’s practical frameworks for thinking about human and machine roles, workforce maturity, and the organizational tipping points that help determine where to invest, when to act, and what to build next. This won’t be a conceptual conversation. Participants will work through the framework directly—using it to assess where their organization stands, identify their most critical decision points, and pressure test their assumptions about how they are building for the future. Real-world applications will be woven in throughout, illustrating how leading organizations are moving from AI pilots to always-on, Humans x Machines operating models that compound value over time.
Whether you’re just beginning to integrate AI or agentic, or wrestling with how to scale what’s in motion, this session will leave you with a sharper lens for the decisions that matter most—how to build a workforce, human and machine—that is designed to win.

Student & Startup Talent Meet-Up
2026-03-25 10:00 - 10:50 | DPAC President’s Club, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
An informal, high-energy meet-up designed to connect students, startups, and university partners in one room. Whether you’re a founder looking for sharp summer talent or a student seeking a hands-on internship for Summer 2026, this session creates space for real conversations and meaningful connections. Come ready to introduce yourself, explore opportunities, and spark the next great fit.

Presentation Session | Next-Gen Hardware & Deep Tech
2026-03-25 10:00 - 10:50 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
The companies in this session are operating at the frontier of what hardware and deep technology can do. From advanced robotics and satellite systems to novel materials and semiconductor architecture, these innovators are building the physical and computational infrastructure of tomorrow.

Day 2 Kickoff | Dealroom Sizes Up the Triangle Ecosystem
2026-03-25 08:30 - 09:45 | DPAC Stage, 123 William V Bill Bell Wy, Durham, NC, 27701, United States
How does the Triangle stack up against the leading startup ecosystems in the world? Dealroom CEO Yoram Wijngaarde opens with a global snapshot of venture activity, highlighting trends across capital, sectors, and emerging innovation hubs. Drawing on insights from the Triangle’s Dealroom initiative with CED, Yoram then joins Bill Spruill for a candid discussion on where the region is gaining momentum, where it still has ground to make up, and what it will take for the Triangle to climb the global ranks.
