Founders Club at the 2026 HYSTA Annual Conference

This year, I was delighted to co-host the Founders Club track at the HYSTA Annual Conference with Nikita, bringing together founders, investors, and friends both old and new. From pitches by 16 startup teams to conversations about investing, AI infrastructure, and putting robotics into practice, I heard the experiences and ideas of many people who are serious about building products and solving real problems, and came away with plenty of inspiration.

A special thank-you to Nikita for all her hard work over this period. From coordinating with speakers and repeatedly refining the host script and slides to co-hosting on stage and keeping the program running smoothly, every part reflected her care and dedication. I am also very grateful to Danning for her coordination and support. Running Founders Club with Nikita and Danning this year, we have all put a great deal of time and effort into it, and together turned many ideas into reality.

Thank you as well to all the volunteers, especially our FC teammates, and to HYSTA's advisors and board members. From preparation to welcoming guests, getting speakers ready, timing and scoring, AV, event materials, visual design, photography, videography, and promotion, every part depended on everyone's time and contributions.

I truly value the chance to work with a group of people who care about doing things well and supporting one another. Our time is limited; spending it supporting each other and doing worthwhile things together is as good a way to use it as I can imagine. And it looks like we have already become an AI-native organization [Yay]