About this Event
Get Ready for the Entrepreneurship Conference 2026 at HBS!
Join us in person to dive into the world of startups, innovation, and networking. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur or just love cool ideas, this is your spot to connect, learn, and get inspired by some of the brightest minds in the game. Don’t miss out on an energizing day packed with talks, workshops, and plenty of chances to meet fellow dreamers and doers!
Further details: https://hbs-entrepreneurship-club.org
Agenda
🕑: 08:00 AM - 09:00 AM
Breakfast & Registration (Spangler, William's Room)
Info: Pick up your badge and grab breakfast and coffee before the opening session.
🕑: 09:00 AM - 09:15 AM
Opening Remarks (Klarman)
Info: Welcome from the conference co-chairs and an introduction to this year's theme, From Ideas to Institutions, and the founder journey: Find, Build, Fund, Scale, Endure & Exit. With Maha Arshad, Shirley Lei, Jon Cabarrus and Cara Li.
🕑: 09:15 AM - 09:45 AM
Opening Keynote (Klarman)
Host: Jim McKelvey (Co-Founder & Board Director, Block)
Info: Find · Keynote. How founders recognize overlooked problems, persist when incumbents dismiss the opportunity, and turn an unconventional insight into a category-defining company, told through the Square story.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:45 AM
Building Tough Tech: Hard Problems, Long Horizons (Klarman)
Host: Katie Rae (CEO & Managing Partner, Engine Ventures)
Info: Find · Panel. How founders and investors identify difficult technical problems worth years of commitment, evaluate scientific and commercial risk, finance long development cycles, and move from prototype to market.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:45 AM
Permission to Scale: Building in Regulated Healthcare (Aldrich 112)
Host: Ben Liu (CEO & Co-Founder, Formation Bio)
Info: Find · Panel. How healthcare founders choose problems with meaningful clinical value, then navigate evidence, regulation, reimbursement, trust, and institutional adoption to scale responsibly.
🕑: 10:00 AM - 10:45 AM
Going Viral: The Consumer Marketing Playbook (Spangler 051)
Host: Leah Marcus (Co-Founder, Good Girl Snacks)
Info: Find · Panel. How consumer founders identify a resonant cultural insight, create products people want to share, convert virality into repeat purchase, and build durable brands beyond the initial moment.
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Fashion Rewired: Technology, Brand Reinvention & Future of Shopping (Klarman)
Host: Aaron Cain (President & CEO, Converse)
Info: Build · Panel. How established and emerging brands combine product, storytelling, technology, and new shopping experiences while reinventing without eroding brand equity.
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Bootstrapping and Beyond: Consumer Brands from Zero to Scale (Aldrich 112)
Host: Cam Stajer (Founder & CEO, KALA)
Info: Fund · Panel. How founders choose a capital strategy: bootstrap to preserve control, use revenue to finance growth, or raise outside capital when it can accelerate distribution and scale without distorting the business.
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM
Founding During Business School: From Class Project to Company (Spangler 051)
Host: Vidhan Bhaiya (Co-Founder, Cortex)
Info: Build · Panel. How student founders find co-founders, test an idea while in school, use the campus ecosystem, balance coursework with company-building, and decide when to pursue the venture full time.
🕑: 12:00 PM - 02:00 PM
Lunch & Networking (Batten Hall)
Info: Lunch from 12:00 PM, followed by networking from 1:00 to 2:00 PM.
🕑: 02:00 PM - 02:45 PM
Keynote: From Breakthrough Science to Global Institution (Klarman)
Host: Noubar Afeyan (Founder & CEO, Flagship Pioneering)
Info: Build to Endure · Keynote. How Flagship originates companies around scientific platforms, how leaders distinguish promising science from an enduring business, and what Moderna's journey reveals about financing long horizons, scaling through inflection points, and building for global impact.
🕑: 03:00 PM - 03:45 PM
Beyond the Brand: Building Trust and Loyalty (Klarman)
Host: Nir Liberboim (Co-CEO & Co-Founder, Lemme)
Info: Scale · Panel. How consumer founders earn trust, build community, translate attention into loyalty, and scale without losing product quality or brand authenticity.
🕑: 03:00 PM - 03:45 PM
Reimagining Entertainment: AI, Creativity, and New Worlds (Spangler 051)
Host: Fei Pan (VP of Growth, Meshy)
Info: Scale · Panel. How AI is changing games, 3D assets, characters, and entertainment experiences; where creative advantage will come from; and how companies can scale while preserving human taste and authorship.
🕑: 03:00 PM - 03:45 PM
Powering AI: Chips, Compute, and Infrastructure (Aldrich 112)
Host: Carmen Li (Founder & CEO, Silicon Data)
Info: Scale · Panel. The infrastructure bottlenecks shaping AI progress (chips, memory, compute efficiency, data systems, and deployment economics) and where founders can build durable value.
🕑: 04:00 PM - 04:45 PM
Small Teams, Supercharged: Using Agentic AI to 10x Productivity (Klarman)
Host: Tudor Achim (Co-Founder & CEO, Harmonic)
Info: Endure & Exit · Panel. How agentic AI changes team design, workflows, operating leverage, and the economics of company-building; where smaller teams can outperform; and which management systems they need.
🕑: 04:00 PM - 04:45 PM
The Founder's Legal Playbook: From Formation to Scale (Spangler 051)
Host: Laura Stoffel (Partner, Cooley)
Info: Endure & Exit · Panel. A practical roadmap covering formation, founder equity and vesting, governance, intellectual property, hiring, financing documents, cross-border issues, and costly mistakes to avoid.
🕑: 04:00 PM - 04:45 PM
Landing Big Exits: The Road to Acquisition (Aldrich 112)
Host: Amir Khan (Founder, President & CEO, Alkira)
Info: Endure & Exit · Panel. How founders build strategically valuable companies, recognize acquisition readiness, manage buyer interest and negotiations, navigate diligence and integration, and protect long-term value through an exit.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 05:45 PM
Closing Keynote: Building to Endure (Klarman)
Host: David Fialkow (Co-Founder & MD, General Catalyst)
Info: Endure · Keynote. Lessons on backing exceptional founders, building durable organizations, and maintaining conviction through major transitions.
Speakers
Opening Keynote
Host: Jim McKelvey (Co-Founder & Board Director, Block)
Building Tough Tech: Hard Problems, Long Horizons
Host: Katie Rae (CEO & Managing Partner, Engine Ventures)
Permission to Scale: Building in Regulated Healthcare
Host: Ben Liu (CEO & Co-Founder, Formation Bio)
Going Viral: The Consumer Marketing Playbook
Host: Leah Marcus (Co-Founder, Good Girl Snacks)
Fashion Rewired: Technology, Brand Reinvention & Future of Shopping
Host: Aaron Cain (President & CEO, Converse)
Bootstrapping and Beyond: Consumer Brands from Zero to Scale
Host: Cam Stajer (Founder & CEO, KALA)
Founding During Business School: From Class Project to Company
Host: Vidhan Bhaiya (Co-Founder, Cortex)
Keynote: From Breakthrough Science to Global Institution
Host: Noubar Afeyan (Founder & CEO, Flagship Pioneering)
Beyond the Brand: Building Trust and Loyalty
Host: Nir Liberboim (Co-CEO & Co-Founder, Lemme)
Reimagining Entertainment: AI, Creativity, and New Worlds
Host: Fei Pan (VP of Growth, Meshy)
Powering AI: Chips, Compute, and Infrastructure
Host: Carmen Li (Founder & CEO, Silicon Data)
Small Teams, Supercharged: Using Agentic AI to 10x Productivity
Host: Tudor Achim (Co-Founder & CEO, Harmonic)
The Founder's Legal Playbook: From Formation to Scale
Host: Laura Stoffel (Partner, Cooley)
Landing Big Exits: The Road to Acquisition
Host: Amir Khan (Founder, President & CEO, Alkira)
Closing Keynote: Building to Endure
Host: David Fialkow (Co-Founder & MD, General Catalyst)
Event venue & nearby stays
Klarman Hall, Soldiers Field Road, Boston, United States
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups — all the happenings, one place.