AI + Workforce Matters
AI + Workforce Matters: A Symposium for Startup Founders, Investors, and Policymakers
Who: Founders building AI that affects work, the investors who back them, and the policymakers shaping the enabling environment.
Details:
January 14, 2026 in Washington, DC
1:00 to 5:00 PM ET
Curated group, invitation only
Chatham House Rules
Cocktail reception to follow
Confirmed speakers:
Senator Mark Kelly
Brent Orrell, Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
Seth Harris, Former Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor; Senior Fellow, Burnes Center for Social Change
More to be announced.
Request an Invitation:
Space is limited. To be considered, please register your interest here.
Building on July 2025:
Responsible Innovation Labs convened our first AI + Workforce Symposium in San Francisco in July 2025, bringing together 60+ founders, investors, and ecosystem leaders. Former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke on the national security implications of impacts on American workers. General Catalyst CEO Hemant Taneja shared his perspective as an investor. Founders building AI in health, customer support, and government tech shared lessons from deployment.
Why This Gathering:
Startups see workforce transformation first. They have real usage data from customers adopting AI, including which worker transitions succeed, what creates friction, what support workers may need. The startup perspective is underrepresented in policy conversations.
Good policy requires good information. Good scaling requires policy awareness.
How we navigate this transition shapes American competitiveness and national well-being. These debates are happening across the political spectrum. This symposium creates a venue for learning from other vantage points about the economic transformation ahead.
What to Expect:
Our January symposium shifts the conversation to federal policy. We'll curate dialogue between founders with deployment data, investors evaluating workforce dynamics, and policymakers exploring our federal government's role as AI accelerates.
About Responsible Innovation Labs: Nonprofit infrastructure that helps startup founders build better businesses through responsible innovation. We believe responsible innovation leads to stronger products, better customer relationships, and healthier P&L, with societal benefit as a downstream outcome. We bridge founders and the ecosystem that shapes their success: investors, policymakers, and civil society. Founded by Diede van Lamoen (former Stripe, Commure), Jon Zieger (former Stripe, Microsoft), and Hemant Taneja (General Catalyst). Led by Gaurab Bansal (former White House). Learn more: www.rilabs.org.