Edges of Science (ARIA x 50Y)

​We are gathering San Francisco’s leading scientists, engineers, and founders pursuing research at the edge of what is possible.

​Join us at Fifty Years’ HQ for an evening to meet fellow brilliant scientists, engineers, and founders and explore the edges of what is scientifically and technologically possible.

​Many of society’s most important advances have stemmed from those with the foresight to pursue technologies most believed to be unattainable. Conversations tonight might shape research fields where increased funding and talent could drive massive positive change.

​We’ll kick off the evening with lightning talks followed by nourishing food and great conversations amongst other great minds.

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ARIA is a UK R&D funding agency built to unlock scientific and technological breakthroughs by empowering scientists and engineers to pursue research that is too speculative, too hard, or too interdisciplinary to pursue elsewhere. Programme Directors (PDs) are exceptional scientific and technical leaders who define opportunity spaces, shape bold technical visions, and build the teams and project portfolios needed to pursue them. ARIA’s PDs design and lead ambitious, multi-year R&D programmes with a budget of £50M to select, fund, and actively steer a diverse portfolio of projects. ARIA is now recruiting its third cohort of Programme Directors for a May 2027 start.

Fifty Years is an early stage VC firm. We back founders solving the world's biggest problems through technology entrepreneurship. We’ve backed over 130 deep tech startups. We’ve built deep tech companies ourselves and created programs like 5050 to help scientists and engineers start and build indispensable companies.