Immigrant Founders Networking: TechCrunch 2025 Best Health Startup & 2X YC Founder
Note: watch out for blast on Gate Entry Instructions.
Add 1 slide here if you want to pitch: https://www.canva.com/design/DAG4lVZCTrU/DFcTiSTsxSM1YWbeaI6eZg/edit?utm_content=DAG4lVZCTrU&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=sharebutton
Join us with a fireside chat with Antonio Forenza, PhD of AWEAR, winner of the Best Health Startup Award at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 and Sohrab Haghighat is a 2x YC founder and current CEO of Hestus.
Hear Antonios' winning 2-minute pitch that secured the Battlefield title — and the story behind it. In this Fireside Chat, discover what it took to reach this point: the challenges he faced, the cofounder transitions, and the mindset that kept him going as an immigrant founder. Come with your questions and get an honest look at what it really takes to build from the ground up.
Get ready to network and meet vetted immigrant founders, investors, and operators at Immigrant Founders Networking hosted by Funding Breakthrough Lab, OpenSphere, Venturous Counsel & Xmartlabs
Whether you're a tech enthusiast, a fellow founder, or just curious about the future of the Immigrant founder ecosystem, this is the place to be.
Immigrant Founder? Apply To Pitch
Bio
Antonio Forenza, PhD, is an inventor and engineer passionate about turning breakthrough technologies into real-world products. He has co-founded startups and served as an executive in public companies, leading engineering teams to deliver cutting-edge solutions. With over 250 issued patents worldwide, Antonio has contributed to wireless standards, authored IEEE publications, and driven advancements in RAN virtualization, cloud-native OpenRAN, and 5G/6G technologies. His expertise spans leadership, product development, systems architecture, and mindfulness-based innovation.
AWEAR is a mental wellness wearable that detects stress before you even notice it. Powered by EEG, this discreet smart ear patch continuously tracks your brainwaves and sends real-time insights to the app, helping you stay balanced, focused, and in control. Get your AWEAR Alpha with exclusive early-bird rewards and special pricing, available now on our website.
Sohrab Haghighat is a 2x YC founder and current CEO of Hestus (building AI copilots for hardware design). Before that, he founded SpaceRyde (YC W19), a space transportation company where he scaled to 40 employees and secured Canada's first launch authorization in 21 years! He's also spent time at Cruise leading autonomous vehicle teams and has a PhD in Aerospace Engineering.
Hosts:
OpenSphere maximizes your visa-approval chances with our personalized AI-powered assistance and legal guidance. Immigrants can book a free consultation 🛂
Funding Breakthrough Lab is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit pre-accelerator with a mission of creating a supportive community to build a better tomorrow. We empower founders with education, networks, and resources to unlock their potential while championing diversity, inclusion, and authenticity. Founded by Natalie Pan, an engineer, community builder and executive coach. Apply for the next August cohort here https://fundingbreakthroughlab.org.
Venturous Counsel is a uniquely mission-driven law firm dedicated to supporting underestimated founders, investors and mission-driven companies as fractional general counsel. We provide efficient, strategic advice, a realistic evaluation of relative risks, and focus on being very accessible so you can offload legal worries and clear up space in your brain for more exciting things.
Xmartlabs is an Uruguay-based software development studio, offering nearshore development support with fractional CTO consulting and embedded engineering teams. We work with companies from launch to enterprise to accelerate production, implement lean development, and maintain technical infrastructure.
Hosted at Homebrew Club - a coworking + knowledge-sharing community for founders and startups in frontier tech. Learn more at https://bento.me/homebrew
Agenda:
5:00 pm - 5:30 pm: Registration: Networking + Food
5:30 pm - 6:00 pm: Announcements and Partner Introductions.
Startup Lightning Pitches - Apply to Pitch
6:00 pm - 6:30 pm: Fireside Chat with Antonio Forenza, PhD of AWEAR
6:30- 6:45 pm: Startup Lightning Pitches - Apply to Pitch
6:45 - 7:15 - Talk by Sohrab Haghighat
7:15-8:30 pm: Networking w/ Food and Drinks!