Yale Startup Matchmaking Connects Entrepreneurs Across Campus

Yale’s entrepreneurial ecosystem came alive last week as more than 300 students, faculty, and founders gathered for the third annual Yale Startup Matchmaking event. Co-hosted by Yale Ventures, the Yale SOM Program on Entrepreneurship, and the Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking at Yale, the evening transformed Zhang Auditorium and Snyder Forum into a hub of innovation and connection.

The event aims to create a space where Yale founders can pitch their ventures and connect with the talent they need to grow. The evening showcased the breadth and depth of entrepreneurial activity happening across Yale’s campus, spanning industries from fashion to cybersecurity to healthcare technology.

Fourteen founders took the stage in Zhang Auditorium to present their ventures in rapid-fire pitches, each offering a glimpse into the problems they’re solving and the roles they’re looking to fill. SOM students and alumni composed nearly half of the lineup: Chris Huang presented Surge, an AI-driven influencer platform that analyzes actual content rather than vanity metrics to help brands run repeatable influencer campaigns. Karina Gupta pitched KarinaJ Denim, which is reimagining women’s jeans with slip-on designs that accommodate daily weight fluctuation. Kevin Wang introduced Anatomist Security, which provides full-stack Web3 security audits for blockchain infrastructure protecting billions in assets. The diversity of ventures reflected Yale’s cross-disciplinary approach to entrepreneurship, with founders drawing on expertise from across the university to build their startups.

Following the pitches, the crowd moved to Snyder Forum for an hour of networking. Twenty tables—one for each presenting venture plus additional networking startups—filled the space as community members circulated, asking questions, exchanging contact information, and exploring how their skills might align with startup needs.

Karina Gupta reflects on the experience, saying, “Because I am now transitioning my focus from prototyping to supply chain, these conversations pushed me to think more critically about what I would actually need in a co-founder at this stage – not just in terms of skills, but in how someone would complement my strengths and support the next phase of growth.”

Yale Startup Matchmaking addresses a critical challenge in the startup ecosystem: finding the right people at the right time. The success of this year’s event—now in its third iteration—demonstrates the growing appetite for hands-on entrepreneurial experience at Yale. As the university continues to strengthen its innovation ecosystem through programs and centers dedicated to supporting founders, events like Yale Startup Matchmaking serve as crucial gathering points where community, collaboration, and opportunity intersect.