Workshop featuring experts from Stanford and Silicon Valley brings together nearly 400 participants

On September 30, School 21's campus hosted a workshop featuring esteemed experts from Stanford University and Silicon Valley. This event was organized by School 21 in collaboration with IT Park Uzbekistan.

The workshop drew nearly 400 attendees, including representatives from technology firms, startups, students, and emerging professionals. It provided a distinctive opportunity for participants to interact directly with leading global experts, pose questions, and share ideas.

Presentations by international experts from Stanford and Silicon Valley included:

Andrea Kates — an international innovation advisor, author of Find Your Next and the Get to Next methodology, and former CEO of a Silicon Valley SaaS company. She partners with top global corporations to facilitate innovation integration and achieve sustainable scaling.

In her presentation titled “Strategies for Driving Innovation and Scaling Businesses,” she discussed techniques for promoting innovation and expanding operations. She highlighted that for sustainable growth, companies must not only embrace new technologies but also create processes that enable them to adapt to swiftly changing market dynamics.

Jeff Cabili — a communications and pitching specialist, lecturer at Stanford Continuing Studies, and founder of How2Captivate. He trains executives and entrepreneurs from prominent companies, such as Google and Netflix, in the art of pitching and storytelling.

In his session, he focused on “Effective Communication and Pitching Skills,” emphasizing how to structure a presentation, keep the audience engaged, and cultivate trust-based relationships with investors and partners.

Timothy Lee — Managing Director at the investment firm iCapital, where he manages corporate development, M&A transactions, and capital raising. He possesses extensive experience in international investment and the legal structuring of transactions across the United States and Asia.

In his presentation, “Crunchbase Workshop: Investor Targeting and Market Research,” he outlined the essential factors that make startups appealing to investors. He stressed the significance of the founding team, business model, and scalability potential, while also clarifying the decision-making criteria used by international investors to support projects.

Throughout the workshop, the experts not only imparted their professional knowledge but also offered practical suggestions to assist young entrepreneurs in growing their startups, securing investments, and establishing successful international collaborations.

The workshop acted as a vital forum for discussion and knowledge sharing between Uzbekistan’s startup ecosystem and global industry leaders. Attendees were able to engage directly with international experts, draw inspiration from their professional experiences, and gather insights for their own career progression. Initiatives like these play a crucial role in enhancing the national innovation ecosystem, creating new avenues for domestic startups, and strengthening Uzbekistan’s standing in the global IT arena.