Seema Alexander, co-chair of the recently concluded DC Startup & Tech Week, speaks about the event, its evolution over the years, and the region's startup ecosystem.
The 9th annual DC Startup & Tech Week (DCSTW), held from October 21 to 25, was its most successful edition yet, featuring over 300 keynotes and speakers, thousands of startups and investors, and an expanded 13-track lineup.
The event's success can be credited to the dynamic leadership of co-chairs Rachel Koretsky and Seema Alexander and their incredible team.
Alexander, an Indian American entrepreneur, is the co-founder of Virgent AI, a company specializing in creating custom, safe AI (Artificial Intelligence) agents and AI-enabled solutions. She is deeply committed to helping businesses transform into sought-after brands by integrating business growth strategies, brand positioning, and cutting-edge technology.
Her passion for fostering community and collaboration is evident in her work with DCSTW. Originally founded by Koretsky and Chida Sadayappan, another Indian American entrepreneur and local technology leader, DCSTW has grown from a vision to connect and educate entrepreneurs and founders into a cornerstone of the local DC, Maryland and Virginia startup and tech ecosystem. Year over year the five-day event unlocks innovation, drives business growth and creates a unique collaborative environment for founders, investors and partners alike.
In an exclusive interview with The American Bazaar, Alexander reflects on the success of this year's DCSTW, its evolution over the years, the startup ecosystem in the Washington, D.C., area, and her entrepreneurial journey. Below are edited excerpts from the conversation.
The American Bazaar: How did you get involved with the DC Startup and Tech Week?
Seema Alexander: I got involved with DC Startup & Tech Week seven years ago. Although I'm originally from the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area, I had been living in New York City for 17 years after college. When I moved back to Maryland, I initially felt like a fish out of water. The region has always been heavily focused on government contracting and politics, while my background is in repositioning and scaling businesses and driving emerging innovations.
READ: DC Startup and Tech Week 2024 kicks off: AI and innovation take center stage (October 21, 2024)
Later that year, I was invited to speak at DC Startup Week (as it was called then) and quickly found my tribe -- the 1% of crazy innovators, game-changers, and creatives. For the first time, I felt at home and knew I had to get involved at a leadership level. I wanted to help grow the organization, brand and impact and support fostering the innovation the region was on the brink of unlocking.
Around that time, I started to notice exciting developments: Amazon HQ2 coming to Northern Virginia, Maryland's growth in life sciences, and the rise of the tech hub in Data Center Alley. These shifts made the region a far more dynamic and promising ecosystem for innovation, and I knew I wanted to be a part of supporting and shaping its growth.
Can you walk us through the preparation process for DCSTW?
For both Rachel and me, this is our biggest side hustle. Rachel is currently leading a high-growth tech company called UPace, which is in its tenth year -- which is exciting. and I am growing my startup Virgent AI. We both are female founders working hard to grow our companies, while building DC Startup and Tech Week -- as it's an ongoing effort.
I believe authentic value-add relationships are everything in business, so I focus on building relationships and community partnerships throughout the year, but the intense planning usually starts around six months before the event. Realistically, though, a lot happens within the four months leading up to the event -- it's crazy, I'm not going to lie.
We are blessed to have been able to curate a team of industry-specific track leads who help curate their tracks with experts, founders, and investors and our core team to help with the logistics, marketing, production and administration side. We truly could not do it without them.
Every year, we go through the challenge of securing funding, as we rely entirely on sponsorships without any grants and have rebuilt our funding base year over year. It's truly like a startup fundraising. However, our goal is to focus on multi-year sponsorships with companies that are aligned to our goals and they are mutually aligned to add value to our community. People are starting to recognize the economic impact we're making in the startup and innovation space, and we have many success stories. But it's a huge effort, and if you ask my family or Rachel's, they'd tell you it's a sleepless process!
This year's event brought in some high-profile speakers. Can you tell us about some of the standout guests?
Absolutely. One of our biggest speakers was Kathi Vidal, the CEO of the Innovation Agency and head of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). She spoke about where we are in this disruptive innovation cycle, focusing on the uncertainty around intellectual property and trade when it comes to AI and generative technologies.
Another major guest was Maha Abouelenein, a global communication strategist. She has helped build major brands like those of Gary Vaynerchuk and Deepak Chopra, and she's launched U.S. brands in the Middle East, including Netflix. She also led policy and communications for Google in the Middle East. Maha was our keynote during the kickoff, and she just launched a book, so it was an honor to have her insights.
Noelle Russell, whom I consider the "queen of AI," also joined us. With her background working on Amazon's Alexa and her new AI Leadership Institute, she brings an unmatched depth of knowledge about the current state of AI. Her understanding of the technology's evolution and its real-world implications was invaluable.
READ: Noelle Russell champions AI's human side in DC Startup Week keynote (October 22, 2024)
We had other notable speakers like the CEOs of Sorcero and Arcadia -- both of Indian descent. Sorcero focuses on AI, data, and medical applications, while Arcadia works on climate and sustainability data with AI and machine learning elements. Their perspectives added a lot to our fireside chats.
Brandon Andrews was another highlight. He's a Shark Tank casting director and consultant, helping bring local DMV (D.C., Maryland, Virginia) founders onto the show. The DMV region is actually the most represented on Shark Tank overall. Brandon hosted a panel with four local founders who have found success through Shark Tank, which was a unique and inspiring segment.
We're also intentional about our panel representation. Growing up in the diverse D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area, Rachel and I are very conscious of wanting our event to reflect that. We ensured women and people of color were well-represented -- not for any diversity initiative, but because they're leaders in their fields.
What makes Washington D.C.'s startup ecosystem unique compared to other regions?
The DMV has a unique mix of social impact and entrepreneurial drive. Entrepreneurs here are not only profit-driven but also impact-driven, creating a strong social and creative focus. We've seen the rise of many emerging technologies like Web3, and now, Artificial Intelligence is taking over -- and have a strong foothold in Quantum. Being close to the policymakers also help the innovation ecosystem influence and stay on top of regulations to create a competitive edge compared to other regions. The diversity in DMV's startup ecosystem, from nonprofit ventures to for-profit social enterprises, makes it also very distinct.
What role do you see DCSTW playing in this ecosystem?
Our event helps bring together various sectors within the DMV area, which often operate in silos -- DC, Maryland, and Virginia each have distinct political and business needs. Our goal is to establish the region as a global innovation hub by fostering community, creating great content, and showcasing and celebrating successes. There are a lot of innovative stories in this area, but they're often untold. Part of our mission is to bring those stories to the forefront.
You mentioned bringing emerging tech into the spotlight. How does that fit into your vision for the event?
A few years ago, I brought in the emerging tech track to DCSTW. There's always been a technology and developer side, but I wanted to bring in a track to speak to innovations and opportunities in areas like smart cities, Web3, and now AI. Given my background with an AI company, I feel a responsibility to anchor discussions on where AI technology is today and where it's headed. This technology is transformative, with huge implications and opportunities in businesses and startups, so it's essential to integrate it into our conversations at DC Startup and Tech Week.
Was government contracting a major focus at DCSTW this year?
Actually, government contracting isn't our main focus, despite it being big in DC. We have 13 content tracks. They range from early-stage content -- covering ideas, funding, and team-building -- to growth-stage topics for more mature businesses. This year, we had tracks on impact companies, AI, Web3, climate and sustainability, life sciences and biotech, cannabis, and government innovation. The life sciences and biotech tracks were new this year, in partnership with JLABS and Blue Knight from Johnson & Johnson. The cannabis track also was new and gained a lot of attention, as it's an industry is growing exponentially even with its lack in federal direction. We want to support industries that we see a lot of potential for innovation, technology and social good.
This year we also added a new track on government innovation, with an emphasis on dual-use tech -- helping entrepreneurs understand what the government needs from emerging technologies, allowing them to create solutions with real value. We had several agency leaders doing reverse pitches, discussing how to secure R&D funding, cyber-focused funds, and other non-dilutive funding to support innovations. While government contracting can lead to consultancy-like roles, we aim to position this track as a bridge for entrepreneurs to partner with the government on driving true innovations. Nothing in entrepreneurship can be done alone, especially if you are working on breakthrough ideas so we help foster collaborations and identify support throughout our very active ecosystem.
How large is your organization, and how do you manage to reach so many people and persuade them to participate?
We have 13 sub-tracks, and about 10 of them have dedicated track leads. For example, Darius [Clair] runs our early-stage track, while experts like Gilberto Nazario and Shailee Adonofi manage the Web3 track to Casey Williams and Kay Rodrieguiz leading our Female Founders and Funders track -- they're all deeply embedded as leaders in their respective communities, which helps a lot.
From a speaker perspective, we have speaker applications where we get 300-500 applicants every year. LinkedIn has also always been a fantastic tool for connecting with experts. You'd be surprised how willing people are to join us if they're simply asked.
We've also built a strong reputation over the years, as this is our ninth year. This past year, I realized the reach we've developed -- like when I was able to speak with the head of the Health and Human Services Agency or very successful CEOs. These connections happened through trusted relationships who see the value we bring professionally through our companies and DCSTW year over year. After that, it's our job to sell the value of participating.
And no one gets paid to speak, including our keynote speakers. This is all based on relationships and adding value. Our goal is to create a mutually beneficial experience for everyone involved.
How many full-time and part-time employees do you have?
Full-time, zero. It's just Rachel and me, and we're not even technically employees. This is a labor of love for both of us. Honestly, I've never worked harder on anything in my life -- but the impact has been tremendous! We have to give it up for our contractors, track leads, volunteers, partners and sponsors. Without them we could never make this happen at this scale.
Seema, you've really helped put the DMV area on the map as a startup hub. Traditionally, places like Silicon Valley are known for tech, and Boston is recognized for biomedicine. Where would you place the DMV region among other startup hubs?
We were recently recognized as the sixth-ranked startup hub in the world, so we're definitely rising. But one thing that sets us apart is that while other regions might receive funding to promote their innovation stories and narratives, we don't. There are incredible success stories here in specific areas, but they often go untold, which is something we're focused on changing.
The DMV is unique. It's not like Silicon Valley or New York; it's a region with a very supportive startup ecosystem. Here, everyone genuinely wants to help each other. While there's healthy competition, it's supportive -- sometimes almost to a fault. There's also a strong social impact mindset here. People want to make a difference, and that resilience and long-term thinking are essential for entrepreneurship.
What's next for DCSTW?
Next year is our 10th anniversary, and we're planning some exciting new developments. We'll be launching an Innovation Festival in the first half of the year incorporating arts, culture, and tech, aiming to create a unique event for the DMV region. We're also expanding our year-round programming, like curated dinners and events for specific groups, such as female founders and climate-focused startups. This helps founders build genuine connections with investors over time.
Our signature DC Startup & Tech Week returns this October, featuring exciting new elements to showcase innovation and celebrate our 10th anniversary in style.
What advice would you share with young women and women of color in tech and entrepreneurship?
Early in my career, I received advice from a respected mentor, who told me, "No matter what you do, go add value." She explained that even if you're in a meeting and don't fully understand everything, find a way to contribute -- whether it's summarizing a conversation, asking a question, or connecting with someone afterward. It's about being proactive and not just sitting there quietly.
Instead of focusing on my identity or dealing with imposter syndrome, I shifted my mindset to always look for ways to add value. Building relationships and making connections, even in small ways, can create meaningful impact over time. Consistently adding value, no matter how minor it may seem, helps you stand out and build stronger connections. Don't let factors like age, gender, or background hold you back; just focus on making a positive impact.