Past Events
Invited Speakers
Faran Nouri
Advisor · xLight
Faran Nouri has been a semiconductor technologist, entrepreneur, investor, and board member. Prior to Natcast, she was a General Partner at America’s Frontier Fund and a Vice President at Lam Research. She was a founding member of Lam Capital, where she established the fund and guided its investment portfolio, leading to multiple exits through IPOs and acquisitions. Before her venture career, Faran spent two decades in the semiconductor industry, developing commercially successful products at both startups and Fortune 500 companies. She has been an invited speaker and panelist, board member, served on several technical committees, authored more than 60 peer-reviewed papers, and holds 26 patents.
Gilroy Vandentop
Former VP & Director of Corporate University Research · Intel Labs
Former VP & Director of Corporate University Research at Intel Labs; Expert in novel materials, manufacturing tech, and partnerships; Ph.D in Physical Chemistry
Olivier Oomen
CEO & Co-Founder · HallTech
Olivier Oomen is the Co-Founder & CEO at HallTech B.V., a thin-film platform for next-node semiconductors. He was formerly at ASML, where he focused on planning and execution of complex system upgrades for leading semiconductor customers. MSc in Applied Plasma Physics.
Susan Schofer
Partner & Chief Science Officer · HAX
Susan Schofer is a Partner at SOSV global venture capital firm and serves as Chief Science Officer at HAX, the world’s premier venture program accelerating early stage hard tech startups. She works with new startups via early stage investment, defining key milestones and go-to-market strategies, and is responsible for scientific oversight and building capabilities to support portfolio companies. Prior to joining HAX, Susan served as SVP Business Development for Modern Meadow and a member of the executive leadership team for over 7 years, developing new sustainable materials inspired by leather without any animals, where she led product, partnership, and go-to-market strategy and execution from early ideation through to commercialization. Before that, Susan spent 10 years in Silicon Valley working in roles spanning R&D, product development, product management, and business development for Amyris, a pioneer in synthetic biology, and Symyx Technologies, utilizing proprietary high-throughput robotic workflows to accelerate polymer and material discovery and development. Susan also worked as an analyst for management consulting company Mitchell Madison Group. Her passion is working closely with scientific and technical innovation to craft product and business strategy and partnering with founders and the broader ecosystem to implement and commercialize solutions to make a positive impact on people and planet. Susan was an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow at Stockholm and Uppsala Universities, where she worked to develop catalyst systems for artificial photosynthesis. She holds a Ph.D. in chemistry from Caltech and an Sc.B. in chemistry from Brown.
Yevgeny Raitses
Principal Research Physicist · Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Yevgeny Raitses is a Principal Research Physicist at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). His research focuses on plasma physics, particularly plasma thrusters, sheaths, and discharges relevant to electric propulsion and plasma processing. He has authored numerous publications on these topics and serves as an adjunct professor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.