Caltech Event Explores Pathways for Startups Seeking Defense Department Contracts

The Caltech Entrepreneurs Forum will launch its first event of 2025 focused on helping startups navigate opportunities in the defense sector.

The January 11 forum at the Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, 1216 E. California Boulevard, will explore how technology ventures can successfully engage with the Department of Defense’s procurement process.

Southern California’s position as home to the Defense, Space and Aerospace industries provides the backdrop for this timely discussion on the evolving landscape for investors, government procurement administrators and serial entrepreneurs. Companies like Anduril and Palantir have shown how startups with traditional equity funding paths can scale and sell directly to the Department of Defense.

Christopher Sember, Ph.D., Senior Advisor and Portfolio Manager from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy, will deliver the keynote address. A panel discussion will follow featuring Nick Kim, Partner at Upfront Ventures, and Andrew Singletary, Ph.D., Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of 3Laws Robotics. Both the keynote speaker and panelists will address questions from the audience.

The program runs Saturday, January 11, from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m., with coffee and networking beginning at 8:00 a.m. Early admission is priced at $30 for adults and $20 for students, plus applicable fees. Free parking will be available to attendees.

The Caltech Entrepreneurs Forum, established in 1984, is an entrepreneurship resource of Caltech’s Office of Technology Transfer and Corporate Partnerships. The mission of the Caltech Entrepreneurs Forum is to encourage the growth and success of technology-based entrepreneurial ventures in Southern California.

For additional information and registration, visit http://entforum.caltech.edu/ or email infoentforum@caltech.edu.