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NFL Star Robert Smith to Headline JumpStart VC Fest, Joining National Speaker Lineup as Startups and Venture Leaders Converge on Cleveland
Speakers from Cleveland to Palo Alto join founders, investors and corporate leaders September 29–30 for panels, showcases and curated matchmaking.
CLEVELAND, Aug. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — JumpStart Inc., a nonprofit on a mission to drive economic vitality by connecting entrepreneurs to the opportunities and resources they need to succeed, today announced the speaker lineup for VC Fest. The two-day event focused on “Connecting Vision to Venture” returns to the Huntington Convention Center in downtown Cleveland on September 29 and 30, 2026, with premier support from Burton D. Morgan Foundation and presenting support from Thompson Hine LLP.
Headlining the event is keynote speaker Robert Smith, a Euclid, Ohio native and two-time Ohio Mr. Football who went on to a standout NFL career with the Minnesota Vikings before building a second act as a sports media analyst, author and entrepreneur. As founder of Fan Huddle, a digital health and well-being platform that made history as the first former-player-founded company to do a deal with the venture arm of the NFLPA, Smith brings together the perspective of a professional athlete and entrepreneur, closing out VC Fest on September 30 with lessons on competition, resilience, overcoming the odds and building something of your own.
Smith joins a speaker roster drawing founders, investors and corporate leaders to Cleveland from across Ohio and around the country, including Indiana, Florida, California, Georgia and Texas — a sign of the growing national attention on Midwest entrepreneurial activity.
“This lineup includes people who are living that story firsthand, legacy industries partnering with startups, corporates and capital converging around the same opportunities,” said Kaleigh Gallagher, Vice President of Tech Services and Network Management at JumpStart. “That’s the kind of real-world insight founders, investors and dealmakers don’t often get in one place.”
Two Days. Two Big Themes.
Tuesday, September 29: AI + Frontier Innovation
Day one goes beyond the AI hype to explore where the next wave of innovation is coming from, how enduring AI companies are built, the rise of agentic AI and how legacy industries are embracing frontier technology.
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Building Without Breaking: The Founder Journey with Johnny Crowder (Cope Notes) and Lindsay Karas Stencel (BOLD Ventures, Thompson Hine)
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The AI Equalizer: Why the Next Wave of Innovation Won’t Be Built Only in Silicon Valley with Yon Raz-Fridman (ONAÏ Fertility, Intrinsic Labs), Dinesh Maheshwari (former CTO, Groq) and Tyler Mantel (Roll Tack Ventures)
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The New American Industrial Economy: Where Legacy Industries Meet Frontier Innovation featuring Casey Klein (Marathon Petroleum) and Guru Vasudeva (Nationwide)
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Beyond the Hype: Building AI Companies That Endure with Rehgan Bleile (AlignAI), Paul Powers (Physna) and Stephen McHale (Graici)
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Agentic AI: The Next Frontier of Business Transformation presented by Chris Thomas (YNDR)
