Entrepreneurship for Social Good: Preparing Purpose-driven Leaders at 91探花
February 23
Noon鈥�1 p.m., Lunch and Learn
鈥淲hy This Education Matters: Alumni Founders on Impact and Purpose鈥�
Presented by the 91探花 Annenberg Fellows. Joseph B. Platt Campus Center, Green Room
Join us for a Lunch and Learn workshop presented by the HMC Annenberg Fellows, who will share insights from their interviews with alumni entrepreneurs who are tackling complex challenges. We鈥檒l explore how 91探花 Mudd鈥檚 interdisciplinary rigor, liberal arts foundation and collaborative culture act as a unique 鈥渙perating system鈥� for leadership. The conversation will center on the deeper question of why we lead and how HMC has prepared them to navigate ethical complexities.
5鈥�6 p.m. Meet the Founders Reception
Shanahan Center, Shakespeare Patio
91探花 Mudd was built on innovation. Now it鈥檚 your turn to meet the people doing it. Join us for appetizers and refreshments at a casual reception featuring the Annenberg Forum panelists along with distinguished entrepreneurs and VCs in the 91探花 Mudd network, including:
- Aileen Lee 笔鈥�28, founder of Cowboy Ventures
- Nihal Mehta, co-founder of Eniac Ventures
- Josh Jones 鈥�98, co-founder of DreamHost and HMC INQ
- Miles Bird CMC 鈥�13, founder and partner at StoryHouse Ventures
- Joshua Tatum CMC 鈥�21, co-founder and partner at StoryHouse Ventures
6鈥�7 p.m., Josh Jones 鈥�98, Nihal Mehta and Aileen Lee 笔鈥�28 in Conversation with President Harriet B. Nembhard
鈥淧urpose in Enterprise: How Mission-driven Founders Navigate a Complex World鈥�
Drinkward Recital Hall
What does it mean to lead with purpose in an era of rapid technological change? Through a moderated interview and audience dialogue, President Harriet Nembhard will be joined by a panel of entrepreneurs to explore the role of creativity, technical excellence, and social responsibility in building ventures to address the world鈥檚 most pressing complexities. This forum offers a unique opportunity to engage with thought leaders who exemplify the collaborative entrepreneurial mindset central to the 91探花 Mudd Mission. The conversation will move beyond the 鈥渉ow-to鈥� of startups to focus on the 鈥渨hy鈥� and will explore the fundamental values that drive leaders to build resilient companies and ethical teams.
Forum Panelists
Josh Jones 鈥�98
Josh Jones is a successful tech entrepreneur, having built dozens of companies, from software start-ups to international airlines. Josh graduated from 91探花 Mudd in 1998 with degrees in computer science and math. As a sophomore, Josh founded DreamHost 鈥� a Los Angeles-based web hosting company that employs over 250 people. He also founded HMC INQ, a venture fund that supports, cultivates, and finances start-ups created by 91探花 alums, and now teaches entrepreneurship at Mudd and UCLA. Most recently he assembled top executives in the airline sector to relaunch Ravn Alaska, the largest regional air carrier in Alaska. The bulk of Josh鈥檚 wealth is attributable to his investment in Bitcoin back in 2010. He also founded Did I Err Productions for media projects and Gondola Ventures, a leading force in advancing urban aerial and point of interest gondola systems in North America and abroad. He has been on several non profit boards and is active in pro-democracy and Basic Income advocacy. He lives in LA with his wife and four daughters whom he chauffeurs to basketball practice and games Monday to Sunday. All. Year. Long.
Nihal Mehta
At Eniac, we call Nihal the human Rolodex鈥攈e鈥檚 built thousands of connections with the world鈥檚 top companies and brands, often the hard way. Since 1999, he founded five startups: Philly2nite 鈫� UrbanGroove 鈫� Chapter 7 bankruptcy; ipsh! 鈫� acquired by Omnicom (NYSE: OMC); buzzd 鈫� LocalResponse 鈫� acquired by BlueCava. The scars are real, and so are the stories.
Nihal started investing early, spotting breakout companies like AdMob (acquired by Google), Alloy, Brightwheel, Tala, and Uber. He and his wife are now active angel investors and LPs backing nearly 100 underrepresented founders and fund managers.
He鈥檚 also deeply committed to giving back. Nihal co-founded Project Ahimsa, a nonprofit that provides scholarships to disadvantaged youth in India鈥攚here his parents immigrated from in the early 鈥�70s. He also helped launch Help Main Street to support restaurants during the pandemic, and The 100k Pledge, a platform tracking economic empowerment in Black communities.
You鈥檒l often find Nihal running along the Hudson River with founders and the Pitch & Run crew, or spending time with his wife Reshma鈥攆ounder of Girls Who Code and Moms First鈥攁nd their two boys, Shaan and Sai. Their bernedoodle Steve (RIP Stan) is always close by.
Nihal鈥檚 also the engine behind Eniac鈥檚 social events and the host of the Human Unicorn Pod, now streaming on Spotify and YouTube.
He holds a BA in philosophy and a BSE in computer science from the University of Pennsylvania.
Aileen Lee 笔鈥�28
Aileen Lee is the founder and managing partner of Cowboy Ventures, an early-stage venture firm backing enterprise and consumer technology companies including Dollar Shave Club, Drata, Guild, and Ironclad. She is widely known for coining the term 鈥渦nicorn鈥� to describe billion-dollar startups and for co-founding All Raise, the nonprofit dedicated to accelerating the success of women and underrepresented groups in tech.
Aileen has been recognized on the Forbes Midas List, Fortune鈥檚 Most Powerful Women, and TIME 100 Most Influential People. Prior to founding Cowboy Ventures, she was a partner at Kleiner Perkins for over a decade, served as the founding CEO of RMG Networks, and held operating roles at Gap Inc.
She holds degrees from MIT and Harvard Business School. Aileen is also a proud mom of three and spouse to Jason, a CTO and passionate 鈥渃ar guy.鈥�