Silicon Valley IYM trip

 

In 2019, we took a group of twelve IYM alumnae to Silicon Valley to experience science and technology on an international scale. Our programme saw us visit the Harker School  Research Symposium, Microsoft - you should have seen their cafeteria! - NVIDIA, Singularity University, where we learnt about the future of work - exciting and challenging - Twitch, the gaming Company and Stanford University.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We met with four incredible women entrepreneurs and were privileged to have Q & A sessions with them. Victoria Ransom who hails from Bulls and sold her SaaS (software as a service) business to Google for a reported $450 million, Privahini Bradoo, co-founder of BlueOak Resources an e-waste recycling company in California. Privahini studied at Auckland University.

 

We also met with Sarah Clemens COO of Twitch (a Napier girl) and Surbhi Sarma, an alumna of The Harker School 2003. Surbhi was described as a ‘Patient to impatient entrepreneur’. Her diagnosis of ovarian cancer as a 13-year-old, led her to create a life-saving device, patent it and convince investors to fund its development. She sold her company in 2018 for $275 million.

These wonderful women were generous with their time and openness to our questions. You can read more about the Silicon Valley experience here http://sayitonce.co.nz/blog/travel-blog/