Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Raising money isn't the goal, it's a tool, and knowing when to use it (or whether to at all) is what separates founders who scale from founders who stall. At the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center’s Milestone Summit in Seattle, investors, advisors, and founders broke down what it actually takes to raise capital well: understanding your own leverage, finding investors who fit your business instead of bending to fit theirs, and recognizing that VC funding isn't the right path, or the only path, for every company.
From KPMG and the SEC to venture capital and the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center's own board, this panel brings together the people founders turn to when it's time to raise, and the questions they say founders should ask themselves first.
Jessica Kamada
Managing Partner, Swizzle Ventures
David Gory
Founder, Airbuild
Amy Reischauer
Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Shivani Sopory
Audit Partner, KPMG
Roburta Burroughs
Board Member, Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center
Brian Westbrook
Host, GeekWire Studios
Learn more at nasdaqcenter.org
Raising money isn't the goal, it's a tool, and knowing when to use it (or whether to at all) is what separates founders who scale from founders who stall. At the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center’s Milestone Summit in Seattle, investors, advisors, and founders broke down what it actually takes to raise capital well: understanding your own leverage, finding investors who fit your business instead of bending to fit theirs, and recognizing that VC funding isn't the right path, or the only path, for every company.
From KPMG and the SEC to venture capital and the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center's own board, this panel brings together the people founders turn to when it's time to raise, and the questions they say founders should ask themselves first.
Jessica Kamada
Managing Partner, Swizzle Ventures
David Gory
Founder, Airbuild
Amy Reischauer
Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Shivani Sopory
Audit Partner, KPMG
Roburta Burroughs
Board Member, Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center
Brian Westbrook
Host, GeekWire Studios
Learn more at nasdaqcenter.org
