Registration + Breakfast
Presented by the Arizona Commerce Authority.
Freeway presents
Tech Talent Summit 6.0
Thu, Nov 5, 2026, 6:00 PM – 2:00 AM134 going
Setting the Stage
8:00 AM
9:00 AM
9:20 AM
Opening Remarks
We open Tech Talent Summit 6.0 with the leaders building Phoenix's future.
Speakers
Kate Gallego
Mayor · City of Phoenix
Sandra Watson
President & CEO · Arizona Commerce Authority
Dan Costello
EVP & Chief Business Officer · Phoenix Suns & Mercury
Kathy Ross
CEO · Sequoia One
Moderator
Daniela Santangelo
Founder & CEO · Freeway
9:30 AM
10:00 AM
Keynote: The First Layer of AI: Land, Power and Why Arizona Is Winning
Every AI breakthrough runs on something physical: land, power and the people who build it. Arizona is now the #2 data center market in the country, home to Apple, Google and Meta, and Anita Verma-Lallian is at the center of it, with more than $1.5 billion in AI data center land deals, including a unanimous zoning win in Buckeye.
Speaker
Anita Verma-Lallian
Founder & CEO · Arizona Land Consulting
Moderator
Chris Richardson
SVP Enterprise Architecture & AI Hub · CSAA Insurance Group
Talent, Teams & AI
10:05 AM
10:50 AM
Built to Scale: Talent, AI Agents & the New Org Chart
AI can make every team faster, but can it make your people stronger? Founders and people leaders share how they hire for talent density, decide what goes to AI agents versus people, and keep top talent growing and engaged as the org chart shifts, all without trading people for performance.
Speakers
Kate King
Co-Founder, President & COO · TerramTech
Edward Wu
Co-Founder & CEO · Side
Chris Ronzio
Founder & CEO · Trainual
Moderator
Michele Floriani
CMO · PeopleLoop
11:00 AM
11:45 AM
Force Multipliers: Inside the AI-Native Revenue Team
The fastest-growing companies aren't just hiring more people. They're hiring people who can do more. Our panel goes inside the new revenue team: the GTM engineers, AI-fluent sellers, and operators turning small teams into big numbers. Founders get the playbook, job seekers get the skills companies are hiring for right now.
Speakers
Jess Berger
Founder & CEO · Bundle x Joy
Heidi Jannenga
Co-Founder & Board Member · WebPT
Rob Nicoletti
Founder & CEO · create human / HALO
Moderator
Dayna Ciarfalia
Principal Technical Recruiter · The Intersect Group
11:50 AM
12:20 PM
Hot Seat: Did AI Just Kill the Entry-Level Job?
Companies are hiring fewer juniors while AI handles work that used to train them. Is this the end of the career ladder, or the fastest on-ramp ever built?
Speakers
Katie Sieker
SVP, Venture Partnerships · Arizona Commerce Authority
Chiara Hughes
Co-Founder · RootWorks
Minky Kernacs
Founder · Mercurio Analytics
Capital & Opportunity
12:30 PM
12:55 PM
Power Pitch Hour, Round 1: Founders Pitch Capital
Three Arizona startups, five minutes each, in front of investors who can say yes. Grab lunch and watch the next wave of Arizona's builders make their case.
Moderators
Sharon Ducati
Executive Director · Venture Madness
Glenn Lurie
General Partner · Stormbreaker Ventures
Autumn Collins
Strategic Advisor · Independent
12:55 PM
1:15 PM
Power Pitch Hour, Round 2: Talent Pitches Employers
Five candidates, two minutes each, pitching the companies hiring in the room.
Moderator
Anita Grantham
Executive in Residence · PHX FWD
1:20 PM
1:50 PM
Small Teams, Big Checks: What Investors Are Backing Now
Fresh off the pitches, our investors get candid about what they're backing now: lean teams, output per person, and how AI changes what a fundable company looks like in Arizona.
Speakers
Glenn Lurie
General Partner · Stormbreaker Ventures
Azin Radsan van Alebeek
Founding GP · Emmeline Ventures
Justin E. Gray
Partner · InRevenue Capital
Patricia Burnett
Attorney · Coppersmith Brockelman PLC
Moderator
Sharon Ducati
Executive Director · Venture Madness
2:00 PM
2:30 PM
Physical AI Needs People: The Roles That Will Run Industrial AI
AI is moving off the screen and into factories, energy grids and supply chains, creating roles most people haven't heard of yet. Cognite's Mayur Patel and Nader share the skills industrial orgs are hiring for, accessible ways to upskill now, and why systems thinking takes you from 1 to 10. Live AMA to close.
Speakers
Mayur Patel
Head of Engineering & Agentic AI · Cognite
Nader Salman, Ph.D.
Senior Director of Engineering · Cognite
James Crowell
Founder & CEO · Crow Industries
Moderator
Marc Chesley
COO · Fuse Ventures
3:00 PM
4:00 PM
Talent Match: Speed Rounds With Hiring Teams
Pre-selected candidates meet hiring founders and employers in timed rounds. You will be emailed if selected.
Hosts
Liz Weber
Director, Strategic Accounts · Averro
Dayna Ciarfalia
Principal Technical Recruiter · The Intersect Group
Anita Grantham
Executive in Residence · PHX FWD
Christina Del Villar
GTM Architect · Brainbox
2:50 PM
3:20 PM
Marketing That Cuts Through the Noise: Standing Out When Everyone Has The Same Tool
Why positioning, creative strategy, and differentiation matter even more as AI increases the volume of content and advertising.
Speakers
Tim Hargis
Co-Founder · Freelance Consulting/Investing
Wes Donahoe
Managing Partner · Nina
Rachel Mertensmeyer
Founder & CEO · Rivia Health
Moderator
Kathy Sacks
Executive Coach · Sacks Ventures
Closing Ceremony
4:00 PM
4:15 PM
Closing Remarks & Champagne Toast
Celebrate another successful Tech Talent Summit with closing remarks and a champagne toast!
Speaker
Daniela Santangelo
Founder & CEO · Freeway