Advisor Highlight: Brady Ryan
June 3, 2022
Get to know our Advisor, Brady Ryan (he/him) with CoMotion Labs.
Tell us a bit about yourself:
Hey there! I’m Brady and I’ve been working with startups since I graduated in 2012. Initially I worked with biotech and life science startups as a local trade association, then I moved to University of Washington to run incubators. I’m currently running our hardware incubator, but spending as much time learning leather craft and playing with strangers’ dogs as possible.
What excites you most about tech startups?
My favorite thing about startups are the entrepreneurs at the helm. I am always blown away by the passion, smarts, and dedication that early stage entrepreneurs show, and I think it’s our job to help them reach their (necessarily lofty) goals. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for biotech/life sciences, and I’ve spent the past 18 months trying to get smart about hardware. Turns out, hardware is hard!
What change are you hoping to create in the industry by serving as a Find Ventures advisor?
Look– it’s great to be in this industry if you look like me (white cis male, devilishly handsome). I am excited to be part of a local crew working to expand access, possibilities, and support systems for folks from other backgrounds. We have a lot of work to do before we can call the tech entrepreneurial ecosystem truly equitable, but we have to roll up our sleeves and build upon the work that other folks have been doing to help democratize our industry.
In your experience with startups and entrepreneurs, what’s one of Founders’ biggest hurdles? What advice would you give Founders facing similar struggles?
I think the isolation that early stage founders face is a huge issue. It’s hard to be vulnerable to your staff who just left their jobs to join your startup, and you can’t always bare your soul to your board of directors. It’s important to build peer to peer support networks between founders, who actually understand what each other are going through and can provide anything from a listening ear to a 16 point plan to overcome customer objections to your B2B2C SaaS solution.
Name one tech startup that you really believe in and want to help amplify.
Ultropia is a woman led startup that’s going to change how the world washes and dries their clothing, while reducing water and energy inputs by 4-5x
What one piece of advice would you give to a Founder that is thinking about launching their own tech startup?
You don’t have to go it alone! People really do want to see you succeed. Find an incubator, an accelerator, a CEO meetup, and coffee group… anything that grows your network and helps surround you with people who want to see you win.
You can connect with Brady on LinkedIn.
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