Insight Partners recently hosted its inaugural national security conference at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. — bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, and government officials to discuss the vital role of ScaleUps in national security.
ScaleUps — startups winning in the market and attracting additional capital, people, and customers — are critical to our national security. As I said in my opening remarks at ScaleUpGov, “ScaleUps have the rapid product innovation, customer intimacy, and the capability to support the Department of Defense and intelligence community at scale.”
“ScaleUps have the rapid product innovation, customer intimacy, and the capability to support the Department of Defense and intelligence community at scale.”
The event featured CEOs and executives from Insight portfolio companies, including CEO John Serafini at Hawkeye360, CGO Michael Weigand at Shift5, CEO Daniel Ceperley at LeoLabs, and COO Lt. Gen. (ret.) Tony Ierardi at Rebellion Defense.
The day also highlighted the thoughtfulness and expertise of our Government Advisory Board: Gen. (ret.) Joe Votel, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Jack Shanahan, Dr. Will Roper, Essye Miller, Nicole Wong, and Sue Gordon.
Former Army Ranger and audience member Craig Mullaney summarized the key takeaways from the panel discussions in a wrap-up on LinkedIn:
The speakers made clear that deterring conflict and defending against threats will require the best of the public and private sectors — especially as ScaleUps bring new technologies to market.
“Change is hard. Irrelevance is worse. We minimize tactical risk at the expense of strategic future,” says Sue Gordon on acquisition reform.
“Change is hard. Irrelevance is worse. We minimize tactical risk at the expense of strategic future.”
We at Insight have similarly been strong proponents of the need to scale commercial technologies in defense; from this op-ed about forging a defense industrial base for the digital age and participation in the Atlantic Council Commission for Defense Innovation Adoption.
Insight has deep experience in scaling SaaS companies, which includes helping companies enter and grow in government markets. We’re excited to bring that expertise to support our national security and dual-use companies as they scale to meet mission needs.
Top image: Shift5 Co-founder Mike Weigand and LeoLabs CEO Dan Ceperley
Insight has invested in Hawkeye360, Shift5, LeoLabs, and Rebellion Defense.
