BVC 2026 is getting closer, and we’re ready to welcome another group of standout founders and investors to Bend. Semifinalists are now being selected, bringing this year’s entrepreneurs one step closer to the BVC stage.
In addition to keynote addresses and company pitches, the conference will include the panel Funding Without a Formula: How founders can build and fund companies on their own terms, moderated by Julie Harrelson and featuring Ryan Comingdeer, Jessica Murrey and Rich G. Carter. The panelists will explore different paths to funding, with Rich discussing university spin-outs and grant funding, Ryan sharing his experience with bootstrapping, and Jessica offering perspective on building VC-funded startups.
Early-bird tickets are now available at a special price.
PANEL | Funding Without a Formula: How founders can build and fund companies on their own terms
Moderator: Julie Harrelson
Julie Harrelson is a strategist and keynote speaker whose career is centered on helping leaders drive growth, innovation and meaningful change. Often described as the “angel on the shoulder” to more than 100 CEOs, she has advised founders and executives who employ thousands across multiple sectors.
As Managing Director of eight Cascade Funds, Julie made more than 100 investments while becoming a trusted advisor to startup leaders. Before venture capital, she served as a founder and executive in six early-stage companies and as a strategist in a boutique consulting firm she founded focused on executive advisory work.
Known for bringing candor, humor and humanity into conversations, Julie is a lifetime student of the human spirit, and TEDX speaker. She divides her time between the Oregon Coast, Portland, Vancouver, BC, and global adventures that inspire her work.
Ryan Comingdeer: Ryan is Co-Founder and CEO of Platformr, an AWS CloudOps automation and governance platform he launched after leaving Amazon in 2023. It’s the fifth company he’s founded during a 25-year career as a CTO, entrepreneur and advisor. He has served as a fractional CTO and technical advisor to dozens of startups, helping founders refine product strategy, build engineering teams and reach fundable milestones without over-building. He also serves on the board of the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network and mentors through regional accelerators and university programs.
Jessica Murrey: Jessica is an Emmy Award-winning storyteller, peacebuilder and game designer. She helped create Wicked Saints Studios, the first company to emerge from Niantic’s BDI incubator, which is building World Reborn, an adventure activism game combining fantasy gameplay with real-world action. As CEO, Jess has raised more than $5 million from Riot Games, Precursor Ventures, Reid Hoffman, and others. She is one of fewer than 100 Black women founders to have raised $1 million or more.
Rich G. Carter: Rich works at the intersection of industry and academia. He co-founded Valliscor in 2012, and its products are now used in four on-market medications, including the final ingredient used to produce the active ingredient in Flonase. Valliscor recently announced production of hexafluorobutadiene and construction of a new manufacturing campus in Albany, Oregon. Rich is also Professor of Chemistry and Faculty Lead for Innovation Excellence at Oregon State University, where he leads the national Promotion & Tenure – Innovation & Entrepreneurship (PTIE) effort to increase commercialization of university discoveries.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2026-bend-venture-conference-tickets-1996003525275?aff=oddtdtcreator
