**Backing the Future: AI Startups, Venture Capital, and What’s Next**
*A Fireside Chat with Natalia Burina of Storm Ventures*

**July 24, 2025 6:00 – 9:00PM**
Snell & Wilmer Event Space: 5 Palo Alto Square, Palo Alto, CA 94306

SEATING IS LIMITED—**[REGISTER ON EVENTBRITE HERE](https://www.eventbrite.com/e/backing-the-future-ai-startups-venture-capital-and-whats-next-tickets-1395409069089?aff=Meetup)**

Access Silicon Valley invites you to join us for an intimate evening as **[Roger Rappoport](https://www.swlaw.com/people/roger_rappoport/)**, partner at **[Snell & Wilmer](https://www.swlaw.com/)** and co-leader of its emerging growth & venture capital group, hosts an exclusive fireside chat with **[Natalia Burina](https://www.stormventures.com/team-members/natalia-burina)**, AI aficionado and partner at **[Storm Ventures](https://www.stormventures.com/)**, where they'll unpack what it really takes to build, fund, and scale AI startups in today’s fast-moving market. This is a must-attend evening for founders, operators, and investors interested in the future of artificial intelligence, startup growth strategies, and venture capital.

**Topics that will be covered:**

*  Where the smartest AI investors are placing bets—and why
*  What makes AI startups fundable (and what sends investors running)
*  How to land enterprise customers and turn them into champions
*  The rise of vertical AI, infrastructure plays, and the new "picks & shovels"
*  Natalia’s hard-earned lessons from scaling product at tech giants—and what founders often get wrong

You’ll gain behind-the-scenes insights from Natalia’s experience at **Meta** **AI**, **Salesforce**, and **Microsoft**, and learn how top-tier VCs are evaluating AI companies today. Gain invaluable insights into how to maximize the opportunities with large enterprises and onboard them as paying customers.

**Why You Should Attend:**
This isn’t a surface-level panel or generic networking night. It’s a deep-dive conversation withvreal insights from someone who’s been on both sides of the table—building cutting-edge AI products and backing the next generation of category-defining companies.

Come for the ideas, stay for the conversation—and leave with clarity, connections, and a sharper vision of where AI is going next.

**AGENDA:**
Networking: 6:00 – 7:00PM
Fireside chat & Q&A: 7:00 – 8:30PM
Networking: 8:30 – 9:00PM

**SEATING IS LIMITED—[REGISTER ON EVENTBRITE HERE](https://www.eventbrite.com/e/backing-the-future-ai-startups-venture-capital-and-whats-next-tickets-1395409069089?aff=Meetup)**

**Meet the Speakers:**

**[Natalia Burina](https://www.stormventures.com/team-members/natalia-burina)** is a Venture Partner at **[Storm Ventures](https://www.stormventures.com/)** focusing on AI investments. She brings a wealth of operating experience, having led and scaled AI products at Meta AI, Salesforce and Microsoft. At Meta, Natalia worked across the entire company and at executive levels to shape AI strategy and deliver business results. Prior to Meta, Natalia worked on the early version of Salesforce Einstein and helped ship the very first version of Microsoft Bing.

**[Roger Rappoport](https://www.swlaw.com/people/roger_rappoport/)**, Partner and Co-Leader of **[Snell & Wilmer's](https://www.swlaw.com/)** Emerging Growth and Venture Capital Practice Group, is a seasoned advisor to startups and emerging growth companies and the investors who finance them, guiding clients from inception through exit. He has extensive experience in advising startup and well-established emerging growth
companies, from formation through exit, primarily in the Software (including AI), Technology, CleanTech, MedTech, HealthTech and Life Sciences sectors.

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Backing the Future: AI Startups, Venture Capital, and What’s Next

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Backing the Future: AI Startups, Venture Capital, and What’s Next

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