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“I've been to quite a few tech events in San Francisco in the last decade, but this was definitely the one that stood out to me” - Speaker
On December 10, we launched the summit for immigrant founders, inaugurating a flagship yearly event that celebrates the community behind the lion’s share of US innovation.
For our first One Way Summit we had a full house, a packed auditorium, star speakers and electric energy throughout the day.
We sold out a week before the event. 500 guests, sponsors and speakers came to San Francisco from across the US and as far afield as London and Singapore. Over a dozen Ecosystem Partners participated, representing countries all over the world.
Those who came shared that this wasn’t just another startup-VC event for them. It was personal. They connected with our mission to spotlight immigrant innovators, and to share the stories of those at the pinnacle of their careers.
“In an environment, where immigrants are often under attack and misunderstood, yesterday was a great reminder of how impactful they are and have been to the tech ecosystem and America's innovation leadership.” - Speaker
The incredible feedback has us more charged than ever, and we’re already moving full steam ahead on a bigger, more ambitious 2026 edition.
“Spent the day at the OneWay Immigrant Startup Summit and left with my head buzzing in the best way.” - Attendee
“A week ago, I attended #OneWaySummit, and was once again reminded of how much immigrant founders drive innovation in the U.S.” - Attendee
Cal Henderson, co-founder and former CTO of Slack, who was born in the UK, spoke of the importance of storytelling in business. Rajat Suri, co-founder of Lyft, Presto and Lima, who was born in Canada to Indian parents, shared his own struggles with US immigration even as he built international companies.
“I think the darkest day was when I was rejected for TN [visa status] at the Toronto airport, and I was yelled at by the officer, who threatened to ban me from the US, forever,” Rajat told the audience. “At that point I’d raised millions of dollars, I had 30 people working for me in the US.”
While exploring the future of VC and fundraising were Ethan Choi at Khosla Ventures, Malika Aubakirova at a16z and Arpan Shah at Spark Capital, moderated by Matthew Strozier at WSJ.
The next Summit will take place in 2026.
