Thayer Ventures Draws More than 150 Industry CEOs, Investors and Disruptors to D.C. to Discuss Vision and Policy as the Travel and Transportation Industries Confront New Post-Pandemic Realities

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Thayer Ventures, the only venture capital firm focused specifically on technology innovation in travel and transportation, brought together C-Suite leaders, investors, technology innovators, and policymakers for a daylong focus on the new landscape for industry operations and innovation – including challenges presented by a dramatically transformed labor force, the new science addressing the spread of COVID, the rise of autonomous mobility and new urban planning, and the adoption of digitized platform solutions to address hotel operations.  Attendees included more than 150 thought leaders and practitioners from the industry's leading brands, investment firms, and disruptive startup companies.

Anthony Capuano, Chief Executive Officer at Marriott International, keynoted the conference and said, "The Thayer Ventures gathering is a unique moment for connecting the industry's leading innovators, disruptors, and decision-makers to discuss the future of hospitality, travel, transportation, and technology. We are proud to support Thayer's work as a co-investor and a partner in forward-looking innovation to address the industry's most pressing technology needs and priorities."

Presentations and sessions at the meeting included:

• Introduction & Context – Lee Pillsbury, Managing Director, Thayer Ventures;Alex Dichter Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company
• COVID Update – Dr. Clare Rock, Infectious Diseases Physician and Epidemiologist, Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
• Capital Markets: Impacts, Trends, Predictions – Dick Rippe, Managing Director and Economist, Evercore ISI
• What Lies Ahead: Fireside Chat with Anthony Capuano, CEO, Marriott International
• SPAC Path, Public to Private: Fireside Chat with Inspirato – Brent Handler, Founder & CEO, Inspirato
• Platform Strategy for the Future – Melanie Ryan Meador, CEO & President, Redeam, Andrada Paraschiv, Vice President – Hospitality, Beekeeper, Ryan Ruth, Director of Digital Travel Trade & eCommerce, Disney Parks Experience & Products, Richard Valtr, Founder, Mews
• Innovations in Hospitality Delivery – Rami Zeidan, Founder and CEO, Lifehouse
• The Future of Autonomy, 2021 and Beyond – Nina Grooms Lee, Chief Product Officer, May Mobility, Inc.
• The Road Ahead: The Future of Technology Regulation -  featuring Dr. R. David Edelman, former Special Assistant to President Obama, Computer Science & AI Lab and Director, MIT, Director, Thayer Ventures Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: TVAC), and Michael Huerta, former FAA Administrator, Founder MPH Consulting

Future of Innovation

Thayer Ventures Managing Director Chris Hemmeter said, "It's become clear that the current period of global change and dislocation, precipitated by the COVID-19 environment and unprecedented shifts in the workplace, labor market, and supply chain, have become catalytic for the pace of innovation - highlighting and further underscoring Thayer Ventures' long-term investment thesis. Disruptions across the value-chain, combined with shifting consumer behavior patterns, have accelerated the displacement of long-term incumbent technology providers, pushing the adoption of more flexible models across industries."

He concluded: "In the current environment, many of the industry's leading brands have become partners and co-investors with Thayer Ventures, and we're proud to have brought them face to face with the disruptors who are pushing the boundaries of innovation. Thanks to everyone who participated in today's discussion, including Thayer Ventures portfolio companies who are driving the future of innovation in travel and transportation."

Thayer Ventures portfolio companies in attendance included Adara, Beekeeper, BookingPal, Canary Technologies, Groupize, Hyperloop Inc., ID90 Travel, Lifehouse, May Mobility, Mews, Migo, Optii, Redeam Inc., Robotic Skies, Sonder, Sprockets, Swiftmile, Traxo, TRIPBAM, and Uplift.

In line with its sole focus on travel and transportation technologies, Thayer Ventures supports its capital investments with a uniquely deep network of decision-makers to help capture proprietary deal flow, offer portfolio companies unmatched tactical and strategic value, and drive investor returns. Many of its early-stage investments have been the beneficiaries of this approach and have either engineered profitable exits or built sustainable businesses that position them for continued growth and market leadership.

Mark Farrell, Managing Partner at Thayer Ventures, concluded: "Today's participants, from the worlds of travel as well as transportation and mobility, pointed the way toward a future of continuing and accelerating disruption and change. From the urban grid to the way people move, work and congregate, no area of human life will be untouched by the technology innovations that are shaping the texture of life as we push further into the twenty-first century."

About Thayer Ventures

San Francisco-based Thayer Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm with a strategic focus on technology within the global travel and transportation industry. Thayer prioritizes early-stage b2b companies, but selectively looks at seed and later stage deals with selective b2c activity. Currently, Thayer Ventures manages four active investment vehicles with over $100 million in capital and over 20 active portfolio companies. 

Contact: Michael Frenkel
for Thayer Ventures
[email protected]
(201) 317-7035

SOURCE Thayer Ventures