To maximize your impact, it’s essential to perfect your pitch. Investors are inundated with hundreds of pitches, but only a select few manage to stand out from the crowd. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025, you’ll have the opportunity to hear directly from Medha Agarwal, general partner at defy.vc; Jyoti Bansal, CEO and co-founder of Harness; and Jennifer Neundorfer, co-founder and managing partner of January Ventures. They will share their insights on what captures their attention, what turns them off, and the subtle signals that founders often overlook. This candid panel discussion will provide you with insider strategies to help you build trust, differentiate yourself, and secure the right investments. Join over 10,000 startup, tech, and VC leaders on October 27-29 at Moscone West in San Francisco for high-impact discussions like this one.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to take your pitch to the next level. Register now and take advantage of early pricing, with savings of up to $675 off tickets before prices increase.

Championing founders through every challenge
Medha Agarwal, a general partner at Defy, has had the privilege of supporting exceptional entrepreneurs from the early stages to hyper-growth. Throughout her career, she has experienced the highs and lows of building companies, often within the same hour. As someone who believes that founders need trusted partners who can be there for them through thick and thin, Agarwal strives to be that person. Her goal is to provide the support and guidance that founders need to overcome the challenges they face.
Prior to joining Defy, Agarwal spent seven years as a partner at Redpoint Ventures, where she focused on early-stage fintech, vertical SaaS, marketplaces, and healthcare. She had the opportunity to work with companies like Whatnot, Tend, Proper Finance, LiveKit, and Anvyl, and learned valuable lessons from the founders she worked with. These experiences have given her a unique perspective on what it takes to build a successful startup, and she is eager to share her insights with others.
Software innovation for a better world
Jyoti Bansal is a serial entrepreneur who is passionate about using software to make the world a better place. He co-founded Harness in 2017 with the goal of automating and simplifying all software delivery processes, and serves as the company’s CEO. In addition to his work at Harness, Bansal has also co-founded Traceable, a leading API security platform, and Unusual Ventures, a venture capital firm. He previously founded AppDynamics, an application intelligence company that was acquired by Cisco in 2017 for $3.7 billion.
Bansal has received numerous awards and recognition for his leadership and entrepreneurial achievements. He has been named one of the best cloud computing CEOs to work for by Forbes, and has received awards from the San Francisco Business Times and Ernst & Young. Despite his many accomplishments, Bansal remains committed to using his skills and experience to make a positive impact on the world.
Operator-turned-investor empowering B2B innovation
Jennifer Neundorfer is an operator-turned-investor who has been investing in early-stage startups for over a decade. She is currently the managing partner of January Ventures, a pre-seed-focused venture capital firm
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