SI 2025 Entrepreneurship
Organized by Yael Hochberg, Josh Lerner, and David T. Robinson
July 14, 2025
Royal Sonesta Hotel, 40 Edwin H. Land Blvd., Cambridge, MA
Format: 20 minutes for the author, 15 minutes for the discussant, 10 minutes for general discussion and questions from the audience.
Monday, July 14
8:15 am
Coffee and Pastries
8:45 am

Who Hires Whom? Entrepreneurial Backgrounds and Labor Market Opportunities

Josh Feng, University of Utah
Xavier Jaravel, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

Discussant:
Elena Simintzi, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
9:30 am

Where Do Friends Matter for Founders? The Role of Social Connections in U.S. Entrepreneurship

Robert B. Fluegge, Stanford University
Michael Bailey, Facebook

Discussant:
Melanie Wallskog, Duke University
10:15 am
Break
10:30 am

Making Entrepreneurs: Long Term Returns to Training Youth in Hard versus Soft Business Skills

Laura Chioda, University of California, Berkeley
Paul Gertler, University of California, Berkeley and NBER
David Contreras-Loya, University of California, Berkeley
Dana Carney, University of California, Berkeley

Discussant:
Sharique Hasan, Duke University
11:15 am

How Does VC Activism Backfire in Startup Experimentation?

Xuelin Li, Columbia University
Sijie Wang, CUHK - Shenzhen
Jiajie Xu, University of Iowa
Xiang Zheng, University of Connecticut

Discussant:
Ramana Nanda, Imperial College London
12:00 pm
Lunch
1:00 pm

Do Development Financial Institutions Create Impact through Venture Capital Investments?

Aleksandar Andonov, University of Amsterdam
Andy Li, University of Amsterdam
Paul Smeets, University of Amsterdam

Discussant:
Gordon M. Phillips, Dartmouth College and NBER
1:45 pm

Industrial Policy via Venture Capital

Martin Aragoneses, INSEAD
Sagar Saxena, University of Pennsylvania

Discussant:
Filippo Mezzanotti, Northwestern University and NBER
2:30 pm
Break
3:00 pm

Acquisitions and their Effect on Start-up Innovation: Stifling or Scaling?

Marius Berger, OECD
Sara Calligaris, OECD
Andrea Greppi, OECD
Dmitri Kirpichev Cherezov, OECD

Discussant:
Carlos J. Serrano, HEC Paris
3:45 pm

Modernizing Access to Credit for Younger Entrepreneurs: From FICO to Cash Flow

Christopher M. Hair, Brigham Young University
Sabrina T. Howell, New York University and NBER
Mark J. Johnson, Brigham Young University
Siena Matsumoto, New York University

Discussant:
Greg Buchak, Stanford University and NBER
4:30 pm
Adjourn