Berkeley SCET presents at TechCrunch 2025
From October 27–29, Berkeley SCET students, staff, and alumni partnered with TechCrunch Disrupt, a three-day conference in San Francisco that unites venture capitalists, startup teams, and tech industry leaders. The event featured Startup Battlefield competitions, which provide emerging startups with pitching opportunities and exposure, as well as expert panels with speakers from companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and NVIDIA. The SCET team is invited annually to raise awareness about their cutting-edge courses at the intersection of innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology, as well as demonstrate Berkeley’s impact on Silicon Valley’s startup atmosphere. Berkeley’s presentation drew a crowd of 40–50 attendees to learn about their programs, and alumni-founded startup Evergreen Saponis.
Evergreen Saponis
At TechCrunch Disrupt, Berkeley SCET led an at-capacity roundtable discussion on their approach to entrepreneurship education through the Berkeley Method of Entrepreneurship (BMoE). Through hands-on practice in team formation, pitching, and prototyping, BMoE develops founders from diverse backgrounds – from undergraduates to professionals. Celebrating their 20th anniversary, SCET highlighted their "innovation collider model" that brings together students from all disciplines to collaborate, helping Berkeley become the #1 ranked school for low-cost startups and female founders for 3 consecutive years. The session sparked significant interest, with follow-up questions from investors, founders, and others eager to learn how they could get involved with SCET's programs and community.
The presentation then featured Evergreen Saponins, a spinoff from SCET's plant-based foods program, which revolutionizes the production of natural compounds in Quillaja saponins used in everything from Coca-Cola beverages to COVID-19 vaccines. Evergreen Saponins extracts saponins from leaves of trees grown in California rather than felling wild Chilean trees, achieving a sustainabe and resource-saving alternative. They’ve become an exemplar of SCET’s commitment to positive environmental impact.
Staff and Students’ TechCrunch Experiences
Berkeley SCET provided members a natural community to attend panels with, explore the expo floor alongside, and debrief with during the three-day event. Students valued getting to know their teammates better throughout the trip and appreciated having peers to navigate the conference alongside. Additionally, attendees found that their university affiliation naturally facilitated conversations with founders, investors, and industry leaders during networking opportunities.
"It was great to have a built-in community of people to go to panels or the expos with when the conference was getting overwhelming." – Hanna Zhang, Course Coordinator
Conference-goers gained invaluable insights into startup resilience, with the concept appearing across VC firm lessons to founder conversations about app development. TechCrunch also offered the chance to learn about current industry practices, emerging trends in marketing and pitching strategies, and the growing influence of AI and technology on business.
"As a student whose interest is more geared towards social impact and philanthropy, I was uncertain whether I would find the content at TechCrunch interesting. However, I left with a deep understanding of the influence of technology and AI on startups and business as a whole - allowing me to make connections to my own work and isolate ways to use tech for good." – Sarah Goody, Founder
Berkeley Alumni on the Disrupt Stage
Among SCET invitees were recent Collider Cup winners who had previously benefited from a professional development session led by SCET alumna Aria Yang ('23 MS Journalism), who returned to share her expertise in founder marketing and tech PR. These students also witnessed UC Berkeley alumna Dr. Capella Kerst took the main stage at TechCrunch Disrupt (‘13 PhD Mechanical Engineering), where the geCKo Materials CEO debuted new applications of her gecko-inspired adhesive technology. Like Yang, Kerst returned to the Sutardja Center to impart her expertise on scientific discovery and business breakthroughs to current Cal undergraduates. The experience exemplified Berkeley’s commitment to connecting current student innovators with successful alumni who have navigated the journey from campus to commercialization.
"Without SCET, I truly wouldn't have been able to have such an incredible experience. … Not only was this an opportunity to meet other founders and startup leaders, but a chance to reflect on that learning with my peers at Berkeley." – Sarah Goody, Founder
UC Berkeley tech founders could also be found at B-School Disrupt, an after-hours event that brought together MBA alumni from top programs including Harvard Business School and INSEAD. There, UC Berkeley Jai Williams pitched his startup OptiGenix.
The Berkeley SCET delegation is excited to continue supporting startups and connecting public education to business and tech opportunities like those at TechCrunch Disrupt.