Of the Field

CREATE 2026

CREATE, by Nation’s Restaurant News, is an annual event designed for emerging restaurateurs that aims to help brands scale smarter, grow faster, and lead boldly. Attendees connect with industry disruptors, forward-thinking investors, and other high-growth operators over three days of learning, networking, and hands-on experiences. The event features practica…

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96Speakers
101Sponsors
35On the bill · sessions
181Companies · in total
§I

Speakers

Programmed at CREATE, in alphabetical order.
Abhijit Bhatia
Chief Operating Officer · Rakuten Medical
Abraham Kwon
Partner · Lowenstein Sandler
Adam Leff
Co-founder · Merchant Centric
Alice Gilman
COO · R3 Biotechnologies
Alicia Kelso
Executive Editor · Nation's Restaurant News
Ali Riazi
CEO · TheraVac Biologics
Anastasia Budinskaya
Investor · NFX
Andreas Goutopoulos
CEO & Co-Founder · Actithera
Andrew Cherng
Co-Founder, Co-Chair, Co-CEO · Panda Restaurant Group
Andrew Dahl
Founder · BioMEMS Diagnostics
Andrew Lam
Managing Director, Head, Biotech Private Equity · Ally Bridge Group
Andy Lee
Co-Founder & CBO · Vincere Biosciences
Anjalee Khemlani
Host · Give it to me Straight, Doc
Anna Argo
Chief Business Officer · Cytotheryx
Anne Carter
Partner · Nova Rain Capital
Anosh Gomes
CEO & Founder · CrytonBio
Avni Bhalgat
Managing Director · Nucleate Florida
Barry Grossman
Partner · Ellenoff Grossman & Schole
Barry McGowan
CEO · Fogo de Chão
Ben Comer
Chief Editor · Life Science Leader
Bill Hicks
Co-Chair, Life Sciences Practice · Mintz
Bobby Beckmann
Chief Technology Officer and Founder · Revmo AI
§II

Sponsors

The houses behind the program. Tiers as disclosed.
Canadian Wood CouncilPlatinum
ICBAPlatinum
Astley GilbertGold
AutodeskGold
BCIT - School of Construction & The EnvironmentGold
VRCAGold
YardiGold
ZEICGold
7shifts, Inc
858 Partners
AeroSeal Canada Inc.Graphite
Airfoam Industries Ltd.Graphite
All-in Licensing
Archipelago Consulting Ltd.
Architectural Institute of British Columbia
Architecture Foundation of British Columbia (AFBC)
Avalara, Inc
BarrierTek
BC Construction Association
BOMA Canada
Building Officials Association of BC
Building Transformations
C3 - Creative Consumer Concepts
Cali BBQ Media
California Milk Advisory Board
Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (CPCI)
Career Education Society of BCCommunity Partner
Coast Capital SavingsGraphite
Coca-Cola North America
Crescent Custom YachtsGraphite
Decision Logic
Degrees@Work
Dinova
DIRECTV
Dreambox
Ecolab
Empowered Hospitality
Engineers and Geoscientists BC
Fast+Epp
Foodbuy
§III

Agenda

Selected from 35 sessions on the bill.
  • 10:00am - 10:10am10 mins

    Welcome & Overview

  • 10:00am - 11:45am105 mins

    Investment Summit

  • 10:10am - 10:40am30 mins

    Industry Insights Opening Keynote

    Details coming soon...

  • 10:30am - 11:00am

    Words to the Wise - Raising Seed and Series A from Biotech Investors

    - Understanding what biotech investors prioritize when evaluating Seed and Series A funding opportunities - Effectively communicate your vision and scientific potential to attract …

    Biotech Startup Stage (Pre-Series A)
  • 10:30am - 11:15am

    South Florida - The Rising Life Science Hub

    South Florida is solidifying its position as a national healthcare and life sciences hub. With its strategic location, growing infrastructure, and influx of investment, the city is…

    Headliner Stage
  • 10:40am - 11:15am35 mins

    Industry Panel

    Details coming soon...

  • 11:15am - 11:30am15 mins

    Networking Break

  • 11:15am - 11:45am30 mins

    The Operator Spotlight

    Details coming soon...

  • 11:15am - 12:00pm

    How to Get Funded as a Medtech Startup

    - Crafting a compelling value proposition that resonates with investors - Understanding the unique funding challenges in the medtech sector - Preparing for regulatory hurdles that …

    Medtech & Digital Health Stage
Intermission
Part the Second · For the Buyer

What does it mean when 181 companies show up — and 4 bet on three roles at once?

181 companies. four are betting more than once.

The numbers below are derived from the speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors on this page — cross-referenced into one ledger. They are the only thing here that 10times.com cannot tell you.

Who's in the room
4All threespeak · spons · exh
97Sponsoringsponsor only
80Companies Speakingspeaker only

The Triple-Threat

All-In Licensing·Sysco·858 Partners·Revmo AI

Speakers by seniority

82% of the speakers carry senior titles — C-suite, Founder, VP, or Director-level.

  • C-suite3840%
  • Founder / Owner2829%
  • VP-level44%
  • Director / Head of99%
  • Manager / Lead11%
  • Advisor / Investor44%
  • Other roles1213%

Of 96 on the bill · classified by free-text title

Most-represented companies
  1. 01All-In LicensingSp2V
  2. 02SyscoSp2V
  3. 03858 PartnersSp1V
  4. 04Restaurant Business4V
  5. 05Revmo AISp1V
  6. 067shifts, IncSp
  7. 07AeroSeal Canada Inc.Sp·G
  8. 08Airfoam Industries Ltd.Sp·G
  9. 09Archipelago Consulting Ltd.Sp
  10. 10Architectural Institute of British ColumbiaSp
  11. 11Architecture Foundation of British Columbia (AFBC)Sp
  12. 12Astley GilbertSp·G
  13. 13AutodeskSp·G
  14. 14AvalaraSp
Sponsors by tier
platinum2
2% of 101
gold6
6% of 101
graphite21
21% of 101
community partner2
2% of 101
unspecified70
69% of 101
At peer events but not here

These companies sponsored two or more peer events recently, but aren't on this program. For an organizer, that's a list of warm prospects.

Related events · by shared sponsors