Last week, Picogrid, Jennie Kim, and I hosted the inaugural 'Gundo Gals gathering in LA, bringing together about 20 women across the defense, deep tech, and aerospace ecosystem. Over dinner, we shared experiences and brought to life a vision that started in a less-than-obvious place: the women’s bathroom.
About a year ago, I was between sessions at a defense conference and ended up spending 25 minutes in the women’s bathroom, not waiting in line, but having some of the most meaningful conversations of the day. It was the first time I had seen the women’s line shorter than the men’s, and that observation sparked one conversation that quickly grew into a group. It was there that I met Chase Martens, who is now our Space Force lead at Picogrid.
Although a small moment, it brought me back to my time as a student-athlete at Cal, where a teammate and I started Golden Girls, the first female student-athlete group focused on connection and mentorship across Cal athletics. It was built on a simple idea: showing up is enough. At 19, I thought this was an isolated experience, but in that moment I realized the need for a space where people can show up and be human goes far beyond athletics.
And just like that, the mission for 'Gundo Gals was born and this is just the beginning. If you’re a woman in defense, deep tech, or aerospace, stay tuned for future events, we’d be honored to have you.
Grateful to be building this group at Picogrid with Jennie Kim, now ~30% women, where bringing systems and people together is kind of our thing (and we’re hiring!)!
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Shoutout to Alumni Ventures, Reveille VC and Cooley LLP for making this all possible!
