Sports, Tech And Venture Summit Unites Entrepreneurs, Athletes In Tulsa

The sports and business scene is what James Chapman says drew him and his team here to Tulsa.

“With it being the home of Black Wall Street, and such a rich history of entrepreneurship here, I think when we started to put the pieces together, we got excited,” he said. 

He says that’s part of why his tech startup decided to hold the Sports, Tech and Venture Summit at Oneok Field after meeting with the Tulsa Sports Commission.

“They were telling me about the Drillers and their minor league soccer team and football and all this, I’m like ‘wow it does make sense to do this here in Tulsa’,” said Chapman.

Chapman says the summit gives guests the chance to gain new insights in the investor market and helps them access opportunities and connections.

A series of panel discussions touch on various topics while a mix of athletes, entrepreneurs, and investors, are in the audience, including venture capitalist Kevin Moore.

“I invest in early-stage technology companies who otherwise couldn’t obtain financing,” he said. 

He says the event is all about the intersection of what's happening in sports, technology, and venture capital.

“It's great to sort of bring the 3 together, to do something great and bring the community together as well,” said Moore. 

Making business opportunities accessible for aspiring entrepreneurs is what he says helps foster innovation and collaboration.

“They need capital to get their ideas off the ground, and without VCs and founders and ecosystem builders in the same room, people don’t understand how all those different things work,” Moore said. 

Moore says Tulsa is a place where there is support for people who are willing to take a risk to build something new — and they can get started through this summit.

“If you’re an entrepreneur and you have a great idea, you can build that here in Tulsa and you don’t have to leave,” he said.