StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026: Why Defense Tech, Physical AI, and Venture Capital Are Converging
StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 is scheduled for June 18, 2026, in El Segundo, California. Organized by TechCrunch under its StrictlyVC event series, the gathering will bring together founders, investors, executives, and technology operators for conversations focused on defense tech, physical AI, venture capital, and fundraising. Confirmed participants include Delian Asparouhov of Founders Fund, Saif Khawaja, Founder & CEO of Shinkei Systems, Carter Reum, Co-founder and Partner at M13, and Ethan Thornton, CEO and Founder of Mach Industries. Connie Loizos will guide the discussions as host and moderator.
The event matters because it reflects a broader shift in venture capital. Investor attention is increasingly moving beyond software-only businesses toward physical AI, defense technology, robotics, advanced manufacturing, and critical infrastructure. For founders, investors, and operators, StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 is less about attending another industry event and more about understanding where capital, talent, and strategic attention appear to be concentrating before the next cycle fully takes shape.
Event Snapshot: StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 will take place on June 18, 2026, in El Segundo, California. The event is organized by TechCrunch and StrictlyVC, moderated by Connie Loizos, and features Delian Asparouhov, Saif Khawaja, Carter Reum, and Ethan Thornton as confirmed speakers. More information is available on the official StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 event page.
About StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026
Technology conferences often suffer from a familiar problem. The stage gets bigger. The attendee count gets bigger. The signal gets smaller. StrictlyVC built its reputation by moving in the opposite direction.
The June 18 gathering in El Segundo is part of TechCrunch's venture-focused StrictlyVC series, which emphasizes conversations between investors, founders, and operators rather than large-scale conference production. The event's published agenda highlights topics including physical AI, defense technology, venture investing, and fundraising. That focus matters because the technology market is entering a period where execution increasingly matters more than presentation. Investors are asking harder questions, founders are operating in a tougher capital environment, and AI has moved from theoretical promise to deployment pressure.
The room reflects that reality. Rather than celebrating technology from a distance, the event is designed around the people allocating capital, building companies, and navigating the operational challenges shaping the next phase of innovation.
Why This Matters
A few years ago, nearly every technology conversation eventually found its way back to software. Today, the conversation is changing. Artificial intelligence is no longer confined to productivity tools, chat interfaces, and workflow automation. Increasingly, the discussion centers on what happens when intelligence enters physical systems such as manufacturing, robotics, defense, and infrastructure.
That is the context surrounding StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026. The event's featured discussion, Backing the Next Frontier of Physical AI, places that shift directly at the center of the agenda through conversations involving Delian Asparouhov and Saif Khawaja. Physical AI refers to AI systems operating in and interacting with the real world through robotics, automation, industrial equipment, sensors, and autonomous systems. Unlike software-only applications, physical AI must navigate operational complexity, reliability requirements, and real-world consequences.
That distinction is becoming increasingly important to both founders and venture capital firms. As investors search for durable opportunities beyond software, sectors connected to physical AI are attracting greater strategic attention.
Market Context: Defense Tech, Physical AI, and Capital Formation
The most revealing part of the StrictlyVC Los Angeles speaker lineup is not any single participant. It is the combination. Delian Asparouhov represents one of venture capital's most influential frontier technology perspectives through Founders Fund. Carter Reum brings insight from M13's experience identifying emerging investment categories. Ethan Thornton represents a new generation of defense-tech founders building in sectors increasingly connected to national security priorities. Saif Khawaja provides the operator perspective from the physical AI and automation ecosystem.
Together, they sit at the intersection of several major trends, including defense technology investment, physical AI deployment, robotics and automation, advanced manufacturing, and venture capital allocation shifts. Historically, defense, manufacturing, software, and venture capital often operated in separate lanes. Today, those lanes are converging.
Investors increasingly evaluate opportunities that combine software, hardware, operational systems, and industrial infrastructure. That convergence is becoming one of the defining stories in technology and venture capital.
Why El Segundo and Southern California Matter Right Now
Location tells a story. For decades, Silicon Valley served as the default backdrop for discussions about technology's future. Yet some of the most interesting conversations in 2026 are happening elsewhere.
El Segundo has emerged as a growing center of gravity for aerospace, defense technology, advanced manufacturing, and frontier innovation. Southern California continues to attract founders, engineers, operators, and investors building companies that operate beyond traditional software categories. That makes El Segundo a fitting location for a conversation focused on physical AI, defense technology, and industrial innovation.
The geography reinforces the thesis. This is not simply a discussion about software markets. It is a discussion about technologies that interact with physical systems, supply chains, infrastructure, manufacturing, and national security priorities.
The Operators Behind the Event
Events are often judged by their speakers. The better metric is who asks the questions.
Connie Loizos has become one of the defining voices behind the StrictlyVC brand. Her role as host and moderator gives the event a degree of continuity that many industry conferences lack. Across multiple StrictlyVC events, the format has consistently emphasized direct conversations over keynote theater, producing something increasingly rare in technology gatherings: specificity.
Founders want specifics. Investors want specifics. Operators want specifics. The market has reached a point where broad optimism is less valuable than practical insight, making that style of conversation increasingly valuable.
What This Signals
The deeper significance of StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 is not the event itself. It is what the event represents. Technology markets often reveal their future priorities through the rooms they build before they reveal them through market data.
The concentration of discussion around defense technology, physical AI, automation, robotics, advanced manufacturing, and venture capital suggests investors are increasingly focused on sectors requiring operational depth rather than simple growth narratives. Software remains essential, but increasingly it is expected to work alongside hardware, industrial systems, infrastructure, and automation platforms.
For founders, that changes how companies are built. For investors, that changes how opportunities are evaluated. For the broader market, it signals that some of the next major technology winners may emerge from companies connecting intelligence to the physical world.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026?
StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 is a TechCrunch-organized event scheduled for June 18, 2026, in El Segundo, California, focused on defense technology, physical AI, venture capital, fundraising, and startup ecosystem trends.
When and where is StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026?
StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 will take place on June 18, 2026, in El Segundo, California.
Who is hosting StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026?
Connie Loizos will serve as host and moderator for the event.
Who are the confirmed speakers at StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026?
Confirmed speakers include Delian Asparouhov of Founders Fund, Saif Khawaja of Shinkei Systems, Carter Reum of M13, and Ethan Thornton of Mach Industries.
What is physical AI?
Physical AI refers to artificial intelligence deployed in real-world environments through robotics, automation systems, industrial equipment, sensors, and autonomous technologies.
Why is El Segundo important to defense technology?
El Segundo has become a significant hub for aerospace, defense technology, advanced manufacturing, and frontier technology companies in Southern California.
Why should venture capital investors pay attention?
The event provides insight into emerging investment themes across defense technology, physical AI, robotics, automation, and industrial innovation.
What broader market trend does StrictlyVC Los Angeles 2026 reflect?
The event reflects a broader shift toward companies operating at the intersection of AI, physical systems, defense technology, manufacturing, infrastructure, and venture capital.