2026 Industry Growth Forum: All Systems Go (Text Version)
This is the text version of a video showcasing the National Laboratory of the Rockies' 2026 Industry Growth Forum.
Each year, hundreds of startups and investors convene at IGF—startups with cutting-edge technologies and investors with billions of dollars of capital ready to be deployed.
[Intro music]
A timelapse video shows attendees taking the escalator, walking around the exhibit hall, and going from meeting to meeting.
Video changes to a one-on-one interview with Yesim Jonsson of Shell GameChanger. Each interview is overlaid with shots from IGF meetings and conversations between attendees and presentations from the pitch competition.
>>Yesim Jonsson, Commercial Partnerships Manager, Shell Gamechanger: I come back and every time I meet new companies, new innovators, and walk away with new ideas. There's always something fresh here.
>>Arpana Verma, Director of Scouting and Innovation, Halliburton Labs: This is a collision of great minds and innovative ideas. So, one place, few days, you feel like you're so well-connected to take on the tough challenges that need collaboration.
>>Katie Richardson, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center Group Manager, National Laboratory of the Rockies: The Industry Growth Forum is an event I look forward to absolutely every single year. We are advancing innovations to the marketplace where they can have the biggest impact and create value for all of our stakeholders. And we are thrilled to be able to convene people.
>>Sarah Derdowski, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center Group Manager, National Laboratory of the Rockies:The Industry Growth Forum is an opportunity for both our investors and our startups' technology to actually meet in one place and do it in a way that's not about conference. It's not about what's trending right now. It's about making deals and moving that technology from lab to market.
>>Yesim Jonsson: It's really authentic. I have real conversations with people who want to make breakthroughs in energy. And they genuinely want to help each other out. It's really more of a community, I would say, than just a conference.
>>Sheeraz Haji, Managing Partner, zipdragon ventures: I think there's really a lot of credibility from, you know, the lab hosting this and putting on really high-level content. Having that credibility then really branches out to kind of getting the who's who of the industry here.
>>Katie Richardson: Networks of investors, networks of startups, networks of researchers within the laboratory, ecosystem partners, accelerators, incubators, industry partners, all of those folks are colliding here. And it's when people meet one another that the magic really happens.
>>Sarah Derdowski: We all need each other across this ecosystem to get things done. And it's just a great opportunity to tie all those pieces together in one place.
>>Arpana Verma: You get to meet thought leaders that are really helping you think about what the next-generation solution would be.
Andra Pantelimon, Innovation Associate, Rose Rock Bridge: We are really looking for deeper connections with the industry stakeholders that we already have, and then new connections with the excellent deal flow that IGF brings to the conference.
>>Sheeraz Haji: The networking continues in lots of different forms. And, you know, the follow up and the learning continues as well.
>>Katie Richardson: Continue these conversations. It's about planting seeds and you're not done, right, when you leave IGF. You've got to steward those relationships.
Video ends by showing several attendees shaking hands with others, signifying successful meetings that happened at IGF.
[Outro music]
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Last Updated May 6, 2026