Venture For America hosted a huge party Thursday night at the IAC headquarters in New York City. It was filled with tech entrepreneurs, including Warby Parker's Dave Gilboa and Rent The Runway's Jen Hyman, among other fashionable guests; but the biggest names in attendance were the keynote speakers, LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner and Arianna Huffington.
A crowd of a few hundred was there to support VFA, which has become one of the most important nonprofit organizations in America since Andrew Yang founded it two years ago.
Huffington told Yang on stage: "You were one year old when I met you, and my god, how you've grown. You are now a phenomenal toddler. When you're a teenager, truly watch out."
VFA recruits and trains high-achieving college grads to work for two years at early-stage companies in lower-cost cities, including Detroit, Las Vegas, New Orleans, and Cincinnati. Its inaugural class of 40 is now joined by this year's 65 fellows.
So far, the organization has received some big pledges, including $1 million from Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh and $1.5 million from Quicken Loans Founder Dan Gilbert, who are working to revitalize Las Vegas and Detroit, respectively.
Huffington's keynote was about redefining success, which is the essence of what VFA is doing. "For me, spending so much time with a dysfunctional corporate system, it's refreshing to watch what's happening with VFA," she said. "On one side, it's depressing conversations about what's going on in this country, about its deficits. And on the other side, it's about creativity, prioritizing the common good— that's VFA."
LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner mingled with fellows and VFA supporters before speaking to the crowd.
This VFA fellow discovered his face on one of the napkins.
There were several fully stocked bars at the IAC headquarters.
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