StrictlyVC Los Angeles brings defense tech and physical AI into focus on June 18

Curated Founder and Investor Access on Hard Tech

StrictlyVC Los Angeles is convening on June 18 at The Aerospace Corporation Campus in El Segundo, with a slate of sessions focused on defense technology, physical artificial intelligence, and venture capital strategy. According to TechCrunch AI, the event brings together founders, investors, and operators for what organizers position as a break from public-facing conference formats, offering closed-door conversations and curated networking in the defense and advanced technology sectors.

Defense Technology and Autonomy Innovation

The evening opens with Mach Industries founder Ethan Thornton, who will discuss building hard tech companies at speed under the session title “Built for a New Era of Defense Technology.” According to TechCrunch AI, Thornton plans to address how advances in autonomy, manufacturing, and national security policy are reshaping the defense sector—a category seeing accelerated founder interest as geopolitical tensions drive demand for domestic technological capability.

Physical AI as an Investment Thesis

Delian Asparouhov of Founders Fund and Saif Khawaja of Shinkei Systems will co-lead a session examining the rise of physical artificial intelligence. TechCrunch AI notes the two will explore opportunities emerging from developments in robotics and automation as AI moves beyond software-only applications. This positioning reflects a broader venture shift toward hardware-integrated systems and embodied intelligence—areas where software advances alone cannot realize value.

Long-Term Durability Over Hype Cycles

Carter Reum, co-founder and partner at M13, will moderate a session titled “Finding the Next Big Thing” that examines how artificial intelligence is reshaping traditional industries. According to TechCrunch AI, Reum will focus on how venture investors are moving past near-term hype to identify companies with sustainable competitive advantages and long-term unit economics. This framing reflects sustained investor skepticism about unsustainable AI spending and infrastructure bets.

Why This Matters

The event’s emphasis on defense tech and physical AI signals where venture capital is placing structural bets: sectors where regulatory barriers, hardware requirements, or national security priorities insulate companies from commoditization. For founders in these categories, access to investors like Asparouhov and Reum—who manage multi-billion-dollar funds—offers rare, direct fundraising opportunities. For LPs and emerging fund managers, the sessions offer early signals on which emerging categories are moving from speculation to operational capital allocation, particularly as venture returns depend increasingly on outsized wins in hard tech rather than software scaling.