The 2025 Gold Power Summit highlights pan-Asian excellence, venture capital influence, and cross-industry innovation during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Gold Power Summit 2025 at Nasdaq. Photo by Vanja Savic “Gold House doesn’t just award achievement—it engineers access.” A Convergence of Capital and Culture Now in its second year, the Gold Power Summit—held in partnership with Nasdaq on April 30 — brought together a diverse group of leaders who rarely share the same stage: unicorn founders, top venture capitalists, global chief marketing officers, award-winning creatives, and emerging investors.
The summit, which kicked off Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, is both a celebration and a strategic move. It spotlighted some of the most transformative Asian Pacific leaders across culture and commerce with its annual A100 List, reaffirming the rising influence of pan-Asian power in global markets. As the tech and venture capital landscape undergoes a reset, Gold House has been quietly — and powerfully — building a new pipeline.
It is focused on connection, creating what it calls an “ecosystem bell”: a symbolic moment in the capital markets where private and public sectors collide to catalyze long-term value. The nonprofit collective is expanding what it means to build, scale, and fund the future by curating intentional ecosystems where capital meets culture. The nonprofit collective is expanding what it means to build, scale, and fund the future by curating intentional ecosystems where capital meets culture.
Power Players at the Table The summit began with a welcome from co-hosts Sehr Thadhani, Chief Growth Officer of Nasdaq, and Bing Chen, Founder and CEO of Gold House. Stephanie Mehta, CEO and Chief Content Officer of Mansueto Ventures, led a fireside chat with Anish Melwani, Chairman and CEO of LVMH North America. Other notable speakers included Christina Wootton (Chief Partnerships Officer, Roblox), Melody Lee (CMO, Mercedes-Benz USA), Nikil Viswanathan (Founder & CEO, Alchemy), Mike Van (CEO, Billboard), Mike Xu (GrubMarket), and Soyoung Kang (eos Products).
Topics spanned innovation and AI to global brand storytelling and next-gen creator economies — conversations that signal not just what’s trending, but who’s driving it. The key themes were: leading with imagination, innovating with intention, and anchoring culture with conviction. Gold House's 2025 Gold Power Summit.
From L to R: Sehr Thadhani, Wesley Chan, Nikila Srinavasan, … More Minjae Ormes, Eric Wong Photo by Vanja Savic The 2025 A100: Agents of Change This year’s A100 honorees reflect that ambition and included AI pioneers like Demis Hassabis (CEO, Google DeepMind) and Sridhar Ramaswamy (CEO, Snowflake) to cultural leaders like Jon M. Chu, Laufey, and Drew Afualo. While the list spans industries, it shares one common thread: transformation. Celebrating with Purpose Honorees will be celebrated across a series of marquee events from May 9–10, including the A100 Celebratory Reception at the Academy Museum, an exclusive Honorees Dinner presented by OpenTable, and the Gold Gala, North America’s most prestigious Asian Pacific American celebration.
This year’s gala also includes the Billboard x Gold House Founders Party. Meanwhile, landmarks across North America — from The Edge to the CN Tower — will light up in gold as part of Gold Lights, a coordinated tribute echoing Gold House’s motto: “We don’t just change culture—we make it.” “Gold House doesn’t just award achievement—it engineers access,” said co-founders Bing Chen and Jeremy Tran, who serve as CEO and COO, respectively. “By building bridges between culture and capital, we can power tomorrow for all.” Engineering Access, Not Just Accolades “Gold House doesn’t just award achievement—it engineers access,” said co-founders Bing Chen and Jeremy Tran, who serve as CEO and COO, respectively.
“By building bridges between culture and capital, we can power tomorrow for all.” A Room Full of Opportunity Behind the scenes, the room was equally influential. It included VCs from GV (Google Ventures), B Capital, Vesey Ventures, J2 Ventures, Siam Capital, and Wesley Chan, co-founder of Google Analytics and general partner at FPV Ventures, who announced a new $525 million early-stage fund backing founders with conviction. His announcement underscored a growing wave of Asian-founded venture capital firms reshaping early-stage innovation.
These investors weren’t just present to celebrate — they were there to source and support the next generation of transformative companies. Notable founders and executives in attendance included Pali Bhat (Chief Product Officer of Reddit), Imrad Majid (Co-Chairman and CEO of Island Records), Sarlina See (CFO, Penske Media Corporation), Trisha Ayyagari (Global Brand President, Maybelline), Versha Sharma (Editor, Teen Vogue), all on the 2025 A100 List. “If the A100 List showcases the what—the visionaries redefining industries — then the summit embodies the how: uniting capital, creativity, and conviction to drive cultural and market transformation.” Addressing the Venture Gap The data backs up the need.
Despite being the fastest-growing domestic demographic and a global majority, the Asian Pacific community remains underrepresented in venture funding. Gold House is working to close that gap through initiatives like Gold House Ventures, which has helped raise over $2.5 billion for 115 companies, half of which are led by female founders. Gold House Ventures Accelerator and the newly launched Gold Bridge strategy aim to foster pan-Pacific growth by connecting early-stage founders with investors, policymakers, and industry-specific operators across the U.S. and Asia.
Nasdaq and Gold House: Building Cultural and Financial Ecosystems This year’s event also underscored Nasdaq’s evolving role as more than a stock exchange: a convener of innovation ecosystems. As the home to many of the world’s most pioneering companies driving technological innovation, Nasdaq has proven a fitting and strategic partner for Gold House. The partnership signifies a shift: corporations aren’t just platforms for capital — they’re platforms for cultural relevance and inclusion.
In a world marked by increasing fragmentation, Nasdaq is focused on connection. “Nasdaq brings together ecosystems systematically, with an eye toward convening across lines and around themes, topics, and trends at the intersection of business and culture,” said Sehr Thadhani, Chief Growth Officer at Nasdaq. “Nasdaq is widely known as an exchange, but we’re so much more; we’re the trusted fabric of the global financial system, intentionally rethinking the traditional way exchanges have operated to make the capital markets more open, accessible, and dynamic.” Building the Future by Design Gold House has quietly built one of the most influential ecosystems for Asian Pacific executives, creators, and entrepreneurs.
It continues to expand its initiatives across multiple pillars: Gold House Ventures supports early-stage founders. supports early-stage founders. Gold Bridge facilitates corporate advancement for Asian leaders.
facilitates corporate advancement for Asian leaders. Cultural Consultancy and Studio Fund shape media representation. and shape media representation.
Creative Accelerators deliver career- and company-defining opportunities for producers, filmmakers, musicians, journalists, and contemporary artists. deliver career- and company-defining opportunities for producers, filmmakers, musicians, journalists, and contemporary artists. The A100 List anchors mainstream recognition.
“Whether it’s shaping narratives in Hollywood or placing diverse board members at major companies, the organization is leveraging every tool at its disposal to create a lasting impact.” Collectively, these efforts seek to reshape perception and power for Asian Pacific communities by mobilizing both capital and culture. While A100 honorees celebrate visibility, the Gold Power Summit delivers infrastructure, linking capital, creativity, and community. At a time when cultural identity and business influence intersect more than ever, this summit served as both a celebration and a call to action: to invest in collective power.
Gold House's mission is unmistakable: “We don't just want seats at the table. We build new tables—together.”
