They Came to Pitch. The Community Came to Help: An Inside Look at Springboard’s Dolphin Tank®
July 2, 2026
Seven years ago, Shirali Nigam walked into a Springboard Enterprises event as a senior at George Washington University with no idea of what to expect. She’d applied to the GWomen x Springboard program on a whim and left with a cohort and community that supported her long after graduation.
Last month, Nigam walked back into a Springboard event – this time as a founder at the organization’s Dolphin Tank® in D.C., an event designed to meet women-led companies exactly where they are and move them meaningfully further, faster, by tapping the expertise and connections right in their community.
“It really did feel like a full-circle moment. When I was first introduced to Springboard seven years ago, I was pitching an idea – pre-product, pre-customers, pre-everything. This time, we pitched an existing company with real traction, an urgent market need, and a clear vision for where we are headed,” says Nigam, who founded Circuit Breaker Labs, billed as “crash-test dummies for conversational A.I.,” with her brother, Arul. “That said, the mentorship was the same. Seven years ago the feedback helped me think through how to start. This time, it helped us think through how to accelerate.”
The siblings were joined by two other companies building healthcare solutions for the people the system has historically overlooked and underserved: Amy Stratbucker, founder and CEO of BridgeSpace, an emotional AI infrastructure helping neurodivergent children build real-world communication confidence through safe, guided practice, and Gwendolyn Rahn, co-founder and CEO of Sweetling Health, an SMS-based postpartum monitoring platform that helps health systems reduce complications and readmissions in the weeks after a mother leaves the hospital.
Dolphin Tank® isn’t a traditional pitch competition. There are no winners, no elimination rounds, and, perhaps most noticeably, no sharks. Each founder gets three minutes to present their company and then the room opens up. Investors, operators, and advisors in the audience offer connections, strategies, and candid feedback in real time.
“We live in a world where people feel like they have to climb over each other to get ahead,” says Brielle Sneed, Senior Manager, Ecosystem at Springboard. “Dolphin Tank is quite literally the opposite of that.”
Tally Wolff, Senior Startup Ecosystem Manager at Arlington Economic Development, one of the event’s sponsors, agrees.
“One of Arlington Economic Development’s key roles in the startup ecosystem is serving as a front door, helping founders navigate the right resources, partners, and connections at the right time,” she explains. “That’s why we continue to support Dolphin Tank: it brings together an incredible community who can respond in real time to the needs founders share, creating a collaborative, supportive environment that helps female founders with practical guidance and meaningful connections.”
Panelists included Sumedha Mongia, MD, MBA, Senior Advisor (Ctr) ARPA-H pediatrician, and angel investor; Elizabeth McCluskey, Managing Director, TruStage Ventures; and Jillian Levovitz, Chair and Executive in Residence of Springboard’s Women’s Health Accelerator. The event was moderated by Springboard National Trust member Nneka Ukpai.
“I don’t see it as charity; I see it as a competitive edge,” says Elizabeth McCluskey on investing in women-led companies.
“I explicitly seek out women-led companies because the data on outcomes is compelling and the opportunity is consistently underpriced,” explains McCluskey. “Women founders receive a fraction of venture capital relative to their male counterparts, which means there’s a persistent market inefficiency that patient, values-aligned investors can take advantage of. But beyond the returns case, I’ve found that women founders often bring a level of resourcefulness, emotional intelligence, and mission clarity that makes them exceptional operators – especially in the early stages when resilience matters most. I don’t see it as charity; I see it as a competitive edge.”
In a packed room that included entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts, attendees stayed long after the presentations were over to offer their advice, support and introductions to the founders.
“It was so meaningful to be surrounded again by builders working on urgent, high-impact problems,” says Nigam. “I really enjoyed meeting investors and connectors who were so generous with their experiences, networks, and advice. People were so genuinely excited to help us think through the next stage of the company. We left with several folks we are hopeful to build alongside.”
Benefits of the event continued beyond the initial gathering. After Dolphin Tank®, Rahn joined the Springboard team and members of the latest Women’s Health Accelerator at their Demo Day in New York City, where she also had the opportunity to participate in an insider conversation at Google about the state of healthcare ventures and the current market landscape.
“For more than 25 years, Springboard has helped launch some of the most consequential women-led companies in the world,” says Rahn. “To present in a room of investors, operators, and advisors who show up to lift founders up rather than pick them apart is a real privilege.”
As for Nigam, she’s optimistic that future founders will feel compelled to join Springboard’s ecosystem.
“I hope they feel inspired to try and build something of their own,” she says. “Being a founder is really hard, especially when you don’t know many people like you who are founders as well. So for me getting to be in a room with so many inspiring female founders made me feel like, oh, this is possible.”
If you’d like to learn more about our Dolphin Tank® founders, email [email protected]. If you’re interested in attending, pitching or sponsoring a future Dolphin Tank, please email [email protected].
Springboard is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Every dollar donated supports the infrastructure that puts women-led companies in front of the people who can accelerate their success. Donate here.
