Catherine Di is the co‑founder and CEO of Dedalus Labs, a YC startup building the infrastructure layer for agentic AI that lets developers build and deploy complex agents in just a few lines of code.

In this conversation, she talks through the technical problems behind agent security, deployment, and MCP-based tooling, and how her team is approaching them with a developer-native platform. We also get into the story of applying to YC, participating in the S25 batch, and raising an $11M seed round co-led by Kindred Ventures and Saga Ventures. Catherine shares what changed in the market, what investors actually asked about, and how her thinking on agents, protocols, and infra has evolved along the way.

Before Dedalus Labs, she studied Computer Science at Princeton University and was Co‑President + Incubator Leader at the student-run Hoagie Club.

01:01 - Dedalus Labs

03:57 - MCP and AI Agents

06:49 - Build, Deploy, Monetize AI Agents

08:14 - Security Concerns

12:12 - The future of AI Agents

15:32 - YC and Fundraising

28:09 - Final Advice and Book Recs

Cathy’s Socials:

•⁠ ⁠X: https://x.com/itsCathyDi

•⁠ ⁠⁠LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathydi/

Alana Karen is an award-winning tech leader, author, and speaker with over 25 years in tech, including two decades at Google. She has worked across Google Search, Ads, Fiber, and Grants, helping build products and teams that have touched billions of people globally. Alana is also the author of the best-selling book "Adventures of Women in Tech", now releasing a brand new edition that explores how work, culture, and careers are shifting in the AI era.

In this episode of the Femmes Finance Podcast, we talk with Alana Karen about her journey after Google and moving on to new opportunities. We discuss her thoughts on future careers, Big Tech layoffs, and adapting to major cultural and technological shifts. Lastly, Alana Karen shares great advice on how to build a financial and career resilience in today’s fast-moving tech era.

Follow Alana Karen:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanakaren/
• Website: https://www.alanakaren.com

Follow Assel Altayeva:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asselaltayeva/
• Instagram: @femmesfinance

🔊 #26 – Cathy Hackl on Spatial Computing, Apple Vision Pro, and Building with AI, XR & Immersive Tech

Cathy Hackl is one of the world’s leading tech futurists and a driving force behind the next wave of innovation in spatial computing. She is the CEO of Future Dynamics, Co-founder and Chief Futurist at Journey, and an Apple Vision Pro developer. Cathy also advises Boston Consulting Group, hosts Adweek’s TechMagic podcast, and was recently named one of Newsweek’s Top 25 AI Visionaries.

In this episode of The Femmes Finance Podcast, we talk about the next era of human-computer interaction, where computing leaves the screen and becomes more immersive, ambient, and intuitive. Cathy breaks down what spatial computing really is, how it blends AI, hardware, and XR, and what this means for industries across the board. We talk about her work building experiences for the Apple Vision Pro, the business opportunities emerging in this space, and why spatial computing is set to reshape how we live, work, and communicate.

This is one of those episodes you’ll be thinking about long after it ends.

Follow Cathy Hackl:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathyhackl/
• Instagram: @cathyhackl
• Website: https://www.cathyhackl.com/
• Podcast: https://www.adweek.com/podcasts/tech-magic/

Follow Assel Altayeva:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/asselaltayeva/
• Instagram: @femmesfinance