Roughly 90 percent of hard tech startups fail due to funding constraints, longer R&D timelines for developing hardware, and the complexity of manufacturing their products, according to a number of studies. Generally, these startups require up to 50 percent more investor financing than software ones, according to a Medium article . Typically, they need at least US $30 million, according to a Lucid article . That’s double the funding needed by software companies on average. To help them connect with investors, IEEE Entrepreneurship in 2024 launched its Hard Tech Venture Summits . The two-day events connect founders with potential investors and other entrepreneurs . Attendees include manufacturers, design engineers, and intellectual property lawyers. “Even though there are a lot of startup investor conferences, it’s hard to find those focused on hard tech,” says Joanne Wong , who helped initiate the program and is now the chair.…