Quinlan School of Business Commencement Address

Juliana Pidner Hsu

(MBA '18) • Managing Director, DRIVE Catalyst

Juliana Pidner Hsu (MBA ’18) is Managing Director of DRIVE Catalyst, the venture capital and innovation platform of the Far Eastern Group, a global industrial conglomerate with more than $100 billion in assets. Since founding the initiative in 2019, she has developed the group’s global venture investment strategy, investing in and partnering with technology startups advancing sustainability, artificial intelligence for materials innovation and manufacturing, energy transition, and digital infrastructure.  

Through DRIVE Catalyst, she works with founders, investors, and industry leaders to connect high-growth technology companies with the Far Eastern Group’s industrial scale, manufacturing expertise, and global market reach. Her work focuses on accelerating commercialization and creating both strategic and financial value by fostering collaboration between emerging technology companies and global industry. 

Pidner Hsu’s career spans sales, finance, strategy, and international business development across global markets. She began her career in procurement in Brazil before moving into financial analysis in New York and later transitioning to investor relations, where she gained experience in capital markets and corporate growth. Within the Far Eastern Group, she held leadership roles in strategy and business development before launching DRIVE Catalyst. 

Having lived and worked across South America, North America, and Asia, she brings a global perspective to venture investing and corporate innovation. She serves as a board member of Shangri-La’s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Taipei and as a board observer for several portfolio startups. 

Pidner Hsu holds a Master of Business Administration from Loyola University Chicago and a degree in International Business from Universidade FUMEC in Brazil.