Speakers for this event

• Aaron DeFaria

  Aaron DeFaria

  University of Waterloo – Co-operative & Experiential Education

  University of Waterloo

  URL https://uwaterloo.ca/

  University of Waterloo – Co-operative & Experiential Education

• Bianca Bauer

  Bianca Bauer

  University of Oxford Material Sciences | Founder – Decoded

  Decoded

  URL https://www.decoded.cx/

  University of Oxford Material Sciences | Founder – Decoded

• Boye Wilberforce Oshinaga

  Boye Wilberforce Oshinaga

  Director MyTechDev | CEO Gradely.ng

  URL https://www.gradely.ng/

  Director MyTechDev | CEO Gradely.ng

• Dinis Guarda

  Dinis Guarda

  Author & CEO of ztudium / openbusinesscouncil.org

  ztudium / openbusinesscouncil.org

  Mr Dinis Guarda is an author, influencer, visionaire entrepreneur, investor, futurist and global thought leader in 4IR, AI, Fintech, digital transformation and Blockchain. With decades of experience in international business, holding executive-level positions within digital transformation, Dinis has expertise in new tech, cryptocurrencies, regulation, compliance, and international legal processes. He has been a Lecturer and Speaker in some prestigious universities such as Cambridge, Copenhagen Business School, INSEEC, Monaco University, etc. Dinis is also a global thought leader recognised by the likes of Oxford University, Thinkers360.com, LinkedIn, Cointelegraph and more.

  URL https://www.dinisguarda.com/

  Author & CEO of ztudium / openbusinesscouncil.org

• Douglas McCready

  Douglas McCready

  Xbox – Worldwide Design & In-Store Experiences

  Xbox

  I love bringing the world of video games, collectibles, and consumer electronics to life.

  My current role with Xbox allows creative expression across global campaigns, customer experiences, and retail design for all products and services. Before joining the worldwide team, I led in-store experiences for Xbox, Surface, and pc accessories in the U.S., providing brand guidance and product-launch support.

  Prior to Microsoft, I worked with brands such as Tower Records, Starbucks, GameStop, and AT&T. While leading the visual merchandising team at Gamestop, we designed numerous category and product launches; collectibles & consumer electronics store-in-store concepts, VR demo experiences, ThinkGeek stores, and IPs & devices from Xbox, Nintendo, Sony, Apple, Microsoft, HTC, and Valve.

  As a gamer, a lifelong dream was realized by being credited on all games published by Gametrust, including Song of the Deep by Insomniac, Has Been Heroes by Frozenbyte, and Deformers by Ready at Dawn Studios. Contributing to game design, omnichannel strategy, and merchandising for Gametrust releases was an absolute joy.

  URL https://www.xbox.com/

  Xbox – Worldwide Design & In-Store Experiences

• Dr. Alfa Nyandoro

  Dr. Alfa Nyandoro

  Regent University – Professor

  Regent University

  Over his 22+ years career in computing, Dr. Alfa Nyandoro has lived and worked in four countries namely Zimbabwe, South Africa, Australia, and the United States. He has worked in industry as a systems administrator for Diamond Insurance (now NICOZ Diamond Zimbabwe) and as a systems administrator for Anglo American Corporation Services (Zimbabwe). He has also worked in R&D as a research scientist at SIRDC (Zimbabwe) and as a senior research associate with NICTA/UNSW (Australia).

  In South Africa, Nyandoro was a senior lecturer in IT at the University of Johannesburg, following which he joined ACU in Abilene Texas as an assistant professor of Computer Science and IT. He earned tenure and elevation to associate professor of Computer Science and IT at Abilene Christian University, before joining Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he recently served as the interim associate dean in the College of Computing & Technology and as chair of the Information Technologies Department.

  Nyandoro’s research interests are in medium access control protocols in communication networks, particularly in wireless networks. He is also passionate about technology for development and healthcare informatics.

  URL https://www.regent.edu/faculty/alfa-nyandoro/

  Regent University – Professor

• Dr. Brandon Donnelly

  Dr. Brandon Donnelly

  Conference Chair

  Conference Chair

• Dr. Hongyang Zhang

  Dr. Hongyang Zhang

  University of Waterloo – Professor

  University of Waterloo

  I am a tenure-track assistant professor at University of Waterloo, David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science, a member of AI Institute and Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute, and a faculty affiliated with Vector Institute for AI. I am interested in the problems where beautiful theory and practical methodology meet, which broadly include theories and applications of machine learning and algorithms with emphasis on robustness, security, and trustworthiness.I completed my Ph.D. degree in 2019 at Machine Learning Department, Carnegie Mellon University, where I was fortunate to be co-advised by Maria-Florina Balcan and David P. Woodruff. Before joining Waterloo, I was a Postdoc fellow at Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago (TTIC), hosted by Avrim Blum and Greg Shakhnarovich. I graduated from Peking University in 2015, working with Zhouchen Lin and Chao Zhang. I had long-term visiting experiences in Simons Institute and IPAM.

  URL https://hongyanz.github.io/

  University of Waterloo – Professor

• Dr. Jason D. Baker

  Dr. Jason D. Baker

  Regent University – Senior Technology Strategist

  Regent University

  Dr. Jason D. Baker is an engineer who wandered into a classroom. He brings an engineering design perspective to the challenge of harnessing technology for human flourishing. For over twenty-five years, Dr. Baker has been a leader in educational technology and online learning, developing quality programs for learners often left behind by traditional academic structures. He’s been a senior systems engineer, startup CTO, technology consultant, professor, and currently serves as Associate Vice President and Senior Technology Strategist at Regent University. He holds degrees in electrical engineering, educational technology, and online communication, and recently returned to graduate school to sharpen his skills. In the midst of Covid he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a master’s degree in computer and information technology, focusing on data science and engineering. He’s the co-author of the award-winning book Distance Learning in Higher Education and the innovative low-cost Social Science Research Design & Statistics textbook. In his spare time, he provides pro bono technology assistance to non-profit organizations and creates generative AI prototypes for fun.

  URL https://www.regent.edu/faculty/ph-d-jason-baker/

  Regent University – Senior Technology Strategist

• Dr. Joseph Cherian

  Dr. Joseph Cherian

  Asia School of Business – Deputy Chief Executive Officer | Cornell University

  Joseph Cherian is Practice Professor of Finance at the Asia School of Business (in collaboration with MIT Sloan) and at the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management at the SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University (Visiting). He was most recently a Practice Professor of Finance and the Founding Director of the former Centre for Asset Management Research & Investments (CAMRI) at the National University of Singapore (NUS) Business School.

  Prior to NUS, Joe was Managing Director, Global Head and CIO of the Quantitative Strategies Group at Credit Suisse in New York where he had direct responsibility for over US$67 billion in client assets managed to a quantitative discipline. While at Credit Suisse, he served on the Global Executive Committee, as well as various senior management, investments, and risk committees of the Asset Management division. He joined the financial industry in New York after an academic career in the US, including as an Associate Professor of Finance at Boston University.

  He was formerly an Executive-in-Residence and a two-term member of the Johnson Graduate School of Management’s Dean’s Advisory Council at Cornell University and is now an Emeritus Member of the Dean’s Council. Joe currently serves as an Advisor to Xen Capital, a boutique digital wealth and alternatives asset manager in Singapore, Singapore Exchange (SGX), Asia Asset Management in Hong Kong, as well as on the Mercer-CFA Institute Global Pensions Index’s Advisory Board in Australia. He has had appointments at Singapore’s Central Provident Fund (CPF) Advisory Panel and the National Research Foundation’s Early-Stage Venture Fund Evaluation Panel. He was an Independent Non-Executive Director of Bursa Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, a Scientific Advisor to Nipun Capital, a boutique hedge fund based in San Francisco, a consultant to Fullerton Fund Management, a Temasek subsidiary in Singapore, and on the Journal of Alternative Investments’ Editorial Board in the US.

  Joe holds a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from MIT, and M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Finance from Cornell University.

  Asia School of Business – Deputy Chief Executive Officer | Cornell University

• Dr. Joseph Umidi

  Dr. Joseph Umidi

  Regent University – Senior Vice President

  Regent University

  Dr. Joseph Umidi serves as Executive Vice President at Regent University, having also served as Interim Dean and Professor during his thirty-five years of service. He has researched and discovered keys to accelerate student retention and has trained all the University staff in developing a culture of honor. During this tenure he has served in senior leadership roles of several churches. He is Founder and President of Lifeforming Leadership Coaching, Inc., a Coach Training organization in 29 countries and 14 languages. He has authored numerous articles and books dealing with Organizational, and Personal Transformation and is working in Financial Wellness for families and churches.. He is married to Marie, Founder & President of TMCJ, Inc. and the delighted grandparents of three grandchildren.

  URL https://www.regent.edu/leadership/joseph-umidi/

  Regent University – Senior Vice President

• Dr. Sanjay Sarma

  Dr. Sanjay Sarma

  Asia School of Business – CEO, President, Dean | MIT VP Open Education

  Asia School of Business

  Sanjay Sarma is the Chief Executive Officer, President and Dean of the Asia School of Business, and a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the Sloan School of Management at MIT. He was the Vice President for Open Learning at MIT for nearly 10 years, during which he oversaw OpenCourseWare and led the creation of MITx, MicroMasters, the MIT Integrated Learning Initiative and the Jameel World Education Lab. As a researcher, he co-founded the Auto-ID Center at MIT and developed many of the key technologies behind the EPC suite of RFID standards now used worldwide. He was also co-founder and CTO of OATSystems, which was acquired by Checkpoint Systems (NYSE: CKP) in 2008. Between 2010 and 2012, Sarma led MIT’s team to establish the Singapore University of Technology and Design. He has served on the boards of several companies including Hochschild Mining (LON: HOC — until 2021), Aclara Resources (TSE:ARA –since 2021), GS1US, EPCglobal, CleanLab and several startups. Dr. Sarma received his Bachelors from the Indian Institute of Technology, his Masters from Carnegie Mellon University and his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley. Sarma worked at Schlumberger Oilfield Services in Aberdeen, UK, at Lawrence Berkeley Labs and at OATSystems. His current research interests are Internet of Things, street scanning, sensing, RFID, autonomy, cybersecurity, logistics, manufacturing and education. He is the Author of 3 books including The Inversion Factor, Grasp, and Workforce Education.

  URL https://asb.edu.my/about/the-leadership-team/sanjay-sarma

  Asia School of Business – CEO, President, Dean | MIT VP Open Education

• Dr. Sepi Chakaveh

  Dr. Sepi Chakaveh

  Unviersity of Oxford – AI & Quantum | Founder Pixesllar

  Pixesllar

  Inventor of PixselChat the first multiuser data communication platform with embedded live translation. Thought Leader & academic in Data Science & AI with a long standing experience in higher education sector and R&D IT project management. CEO/Founder of Pixsellar University of Oxford Departmental Lecturer in Data Science and Course Director Everywoman Innovator Award 2020 and ConnectTVT Technology Game Changer 2021.

  URL https://www.pixsellar.com/

  Unviersity of Oxford – AI & Quantum | Founder Pixesllar

• Dr. Siti Najaa Zulkifli

  Dr. Siti Najaa Zulkifli

  Asia School of Business – Asst Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center

  Siti Najaa Zulkifli is an Assistant Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center at Asia School of Business. She obtained her PhD in Organic Chemistry from the University of Queensland (UQ) in 2016 and has a Bachelor degree in Biotechnology (with Honours Class 1) majoring in Drug Design and Development in 2011 from the same University. Prior to joining ASB, she worked with UQ as a chemistry university tutor handling total over 500 diverse groups of undergraduate students in tutorials, laboratories, and workshops in one semester. With her educational background in Chemistry, affords her two skills that are essential in Management: to “see” the world around in multiple dimension; and the “see” process, time, and entropy.

  URL https://asb.edu.my/about/the-people-of-asb/siti-najaa-zulkifli

  Asia School of Business – Asst Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center

• Dr. William Brown

  Dr. William Brown

  Regent University Professor & Research Fellow

  Dr. William Brown is a professor and research fellow in the Humanities Department in the School of Communication & the Arts. He specializes in the study and use of entertainment-education for social change, health communication, and media and social influence. He has conducted academic and professional research in more than 40 nations for the past 30 years.In addition to his tenure at Regent University, Brown has taught communication courses at the University of Southern California, the University of Hawaii in Honolulu and at the University of the Nations in Kona, Hawaii. He also has served as the dean of the School of Communication & the Arts of Regent from 1992 to 2002; and as chair of the Department of Strategic Communication & Journalism and Director of the Ph.D. Program from 2003 to 2016. He currently teaches courses on doctoral research methods, communication theory, entertainment-education for social change, media and social influence, C.S. Lewis and communication, and strategic communication. Brown also completed a five-year appointment as a Fulbright Senior Specialist with the Fulbright Scholar Program in Washington, D.C.

  URL https://www.regent.edu/faculty/ph-d-william-j-brown/

  Regent University Professor & Research Fellow

• Hannah Jones

  Hannah Jones

  The Earthshot Prize – CEO

  The Earthshot Prize

  Hannah Jones is the CEO of The Earthshot Prize, a prize and a platform founded by HRH Prince William and the Royal Foundation in 2020 to search, spotlight and scale solutions that can help repair and regenerate the planet in this decade.

  Hannah Jones is a social and environmental advocate believing in the power of entrepreneurism, innovation and collaboration to affect systems change. She started her career in radio, at the BBC, before working as a social entrepreneur in a British Charity, founding and leading pan-European AIDS/HIV prevention and anti-racism campaigns across 100’s of Radio stations. She then worked on the founding team of Microsoft’s philanthropy program in EMEA before joining Nike to help start their first Corporate Responsibility team in EMEA.

  For 16 years, as Nike’s first Chief Sustainability Officer, working to the CEO and the Nike Board of Directors, Hannah helped lead the transformation of Nike’s labor rights and sustainability efforts, turning both functions into engines of business model innovation and industry change. Following that, Hannah founded Nike Valiant Labs, a venture to bring a culture of lean startup, human centered design & entrepreneurialism to Nike, housing a vibrant diverse culture of entrepreneurs delivering a growing portfolio of new disruptive digital businesses and offerings with purpose at their core.

  Named twice to Fast Company’s top 100 Creative People list, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, and winner of the C.K Prahalad 2013 award for leadership in Sustainability, Hannah has served on the board of the Method Soap & Ecover brands, was the co-chair and co-founder of We Mean Business, a coalition of progressive businesses working to influence climate policy, and has served on the boards and councils of Mercy Corps, the UNHCR Business Advisory Council and the Purpose Climate Lab. Today, Hannah is a non-executive director on the board of Oatly, a sustainability advisor to UCB, a global BioTech company, an advisor to the Queens Gambit, an all-female SPAC, a mentor with the Unreasonable Group, and a mentor to as many talented diverse future leaders as she can fit in.

  URL https://earthshotprize.org/

  The Earthshot Prize – CEO

• Leigh Davidson

  Leigh Davidson

  Marxent Labs – Managing Director

  Marxent Labs

  Leigh is responsible for Marxent’s International business, with clients such as John Lewis, DFS Group, and Kingfisher Group (B&Q). Prior to joining Marxent, he worked with IBM, P&G, and Dassault Systemes (3DS). His previous experience in Retail 3D and AR includes engagements with both Cimagine (acquired by Snap Inc.) and Augment. Leigh graduated with a first-class degree in Business Communication from Sheffield Hallam University and is passionate about helping clients implement groundbreaking technologies.

  URL https://www.marxentlabs.com/

  Marxent Labs – Managing Director

• Louis Lehot

  Louis Lehot

  Foley & Lardner – Silicon Valley Partner

  Foley & Lardner

  Keen investors focus on mitigating risks associated with funding early-stage companies. Louis understands what investors are looking for when deciding what to fund. In this session, Louis will share how to align growth strategies with investor priorities to secure the capital you need to achieve your long-term goals.

  Foley & Lardner – Silicon Valley Partner

• Marcelo Mazariegos

  Marcelo Mazariegos

  RECAL – Director

  RECAL

  More than 30 years of deep experience in different fields, including Government, Private Sector and Educational. Oriented to results, I work under pressure, focused on innovation, service, and growth in the personal and work environment. Excellent negotiator, public relations always working under an strict ethical framework. New challenges and ambitious. Alumni Relations and Advancement, strong commintment with philanthropy in education and in General. Corporate Governance and SROI. Mexican and Spanish Nationalities

  RECAL – Director

• Michelle Gordon

  Michelle Gordon

  GrowOut Retreats – CEO | Dragonscale AI CFO | Corporate Advisor

  GrowOut Retreats

  With a focus on sustainability and social impact, Michelle is a CFO who works as a strategic partner to the CEO of start-up companies and companies going through accelerated growth. Michelle helps companies establish efficient financial and business systems to enable them to successfully grow.

  Using a unique skill set of business systems, accounting, and HR, she has adapted her skills to work in many industries. As a contract controller/CFO and management consultant she has worked in the following industries: manufacturing, lumber, technology, finance, not-for-profit, government, First Nations, agriculture and sustainability.

  URL https://www.growout.earth/

  GrowOut Retreats – CEO | Dragonscale AI CFO | Corporate Advisor

• Nikolaos (Nikos) Chalikias

  Nikolaos (Nikos) Chalikias

  Munster Technical University – Tech Fellow

  Munster Technical University

  Nikolaos (Nikos) Chalikias has developed embedded-systems projects, focused on telecom, military, elevator, wireless-sensors, small motors control, medical. Involved on project proposals and full development lifecycle from board to system level, procurement, production, and testing.
  In Munster Technical University/Nimbus/Ireland: Team-management & technical-lead for embedded systems development and end-to-end IoT projects such as fats remote monitoring, river-environmental-sensing, wireless sensors, human body sensors, medical ML scanner, LoRa, n-Blocks modular embedded systems platform and nBlocksStudio model-based-design development platform. Research/Development focus: Modular electronics, Wireless Sensors, Edge AI/ML, Model Based Design applied on Firmware, Mechatronics.

  Munster Technical University – Tech Fellow

• Prof Matthew Weait

  Prof Matthew Weait

  University of Oxford – Director & Professor of Law and Society

  University of Oxford

  Matthew is Director of the Department, Professor of Law and Society, and Governing Body Fellow of Harris Manchester College. After completing his Undergraduate and Master’s studies in law and criminology at the University of Cambridge, he undertook the research for his DPhil at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies in Oxford, where he was also a Research Officer and a Stipendiary Lecturer in Law at New College. From there he moved to Birkbeck, University of London, where he was one of the founding members of the Law School. After periods as a Lecturer at the Open University and Keele University he returned to Birkbeck where, in 2011, he was promoted to Professor of Law and Policy and Pro-Vice-Master (Academic and Community Partnerships). From 2015-2020 he was Executive Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Portsmouth, and from 2020 until joining the Department he was Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Hertfordshire.Matthew has a longstanding commitment to promoting higher and continuing educational opportunities for non-traditional learners, and to equality, diversity, and inclusion in higher education. He has been a Governor of Morley College, Athena SWAN Champion at Portsmouth and was Senior LGBTQ+ Champion at Hertfordshire. He is a keen writer of fiction and has an MA in Creative Writing from Birkbeck.

  URL https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/profiles/matthew-weait

  University of Oxford – Director & Professor of Law and Society

• Richard Barber

  Richard Barber

  Mindtech.ai – CEO

  Mindtech.ai

  AI Governance and Growth Strategy Consultant, C-Suite Leader and Board Director with 25 years of leading companies in domestic and international marketplaces. A solid reputation for achieving customer-centric business plans with general management execution, overseeing the day-to-day business. A strategist and change agent providing strategic direction, diverse perspectives and ensuring DEI. Impressive history of transformational and visionary leadership helping organizations innovate, thrive and grow. A compassionate executive with a grasp on profitable revenue growth, global expansion, organizational development and building large multi-level teams in complex matrix environments. Analytical and data driven, leveraging a technical science background. Philanthropist supporting a focus on education, spirituality, third world health and food insecurity. An outdoor and motorsports enthusiast

  URL https://www.mindtechgroup.ai/

  Mindtech.ai – CEO

• Rohit Rai

  Rohit Rai

  Dragonscale AI – CEO

  Dragonscale AI

  I have spent over two decades of my life around computers – learning, experimenting, hacking, and building. I have a varied exposure and expertise with technology working on enterprise platforms (@ Cordys), web 2.0 and social stuff (@ Sun, Intel and SocialTwist), Mobile/Embedded and IP Communications (@ tinge-n-dab), cloud technologies, big data, and data analytics (@ tinge-n-dab, Imaginea) data science, ML and AI (@ Apple and Tuplejump).I love startups and startup culture. I have been part of founding teams and run a couple of my own. Being the co-founder and CEO of my last startup, Tuplejump, Inc. was one of the most satisfying, thrilling, and joyful experiences. Its acquisition and integration was a very intense, steep yet rewarding learning process.At Apple, I built an overachieving, inclusive, and diverse team that is agile and high energy in a startup way but can function, collaborate, and deliver at the scale the world’s largest company requires. Crafting and operating a platform used across Apple gave me a unique learning opportunity in building consensus and co-creating miracles.With all that experience, knowledge and few of my favorite colleagues I am now working to make web3 safer at Dragonscale Industries Inc. I get to work on combining my favorite tech domains of #web3 and #AI applied to my favorite non tech subject society and social behavior.

  URL https://www.dragonscale.ai/

  Dragonscale AI – CEO

• Stephen Pimentel

  Stephen Pimentel

  Dragonscale AI – CTO

  Dragonscale AI

  Stephen is a technologist, visionary, and public speaker who enjoys getting his hands dirty to make ideas a reality. Working on the data-science platform at Apple, Stephen helped Apple leverage ML, building systems that impact the experience of billions of users. With deep experience in solving large-scale data problems, he has a passion for using his knowledge to build powerful user-centric crypto applications.

  URL https://www.dragonscale.ai/

  Dragonscale AI – CTO