Luke is an investor and advisor for early stage ventures, PE and corporate media clients. Luke was formerly the market lead for McKinsey’s Fast Growth Tech practice serving consumer clients on a variety of growth and operational strategies. As an Engagement Manager he has experience leading digital strategy and transformation projects for consumer finance, media and telecom clients.

Prior to McKinsey, Luke ran the digital media division of a Hollywood literary agency, consulting on digital video content, organization and advertising strategy for publishers and television networks in addition to representing IP for film/TV. Luke is a Feldberg Fellow of Columbia Business School and a Scholar of Merton College, Oxford.

Paul founded Graphite Financial, as an internal service for (nearly 50%) of Venture Capital’s ("ffVC") portfolio of early-stage technology companies since 2008. In 2016, while continuing to serve ffVC's portfolio, Paul oversaw Graphite Financial's transition to operating as an independent company to serve the broader startup community.

He is an expert in helping startups and other young ventures with strategy, financial modeling, fully outsourced or augmented bookkeeping & accounting, tax, compliance and interim CFO work.

Brian is the CEO and founder of VentureOut, which he launched in 2012 while working at Gotham Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund. He started VentureOut as a vehicle to help bridge the gap between the innovators around the world and the opportunities available to them in the New York and San Francisco technology ecosystems.

Brian is also a proud advocate of the New York City's vibrant technology community, a role he plays as a speaker, a mentor, on the Board of Directors of the NYC Innovation Collective, Founding Member of NYC Tech International, a member of the FWD.us Innovation Council and as the Founder of the Chaminade Alumni Entrepreneurs Association.

Prior to VentureOut, Brian’s career has spanned venture, at Gotham Ventures, consulting, supporting early-stage tech startups in NYC, business development, at OTR Global, and sales, as the youngest institutional salesperson globally at Standard & Poor's. Brian received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Richmond.

As a startup founder with multiple exits, He thinks there are a lot of things broken with the way that entrepreneurs approach sales and marketing in today’s complex market. His team’s focus in 2018 is to make sure they can help as many people as they can scale their businesses without running out of money. He has knowledge of various fields that is helpful for startups and also can provide insight into many areas such as Team Building & Strategic Planning, Corporate Innovation & Partnerships, Growth Hacking & Lead Generation, Marketing & Community Engagement, Seed & Venture Capital, Emerging Trends & Digital Technology.

Edwin is the Director of Growth at Ladder.io, a growth technology and services agency that uses proprietary technology and data-driven strategy to increase your ROI.

Edwin grows businesses with impactful analysis + tech-infused creativity, as an ROI-Driven Growth Strategy Architect and Director, Transforming Performance Marketing Into Systemized Solutions/Processes.

Nora is VP of VP of Operations at Creditstacks.

Nora leads operations and business development for a fintech company, CreditStacks. CreditStacks offers premium credit cards to new-to-credit customers. A pre-series A startup where she wear multiple hats including fundraising, investor relations, forming a partnership, operationalizing new processes and business lines, and everything in between.

Eyal is a digital media executive with extensive experience in product leadership, business development and, early-stage capital raising.

He sources, manages and cultivates key strategic partnership and M&A endeavors.

Sumya is recognized as an efficient business development strategist, innovator, manager and team player who drives strategic partnerships and transactions to accelerate growth.

A visionary brand builder and inventive business strategist, Sumya has worked with corporations, non-profits and individuals building programs, products and partnerships that are sustainable and impactful. Through market and trend analysis, competitive dynamics, value proposition strategies, corporate storytelling and tailored launch initiatives, she leads businesses to realize goals.

A focused listener, Sumya pinpoints a company’s key problems and hurdles, identifies areas of collaboration, drives innovation and unlocks shared value. She uses a unique lens to create practical, measurable solutions to incubate new ideas while building and maintaining broad based relationships with senior management, internal business units and industrial professional networks. She works to develop initiatives and programs that result in a compelling portfolio of growth opportunities.

Lexie Kier is a Principal Strategist and Founder of AOK Group, a growth consultancy for startups. She advises bold brands and startups on fundraising, customer insights, branding and marketing and often takes on interim leadership roles to help with periods of intense change, entry into new markets, and expansion.

Previously, Lexie founded Cuurio, an index of startups and innovation platform helping bold brands find clarity, context, and connection. ​Cuurio helped a growing number of innovative brands and agencies (including Warner Brother, Johnson & Johnson, L'Oreal, and J. Walter Thompson) to create vibrant native mobile partnerships that activated consumers in new channels.

Jessica Lauretti is an artist, entrepreneur and thought leader based in New York City. She has a diverse background working at the intersection of art, politics and culture and has expertise in immersive tech, social impact and new media. She has been featured on most major broadcast and digital media outlets as well as honored with several awards and nominations.

Her professional career spans the bleeding edge of the startup media & tech world from a global executive role at immersive tech startup RYOT to a development role at social impact startup Purpose and a production role at new media disruptor VICE. She is currently Founder & Principal at LAURELS, a consulting practice that works with CEOs and startups. She is an award-winning Creative Director and Executive Producer who has spoken at keynote events around the world and serves on the Advisory Council of Google News Lab's Journalism 360 Program.

Deep is a principal and the leader of Withum’s Technology Advisory practice based in New York City. Deep’s team of technology industry specialists provide consulting services including mergers, acquisitions, divestitures and capital raising to both venture and private equity-backed companies, ranging from SaaS, e-commerce, marketplace, ad-tech and publishing sectors.

Deep is known for delivering high-value strategic advice to entrepreneurs, private equity, and venture capital firms as they seek to stay at the forefront of the rapidly changing market. He frequently presents and authors articles around technology trends, entrepreneurial strategies and the venture capital landscape. Deep also serves as a mentor and advisor to various tech organizations including 500 Startups, Y-Combinator and Techstars, and is a member of the New York Venture Capital Association, and the National Venture Capital Association.

Chris is a partner at Withum and serves as the firm’s Practice leader for the Technology and Emerging Growth Services Group. With over 15 years of experience, he has dedicated his time to servicing this industry and tech community and has had the privilege of working and building relationships with some of the most well-known and successful technology and emerging growth companies in the space. In addition to servicing his clients, his responsibilities include representing the firm in the marketplace, developing marketplace strategies, leading the growth and success of the firm’s technology and emerging growth practice.

Caroline obtained her Barrister-at-Law degree from the Honorable Society of King’s Inns in Dublin, got admitted to practice at the Bar of Ireland, and is a member of AILA and the Irish American Bar Association of New York.

Caroline is experienced in employment-based, family-based, and investment-based immigration. As part of our EB-5 practice, she has worked with investors in both direct investment and Regional Center petitions, and has counseled individual EB-5 investors on Source of Funds requirements. Caroline has experience with corporate clients and startups seeking E, H and L nonimmigrant visas, as well as a range of extraordinary ability individuals, including entrepreneurs and entertainers. She has broad experience working with Irish individuals on J-1 Intern and Trainee visas.

Ethan is a master in Quantitative Financial and Risk Analytics (QFRA). And he has experienced in venture capital, financial analysis, and non-profit project management. Also, he is an intensive researcher, a techie, and a problem solver who is deeply involved in the startup ecosystem.
Additionally, he has experienced in deal sourcing and due diligence activities, market research authoring, financial modeling, valuation analysis, and business development.

Stella serves as Senior Executive at one of the largest media groups in the world and has helped win several new businesses and new global clients for MDC’s client portfolio. Stella is a subject matter expert on the role of Digital Media in Advertising, Digital Operations and the future of the Internet.

She has experience working in global operations and business technology integration issues and has worked extensively with companies such as E*Trade and Fox to engage in a more data and technology-driven marketing approach. Stella is now based in NYC and as a self-identified polymath is exploring among other things the future of media through technological innovation.

Jessica Peltz is the Investment Director at kbs+ Venturesfocusing on sourcing deal flow and making investment recommendations for early stage tech startups looking to transform the media and advertising industry. She is a frequent speaker within the NYC startup communityand specializes in helping connect marketers with emerging technology. Jessica’s cutting edge collaborations were often featured in the trades such as MashableAdageMobile Marketerand Mediapost. Jessica has a BA from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Businesswith a double concentration in Marketing and International Relations.

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A life-long geekDessy is passionate about nascent technology and is eagerly waiting for the future to become more evenly distributed. She is doing her part by specializing in VR/ARmost recently leading 645 Ventures’ Series A investment in LittlStar.

She spent fifteen years as a creative director, acquiring a deep understanding of the digital consumer mindset while leading marketing initiatives for Colgate PalmoliveGerberCentury 21Mall of America etc. At 645 VenturesDessy brings a rare balance of reason and creativity, enabling her to make investment decisions that are driven in equal measure by logic and vision.

Brendan joined BDMI from Needham & Company where he was responsible for providing M&A and capital raising advisory services to early-stage technology companies, particularly in digital media and software. His previous work experience includes M&A advisory at BDO Capital Partners and social impact investing at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. Brendan holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Finance from the College of William & Mary. During the few hours a week that Brendan is not chasing new deals, he likes to kick back with his guitar or catch the latest Premier League soccer action.

Matthew handles a wide array of corporate matters, including private equity and venture capital transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate governance issues. In addition to his extensive experience with emerging and growth stage technology companies, he has also represented industry leaders in fields including life sciences and medical device companies, sports brands, fashion and retail companies, and chemical manufacturers and suppliers.

Morgan’s role at Genacast Ventures includes evaluating investment opportunities, sourcing new deals, and managing the growth of existing portfolio companies. Prior to joining Genacast, Morgan worked at Bloomberg Beta, the venture firm backed by Bloomberg. He also spent time as a software engineer at Tapad and instructor at Market-Based Management at the Charles Koch Institute. Morgan earned his B.S. from Northeastern University.

Strategic and Innovations leader with over 20 years experience working in digital marketing, integrated media, creative brand advertising, and emerging technology. As a Virtual & Mixed/Augmented Reality evangelist, Rori advises companies on strategy and marketing opportunities for brand and business transformation.

Prior to Accenture Interactive, Rori was Global Head of Digital Strategy, EVP at Havas Media Group, where she led and managed strategic planning worldwide, with a focus on digitally integrated marketing communications and innovation. Previous, Rori was Partner, Director of Digital Strategy at Ogilvy, where she focused on developing digital marketing strategies for clients such as IBM, Kodak, Unilever, Nestle, REMY Cointreau, and Wyeth as well as others within the tech, CPG, health, retail & media industries.

Rori holds an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business and a BA from the University of Pennsylvania. She is regular public speaker, contributing writer for Ad Age, Guardian, Campaign US, Media Post; a jury member for Cannes Lions, 4As Jay Chiat, Festival of Media, M&M Global, Webby’s, Kinsale Sharks and Art Directors Club.

Christian Guirnalda currently manages Seed Stage Programs and Investments for Verizon Ventures. Before joining the team in New York, he was part of the Innovation & Incubation team at Verizon Wireless, co-developing products with startups and running an internal VZW accelerator.

Prior to Verizon Christian worked for Patch/The Huffington Post to create hyperlocal content strategies, at American Express building nextgen digital products, and with IBM’s Strategy and Change group advising Fortune 100 publishers, broadcasters, SmartGrid providers and telecoms.

He was a double major in Computing and Information Technology and Manufacturing Management and Consulting at Carnegie Mellon and received his MBA from the University of Michigan.

Thalia Mavros is the architect of rapidly ascending digital platform The Front, a new media proposition showcasing female voices in documentary film and entertainment around the world. Creative director, filmmaker and former Executive Creative Director at VICE Media, Thalia has spent her career breaking conventions. And now, with The Front, she’s expanding the dialogue to highlight a variety of work by leading women’s creatives. The Front’s message is “By women, for the world.”

Thalia began her career with VICE 10 years ago when the founders decided to expand beyond publishing into online video and branded content, creating the youth media empire the world knows today. Her role extended across disciplines and all VICE properties—VIRTUE (the creative agency), VICE, Motherboard (tech & science), Noisey (music), thump (electronic music), Fightland (MMA), VICE on HBO, Munchies (Food) and i-D (fashion) channels, and she led the inception, development and execution of the award-winning joint venture with Intel, The Creators Project, in its first years of its life.

Today, alongside The Front, she is also a sought after creative and strategic consultant for brands and other media companies.

Shawn Sam is an early stage investor at Brand Capital. Shawn is the first member of the New York office, where he sources and executes deals located in (but not exclusive to) the East Coast and Europe. He focuses on investing in early stage startups with an established product and incoming revenue that are interested in entering the Indian market.

Prior to Brand Capital, Shawn worked at IBM where he was a Strategy Consultant and an original member of IBM’s GBS Ventures team. Additionally, he has worked in mergers & acquisitions, private equity, and equity research.

Outside of work, you will find Shawn actively engaging with the NYC tech community via meetups and conferences in the city.

Formerly CEO of a French advertising agency for 17 years, Emmanuel has been a fine observer of the relations between media and advertisers. He now is the CEO of Adwanted, the first multi-channel advertising platform.

Linda loves deep tech and knows it well. With a strong interest in blockchain, enterprise infrastructure, security, data-driven applications, and IoT, She is a tireless student of early-stage technologies and an advocate for their long-term transformational potential.

Linda’s previous roles as a Research Analyst at ChinaRock Capital and an early-stage VC at Flatiron Investors have taught her attention to detail and a tenacious curiosity.

She received a BBA (Hon) in Finance & Actuarial Science from The Chinese University of Hong Kong and an MBA from Columbia University.