Pascal B. van Knijff is an entrepreneur, technology strategist, and international keynote speaker with more than 30 years of experience at the intersection of digital innovation, blockchain, artificial intelligence, institutional finance, and sustainability.

As Founder and Managing Partner of KARBNZ Global, Pascal is leading the development of a next-generation Natural Capital Platform that integrates blockchain, artificial intelligence, satellite intelligence, digital Measurement, Reporting & Verification (MRV), biomass, biochar, and institutional climate finance to transform natural assets into transparent, verifiable, and investable infrastructure.

Through KARBNZ Global and its experienced Brazilian operating partners, Pascal is helping develop one of the world's most ambitious integrated natural capital platforms, combining ecological restoration, sustainable forestry, biomass, biochar, digital MRV, and institutional finance into a scalable investment model. His work provides first-hand insight into how blockchain, AI, and trusted data can enable transparency, continuous verification, and long-term stewardship across complex environmental assets at a scale relevant to institutional investors, governments, and global climate initiatives.

His work reflects a broader transformation in global climate finance; from standalone carbon credit projects to diversified natural capital platforms that integrate ecological restoration with sustainable timber, biomass, biochar, biodiversity, and high-integrity environmental markets. This vision was recently featured by CarbonCredits.com in "Beyond Carbon Credits: How KARBNZ Global Is Building a Natural Capital Platform Around Forests, Biomass, and Biochar."

Pascal has long advocated for applying blockchain beyond digital assets, positioning it as the trust infrastructure for Real World Assets (RWAs). His work explores how blockchain, AI, autonomous agents, satellite intelligence, and digital twins can create continuous verification, transparent governance, and institutional-grade investment frameworks for climate infrastructure and sustainable finance.

An experienced international speaker, Pascal has presented at leading blockchain and innovation conferences, including BLOCKCHANCE Europe, and EU's inaugural Blockchain Convergence, sharing insights on blockchain adoption, tokenization, digital transformation, Web3, artificial intelligence, and emerging technologies.

Today, Pascal is recognized for bridging technology with practical implementation, translating complex concepts into actionable strategies for governments, institutional investors, enterprises, and innovators. His presentations challenge audiences to think beyond tokenization and explore how AI and blockchain together can build the trusted digital infrastructure that underpins the next generation of Real World Assets and the global natural capital economy.

Pascal B. van Knijff is an entrepreneur, technology strategist, and international keynote speaker with more than 30 years of experience at the intersection of digital innovation, blockchain, artificial intelligence, institutional finance, and sustain... Show more

Joshua (JD) is a long time Open Source advocate and entrepreneur dating back to the early days of Professional Open Source. From the valleys of Usenet he sold custom Linux servers with a whopping 16 MB of ram and 1GB SCSI drives. These were the days of SLS and many, many floppy disks. Through the years he has help found multiple Internet Service Providers as well as eventually launching his own firm, Command Prompt, Inc.. Command Prompt has over the years become one of the predominant privately owned PostgreSQL support and Consulting firms.

An avid public speaker and writer, he is also the founder of United States PostgreSQL, PgConf (PostgresConf) and More than a Refresh: A podcast about the most interesting people you haven't met. He currently resides off-grid in Montana.

He divides his time between Command Prompt, off-grid projects, mentoring/leadership roles and helping those who wish to become successful, define what that means for them.

Joshua (JD) is a long time Open Source advocate and entrepreneur dating back to the early days of Professional Open Source. From the valleys of Usenet he sold custom Linux servers with a whopping 16 MB of ram and 1GB SCSI drives. These were the days ... Show more

Charis is a senior business intelligence analyst and consultant and the founder / co-organiser of PgGreece, the first Greece PostgreSQL Users Group.

With a long-standing interest in sciences, the arts and different cultures, she brings a diverse and cross-cultural perspective to community building and collaboration.

Charis is a senior business intelligence analyst and consultant and the founder / co-organiser of PgGreece, the first Greece PostgreSQL Users Group. With a long-standing interest in sciences, the arts and different cultures, she brings a diverse ... Show more

Innovative and results-driven Senior Solution Engineer with over 20+ years of robust IT experience, designing, deploying, and optimizing enterprise-scale data and AI solutions across Azure SQL Database, Microsoft Fabric, Synapse Analytics, Purview, and Databricks. Adept at leading complex migrations, modernizing legacy data estates, and architecting advanced analytics platforms that drive measurable business outcomes for organizations in energy, technology, healthcare, finance, manufacturing, retail, government, and public sector domains.

Leveraging nearly two decades of hands-on expertise, I bring deep technical insight, strategic vision, and a proven ability to translate business needs into scalable, secure, and cost-effective cloud architectures. My experience enables me to anticipate challenges, deliver innovative solutions, and mentor teams through digital transformation journeys.

Recognized for driving customer success through technical enablement, cost modeling, and governance best practices. Skilled in orchestrating cross-functional teams, mentoring engineers, and delivering workshops that accelerate cloud adoption and compliance. Passionate about empowering organizations to unlock the full potential of their data, foster innovation, and maintain regulatory compliance in a rapidly evolving cloud landscape.

Innovative and results-driven Senior Solution Engineer with over 20+ years of robust IT experience, designing, deploying, and optimizing enterprise-scale data and AI solutions across Azure SQL Database, Microsoft Fabric, Synapse Analytics, Purview, a... Show more

Sree Potluri is a Senior Solution Engineer at Microsoft, specialising in Data & AI and leading customer-facing innovation across the UK water industry and beyond. She is the voice behind AI Horizon, a global community platform focused on making Generative AI accessible, practical, and impactful for real-world applications.

With over 17 years of experience in the technology industry, Sree partners closely with organisations to modernise data platforms, unlock real-time intelligence, and drive AI-led transformations using Microsoft Fabric and Azure. Her work spans designing end-to-end data and AI solutions that bridge the gap between complex technology and tangible business outcomes.

She is a regular speaker at conferences and industry events, sharing insights on designing unified data platforms, delivering end‑to‑end data solutions, and advancing capabilities in prompt engineering, LLM orchestration, agentic AI systems, and scalable, enterprise‑ready AI.

Sree Potluri is a Senior Solution Engineer at Microsoft, specialising in Data & AI and leading customer-facing innovation across the UK water industry and beyond. She is the voice behind AI Horizon, a global community platform focused on making Gener... Show more

Gopinath Rajamanickam is a seasoned IT professional with 20 years of experience spanning QA leadership, enterprise web application development, cloud engineering, DevOps, automation, and large-scale program delivery. He currently serves as an Expert Test Lead for the Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) program at Pacific Gas & Electric, where he leads QA strategy, system integration testing, UAT, risk-based testing, and operational readiness initiatives for critical utility systems. His expertise includes validating complex integrations across platforms such as MuleSoft, ABB, PI, and GIS, while leveraging AI/ML-driven analytics, Python automation, JIRA/Zephyr data, and Power BI dashboards to improve test prioritization, defect analysis, and release quality.
Earlier in his career, Gopinath worked extensively as a full-stack web developer and test consultant for enterprise programs at Pacific Gas & Electric and Microsoft, building scalable applications using React, Java, .NET, C#, SQL, Python, and AWS cloud services. He has strong experience with CI/CD, Jenkins, Docker, Terraform, Ansible, Selenium, Git, and Agile delivery practices. A certified PMP, AWS Solutions Architect Associate, Certified Scrum Master, Salesforce Administrator, and CSTE, Gopinath brings a strong combination of technical depth, quality engineering leadership, stakeholder management, and domain expertise across utilities, supply chain, CRM, and banking.

Gopinath Rajamanickam is a seasoned IT professional with 20 years of experience spanning QA leadership, enterprise web application development, cloud engineering, DevOps, automation, and large-scale program delivery. He currently serves as an Expert ... Show more

Lars Reichert ist Leiter des Bereichs Vertriebsmanagement-Lösungen bei der Finanz Informatik, dem zentralen IT-Dienstleister der Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. Er und sein Team verantworten Anwendungen zur Unterstützung der Vertriebsplanung, Kostenrechnung sowie Vor- und Nachkalkulation im Kundengeschäft der Sparkassen. Darüber hinaus betreut sein Bereich das zentrale Data Warehouse für alle vertriebsrelevanten Daten. Seit der Übernahme dieser Rolle Ende 2023 treibt er die Modernisierung der Anwendungsarchitektur voran – mit dem Ziel, zentrale Mainframe-Systeme in skalierbare, dezentrale Komponenten zu überführen.

Lars Reichert ist Leiter des Bereichs Vertriebsmanagement-Lösungen bei der Finanz Informatik, dem zentralen IT-Dienstleister der Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. Er und sein Team verantworten Anwendungen zur Unterstützung der Vertriebsplanung, Kostenrechnung... Show more

Aigiun Guseinova is an Enterprise Data & AI Strategist, Power BI Developer, and Business Intelligence Specialist meant to design scalable intelligence systems across the Microsoft ecosystem. With a strong foundation in Information Systems and strong expertise in analytics engineering, she transforms complex data environments into high-impact decision platforms that drive measurable business outcomes.

Aigiun Guseinova is an Enterprise Data & AI Strategist, Power BI Developer, and Business Intelligence Specialist meant to design scalable intelligence systems across the Microsoft ecosystem. With a strong foundation in Information Systems and strong ... Show more

Coach agile et coach professionnel, j’accompagne les transformations des organisations depuis plus de 15 ans.

Issu d’un parcours en ingénierie informatique, en finance et en entrepreneuriat, j’ai évolué dans les systèmes d’information comme développeur, chef de projet, directeur de projet et consultant en organisation.

J’interviens aujourd’hui dans des contextes de transformation à grande échelle (banque, assurance, énergie, transport, industrie, e-commerce et services), notamment au Crédit Agricole Technologies et Services (CA-TS), ainsi qu’auprès d’organisations telles qu’Air France, Renault, RTE, Enedis ou Staples.

Cette expérience de terrain m’a permis de développer un retour d’expérience solide sur les dispositifs agiles et les dynamiques de transformation organisationnelle : ce qui fonctionne, ce qui résiste, et les conditions de réussite dans la durée.

En parallèle, j’accompagne dirigeants, managers, équipes et organisations en tant que coach professionnel. J’utilise différentes approches issues du coaching professionnel selon les contextes. En accompagnement individuel, je mobilise notamment les thérapies cognitives et comportementales (TCC), parmi d’autres outils adaptés aux situations. Pour les équipes et les organisations, je m’appuie en particulier sur la pensée systémique pour analyser et accompagner les dynamiques collectives.

Coach agile et coach professionnel, j’accompagne les transformations des organisations depuis plus de 15 ans. Issu d’un parcours en ingénierie informatique, en finance et en entrepreneuriat, j’ai évolué dans les systèmes d’information comme dévelo... Show more

Prathyusha Mondru is a results-driven Project Engineer and Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with experience in managing end-to-end power generation, infrastructure, and operational projects across various sectors, including construction, utilities, technology, and banking. She currently serves as a Project Engineer 2 at HOLT CAT, where she oversees project planning, budgeting, scheduling, and execution for city and county power generation initiatives, delivering Caterpillar generator systems for critical infrastructure, including hospitals, fire stations, and municipal facilities. Her role includes coordinating cross-functional teams, managing contractors, ensuring compliance with safety and quality standards, and leading installation, testing, and commissioning activities.
Previously, Prathyusha worked as a Project Consultant at Wipro, supporting business analysis, process improvement, stakeholder communication, and project reporting. She has also held roles as a Teaching Assistant at the University of North Texas, where she supported graduate-level Project Management and Technology Innovation courses, and as an Operations Analyst at Genpact, driving KPI-based performance analysis and process optimization. Earlier in her career, she served as a Quality Assurance Officer at ICICI Bank, contributing to large-scale digital banking and compliance initiatives.
Prathyusha holds a Master’s degree in Engineering Management from the University of North Texas, an MBA from Osmania University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Malla Reddy Engineering College. She is an active member of the Project Management Institute (PMI) and the PMI Dallas Chapter, and she brings a strong combination of technical expertise, structured project management, and cross-functional collaboration to complex, high-impact projects.

Prathyusha Mondru is a results-driven Project Engineer and Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with experience in managing end-to-end power generation, infrastructure, and operational projects across various sectors, including constructio... Show more

Ryan leads the integration of Fluor Engineering's standard systems, tools and work process into a backbone of engineering data.

Ryan leads the integration of Fluor Engineering's standard systems, tools and work process into a backbone of engineering data. Show more

Jitendrudu(Jeetu) Lacaraju is a Senior Software Engineer and Solutions Architect at Timmons Group, where he designs and delivers on-prem & cloud-native solutions on AWS and Azure. He works across serverless applications, data pipelines, containerized workloads, and infrastructure-as-code.
Driven by curiosity, Jeetu is constantly experimenting with emerging technologies like AI, new cloud architectures, and whatever else catches his attention.
With a strong foundation in geospatial systems, he brings a unique, data-driven perspective to modern architecture challenges. He speaks at conferences to share practical insight and inspire others to stay curious.
Outside of tech, he loves reading, traveling, watching sports, and being outdoors.

Jitendrudu(Jeetu) Lacaraju is a Senior Software Engineer and Solutions Architect at Timmons Group, where he designs and delivers on-prem & cloud-native solutions on AWS and Azure. He works across serverless applications, data pipelines, containerized... Show more

Bolaji Edu is an independent penetration tester and founder of
UltEnterprise, a cybersecurity consultancy delivering security
assessments to SME and fintech clients across the UK. He holds a
2:1 BSc in Cybersecurity from the University of Kent and is PNPT
certified. His work spans web application security, Active Directory
attack simulation, and ICS and IoT security assessments. He publishes
open source security tooling and research at github.com/BolajiEdu and
has had cybersecurity articles published in the national press.

Bolaji Edu is an independent penetration tester and founder of UltEnterprise, a cybersecurity consultancy delivering security assessments to SME and fintech clients across the UK. He holds a 2:1 BSc in Cybersecurity from the University of Kent ... Show more

Building the systems that decide whether compute scales or stalls on energy limits. Lawan Idriss is the founder & CEO of Seamium, a company that builds systems that govern how compute infrastructure consumes energy, based on real availability, cost, and operating limits.

Building the systems that decide whether compute scales or stalls on energy limits. Lawan Idriss is the founder & CEO of Seamium, a company that builds systems that govern how compute infrastructure consumes energy, based on real availability, cost, ... Show more

A biologist by training, teacher, and specialist in data and agility. With 20 years of experience at Petrobras, I moved through field operations, management, and environment until focusing, from 2019 onward, on agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, Lean Inception) and innovation.

My true passion is Design Thinking, especially Design Flow—a methodology I specialized in to bridge the gap between human-centered problem exploration and agile product delivery. My work combines the empathy of this design approach with the pragmatism of Data Analysis, using Power BI to support decisions and validate discoveries.

Today, I work in the HSE management team for E&P, designing new corporate processes focused on driving value for the company and caring for people. In the classroom or on stage, I transform this background of real-world cases into practical, accessible learning for professionals looking to manage processes and businesses in a modern way.

A biologist by training, teacher, and specialist in data and agility. With 20 years of experience at Petrobras, I moved through field operations, management, and environment until focusing, from 2019 onward, on agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, Lea... Show more

Daniel holds a Master’s degree in Safety and Technology, and is passionate about how we can protect critical infrastructure in an increasingly digital world. Throughout his career, he has worked on safety, security and risk management across multiple industries—spanning oil and gas, process industries, and maritime to railways and data centres. He is also a member of the working group developing IEC 62443, which gives him unique insights into global standards for industrial security. In addition, Daniel has a longstanding commitment to the Red Cross’s emergency preparedness efforts.

Daniel holds a Master’s degree in Safety and Technology, and is passionate about how we can protect critical infrastructure in an increasingly digital world. Throughout his career, he has worked on safety, security and risk management across multiple... Show more

As a Functional Safety Manager, I bring more than seven years of experience in implementing and optimizing functional safety processes. My expertise includes in-depth knowledge of the ISO 26262 and IEC 61508 standards, as well as the ability to design efficient, robust, and future-proof safety processes. In my current role, I support companies in successfully delivering complex projects with a strong focus on regulatory compliance, process efficiency, and engineering excellence.

With a hands-on approach and a strong emphasis on consulting and implementation, I help teams optimize development processes and establish sustainable solutions. I am passionate about applying systematic engineering principles and targeted measures across management, verification, and documentation to ensure the safety, reliability, and compliance of technical systems.

As a Functional Safety Manager, I bring more than seven years of experience in implementing and optimizing functional safety processes. My expertise includes in-depth knowledge of the ISO 26262 and IEC 61508 standards, as well as the ability to desig... Show more

I began writing thought pieces on sustainable design, diversity, and inclusivity while I was still a design student who was trying to find my colours. I actively look for opportunities to advocate for gender-inclusive design practices.

As a non-binary person, motivated by my lived experiences as a consumer and driven by my spirit as an informed UX designer, I believe that Inclusivity shouldn’t be an afterthought. I can safely say that, having been on both sides of the coin, the designer and the user in this context, empathy goes a long way. Making one feel seen and heard can be so validating, and that validation shouldn’t be something that feels extraordinary to experience. It should be normal.

I'm here dropping my two cents in design, data, and tech, to be part of something that creates value.

I began writing thought pieces on sustainable design, diversity, and inclusivity while I was still a design student who was trying to find my colours. I actively look for opportunities to advocate for gender-inclusive design practices. As a non-bi... Show more

Rasmus Steiniche is the CEO who Codes @ Neurospace.
He has created one of Denmark's biggest multi-cloud strategies, build some of the biggest public systems in Denmark and is now focused on creating data, machine learning, AI, and agent platforms with a focus on digital sovereignty.
Rasmus has been part of the Cloud Native and DevOps movement since 2014 and working with AI since 2018.
He is a CNCF organizer at Cloud Native Aarhus / Cloud Native Nordics, and CNCF and AAIF Ambassador under the banners of the Linux Foundation.

Rasmus Steiniche is the CEO who Codes @ Neurospace. He has created one of Denmark's biggest multi-cloud strategies, build some of the biggest public systems in Denmark and is now focused on creating data, machine learning, AI, and agent platforms wi... Show more

Senior Deep Learning compiler engineer at Nvidia, ISO:C++ standardization member; Author

Senior Deep Learning compiler engineer at Nvidia, ISO:C++ standardization member; Author Show more

Hi! I am a frontend enthousiast that loves diving into Developer Experience. Looking forward to new technologies, ways to level up teams and individuals, while finding things to make developing programs more enjoyable.

Hi! I am a frontend enthousiast that loves diving into Developer Experience. Looking forward to new technologies, ways to level up teams and individuals, while finding things to make developing programs more enjoyable. Show more

Gaëlle is a freelance consultant, author of Clean Data Architecture, and former Head of Data Product & Enabling at Decathlon. Among her latest customers : Leboncoin and Pernod Ricard. She is leading large-scale data and product transformations with a strong user-centric approach. Active in the French data community, she is passionate about product craftsmanship and strives to make data management accessible and meaningful.

Gaëlle is a freelance consultant, author of Clean Data Architecture, and former Head of Data Product & Enabling at Decathlon. Among her latest customers : Leboncoin and Pernod Ricard. She is leading large-scale data and product transformations with a... Show more

Tinuade is the GM Technical at Information Connectivity Solutions Limited (ICSL), Nigeria's
a premium ISP and technology company, and is also responsible for championing the future of
work strategies in ICSL. Her work includes, among other things, machine-to-machine
communications (M2M, IoT), GSM backhauling via satellite in rural communities, and hard-to-get
settlements, internal revenue solutions, and secured federal and state-wide WAN connectivity.
She partners with several global ODMs and OEMs to deliver bespoke terrestrial and non-terrestrial network solutions, leveraging security and AI platforms.
She has successfully designed and implemented over thirty major network infrastructure projects
projects in more than 12 sectors, including government, education, financial institutions, etc.
utilizing renewable energy solutions in rural communities.
Tinuade is a Co-Chair of the Infrastructure, Access, and Connectivity working group of the
Internet Society (Nigeria Chapter), a Nigerian School on Internet Governance Fellow, and a
passionate STEM inclusion driver who imparts her knowledge through mentorship programs,
support groups, local and global industry speaking engagements, and other social impact
activities and encourages women and girls interested in STEM fields.
Through her experience, she understands how critical security is to any digital infrastructure, especially when working with diverse domains and clients. She is a pioneer member of the Meta Safe online and digital literacy community of practice.

Tinuade is the GM Technical at Information Connectivity Solutions Limited (ICSL), Nigeria's a premium ISP and technology company, and is also responsible for championing the future of work strategies in ICSL. Her work includes, among other things... Show more

AI governance should not be an end in itself. The objective is to help enterprises use AI to deliver business outcomes leaders can trust and stand behind.

As Chief AI Governance Officer at iTmethods, I set direction for our product and service strategy for governed AI. I work with customers, partners, and teams across product, engineering, and delivery to translate business objectives, risk, and regulatory requirements into practical controls, evidence, and operating models.
The market has no shortage of AI governance frameworks, security controls, guardrails, and development tooling. Each has a role, but none is the ultimate measure of success. What ultimately matters is whether leaders can answer five questions about AI-enabled work:

1. Was the action properly authorized?
2. Did the required safeguards operate as intended?
3. Was the intended business outcome achieved?
4. What material exceptions or residual risk remain?
5. Can the organization prove what happened?

My focus is helping enterprises put consequential AI-enabled work into operation with clear authority, appropriate safeguards, and evidence to help ensure the intended business outcomes are achieved.

A CPA, CA and CISA, my background spans Big Four advisory, operational leadership in regulated enterprises, internal audit and risk, and deep technology. I have advised boards and senior leaders, served as a Chief Audit Executive, carried operational accountability in complex environments, led the development and delivery of consequential technology systems, and built products, services, partnerships, and go-to-market strategies.

Most recently, at Ocient, I established and led the company’s Partnerships and Alliances program, working with technology partners, industry stakeholders, and strategic customer opportunities.

At KX, I built and scaled the IoT and Utilities business to 36% of corporate revenue.

At Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator, I served as Chief Audit Executive and led the Smart Metering Entity, which supported 70 utilities serving five million customers and processed more than 100 million transactions daily.

I welcome conversations with business, technology, AI, risk, audit, and security leaders working to turn AI investment into measurable business outcomes, with the safeguards, accountability, and evidence needed to stand behind the result.

AI governance should not be an end in itself. The objective is to help enterprises use AI to deliver business outcomes leaders can trust and stand behind. As Chief AI Governance Officer at iTmethods, I set direction for our product and service str... Show more

Sarah Perkins is Managing Partner of Product Place Labs, a Product and Technology Executive
with 15 years driving digital transformation for Fortune 50 companies and high-growth startups.
Formerly Chief Product Officer at Gusto and Global Product Management Leader for AI and Risk at
EY, she has guided product and IT organizations at UKG, Oracle, HP, Dell, and National Grid
managing multimillion-dollar portfolios and global teams across product, engineering, product
marketing, and operations. Sarah specialises in the intersection of AI product strategy, go-to-market
design with deep expertise in AI ethics, governance, and building high-performance product &
product marketing organization.
She organises communities of NYC Product Leaders and speaks publicly on how product teams
can turn AI acceleration into durable competitive advantage not just faster shipping. Her work lives
at the exact tension point of this talk: how do you move fast with AI-native tools while building
product foundations that actually compound? She is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and Smith College graduate (B.A. Economics).

Sarah Perkins is Managing Partner of Product Place Labs, a Product and Technology Executive with 15 years driving digital transformation for Fortune 50 companies and high-growth startups. Formerly Chief Product Officer at Gusto and Global Product M... Show more

I am Cleber Rangel, I'm an Innovation Engineer, working on the intersection of technology and innovation processes. Currently, I am contributing my skills at Fugro in Lafayette, Louisiana, where I've been deeply engaged in software development for critical projects in the oil & energy sector. My expertise lies in in software development, system analysis, and agile development.

I am Cleber Rangel, I'm an Innovation Engineer, working on the intersection of technology and innovation processes. Currently, I am contributing my skills at Fugro in Lafayette, Louisiana, where I've been deeply engaged in software development for cr... Show more

Mauricio Licul (1979) is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the technology company Quirk d.o.o. based in Pula, and the Head of Research and Development (R&D) at Novatec New Technologies headquartered in Labin, Croatia.
Licul has deep engineering, political, and data-science experience, uniquely combining artificial intelligence (AI), natural language processing (NLP), and media analytics. As a former political figure and prominent candidate for mayor of Pula, he possesses an intuitive, firsthand understanding of public communication, public sentiment, and media dynamics. By merging this practical political background with cutting-edge data technologies, he has specialized in extracting actionable insights and deep strategic metrics from vast streams of media data and public text.
He is the founder of DataFlip, an innovative venture focused on high-level NLP solutions. Licul has publicly presented the capabilities of his proprietary technology at major ICT events, such as the regional Let's Grow! conference in Pula, where he delivered a breakthrough session titled "How to recognize emotions in 10 TB of text" . Within DataFlip, Licul spearheaded the development of proprietary, in-house artificial intelligence models that combine machine learning, deep learning, and semantic analysis to detect and classify highly subtle emotional structures within massive, large-scale textual datasets.

Expanding on this foundation, Licul and his team at Quirk are currently developing even more advanced, next-generation models for semantic analysis, deep emotional interpretation, and complex text classification. A key competitive advantage and core differentiator of Quirk's models compared to foreign or mainstream big-tech solutions is their total infrastructure autonomy. By constructing the entire text-mining and semantic architecture completely from scratch without relying on external, third-party APIs, their models eliminate data-leakage risks, ensure total data privacy, and deliver significantly higher contextual accuracy tailored to regional linguistic nuances, complex idioms, and specific text data streams.
In his role at Novatec New Technologies, Licul oversees innovation and advanced technical ventures. Notably, he successfully led the IRI2 project "MUNIVO"—an innovative, low-floor electric vehicle developed in tight cooperation with the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture (FSB) and the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FER) in Zagreb, resulting in two fully functional prototypes. His broad knowledge base spans industrial automation, software development, deep learning, semantic text analysis, predictive analytics, and smart urban mobility.

Licul graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering from the prestigious University of Padua (Università degli Studi di Padova) in Italy and earned his PhD (Doctorate) from the University of Trieste. He remains a prominent thought leader and speaker in the regional and national tech ecosystem, frequently participating in panels and lecturing on AI regulations, machine learning, and advanced data architecture.

Mauricio Licul (1979) is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the technology company Quirk d.o.o. based in Pula, and the Head of Research and Development (R&D) at Novatec New Technologies headquartered in Labin, Croatia. Licul has deep engineering, ... Show more

Paul Favret is a Colorado-based energy executive, entrepreneur, and inventor with more than four decades of experience in oil and gas exploration, technology development, and private equity-backed operations. His career includes founding three companies and serving as Chief Executive Officer of several organizations. Leadership roles include Resource Energy Partners, an Apollo Global Management-backed operator that acquired three public companies through Section 363 bankruptcy proceedings and operated more than 220 wells, producing approximately 3,800 barrels of oil per day. He also led Source Energy Partners, which controlled over 800,000 acres and 18 producing wells generating more than 3,500 barrels per day.

Favret earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Geology from Western Carolina University between 1980 and 1984 and graduated magna cum laude. Academic work continued at the University of South Carolina, where a Master’s Degree in Geology and Geophysics was completed with summa cum laude honors between 1984 and 1986.

He later expanded his education with additional business preparation. He completed a Master of Business Administration at the University of Houston and graduated cum laude in 1992. In 1999, Petroleum Engineering for Management studies were completed at the Colorado School of Mines to strengthen the understanding of engineering principles connected to energy development.

Favret began his professional career in 1986 with Amoco, where he served for 10 years as a lead explorationist and geophysicist. His assignments included Gulf Coast exploration, deepwater Gulf of Mexico projects, international work in Nigeria and Angola, and domestic initiatives in the Wyoming Greater Green River Basin.

From 1994 to 1996, he received five President’s Awards for achievements in exploration and development. During that same period, he was the only professional within the company to receive five such awards. Early career work also included participation in geological research and the publication of results.

Paul Favret joined Aspect Energy, LLC in 1996 as president and early partner. From 1996 to 2004, exploration strategy, technical team development, and asset growth were guided as the company expanded its activities.

He later served as president of Abundant Resources from 2004 to 2008. Work during that period focused on shale resource development in the Barnett, Fayetteville, and Woodford shale regions across Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma.

Favret founded Ascend Geo, LLC in 2002 and served as Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Director until 2009. The company developed portable cableless seismic acquisition and continuous recording platforms, including the Ascend Ultra Seis recording system.

The recording system became the first cable-less, continuous recording, satellite-timed system introduced in the industry. Seven U.S. patents were secured for seismic acquisition architecture. Career contributions also include eight U.S. patents covering seismic data acquisition methods, interactive investigation systems, data synchronisation, vibrator force control, and noise attenuation.

Favret founded Source Energy Partners, L.P. in 2010 and served as Chief Executive Officer until 2015. The company focused on shale resources in Europe, Colombia, and the Mid-Continent region of the United States.

Operations controlled more than 800,000 acres across four project areas and included 18 producing wells generating more than 3,500 barrels per day. Between 2013 and 2015, the projects were successfully sold as part of the company's development strategy.

Paul Favret became Chief Executive Officer of Resource Energy Partners LLC in November 2015. The Denver-based company, backed by Apollo Global Management, focused on bankruptcy acquisitions in the Bakken play of the Williston Basin.

Over 18 months, the company acquired three mid-sized public companies through the Section 363 bankruptcy process. Operations included more than 220 wells and production of approximately 3,800 barrels of oil per day before a successful sale in 2021.

He has remained involved in professional organizations and community activities. Participation includes the American Association of Petroleum Geologists and the Denver Geological Society. Support has also been provided to ACE Scholarships, which offers financial assistance to students in multiple states, with annual donations exceeding $25 million, as well as to the Dumb Friends League.

Paul Favret is now retired from full-time executive leadership. He remains active in the motorcycle community and continues to participate in adventure rallies while maintaining engagement with professional and charitable initiatives.

Paul Favret is a Colorado-based energy executive, entrepreneur, and inventor with more than four decades of experience in oil and gas exploration, technology development, and private equity-backed operations. His career includes founding three compan... Show more

Beth Griffith, BAP, GIP, HIC, LEED, is the founder of Renewable Renegades and ANEC Ventures, where she helps mission-driven organizations responsibly adopt AI, automation, and clean energy strategies that strengthen people, systems, and communities.

Working at the intersection of responsible AI, workforce development, renewable energy, and inclusive business growth, Beth brings a practical, human-centered lens to emerging technology. Her work focuses on helping governments, nonprofits, NGOs, public sector teams, and small businesses build AI capacity without losing sight of trust, accountability, and human dignity.

Beth brings a people-first perspective on agentic AI: how organizations can design AI agents with the right guardrails, increase human capital through AI capital, and build systems that elevate workers, leaders, and the communities they serve.

Beth Griffith, BAP, GIP, HIC, LEED, is the founder of Renewable Renegades and ANEC Ventures, where she helps mission-driven organizations responsibly adopt AI, automation, and clean energy strategies that strengthen people, systems, and communities. ... Show more

Stephan Rossbach is the Founder and Principal Consultant at AGILE ANTS GmbH. He had his first contact with agile project methods ca. 20 years ago, when he participated in an Extreme Programing (XP) project. For many years he and his team help companies with the successful implementation of agile methods in project organizations and the improvement of software quality with agile QA methods.

Stephan Rossbach is the Founder and Principal Consultant at AGILE ANTS GmbH. He had his first contact with agile project methods ca. 20 years ago, when he participated in an Extreme Programing (XP) project. For many years he and his team help compani... Show more