Vijay Soni is an Expert Architect & Engineer at Discover's business technology department. He architected and designed Discover's cloud native Open banking and Click to Pay ecommerce Digital Wallet Payments platforms. He is seasoned software engineer and passionate about solving complex emerging finance, digital payment, identity and payment product problems using scalable, secure, future-proof and innovative approach. Vijay also led multiple EMVCo, eCommerce, Mobile SE/HCE Payments technology initiatives as lead architect and engineer. Vijay has worked on large industry led financial services & payments technology integration projects including Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, Click to Pay and FDX Open Banking integrations, Pay with Rewards, Contactless Mass Transit acceptance etc.

Vijay Soni is an Expert Architect & Engineer at Discover's business technology department. He architected and designed Discover's cloud native Open banking and Click to Pay ecommerce Digital Wallet Payments platforms. He is seasoned software engineer... Show more

Experienced engineering leader with a strong interest in distributed, highly-scalable and cloud-based systems.

Worked for years in Technical Leadership roles, focused on infrastructure management and Cloud on the 3 major public cloud providers. Experienced in the finance sector, specifically on high-performance payment platforms and systems compliance.
Regular speaker at conferences and meetups.
Federico holds an MSc in Software Engineering from City University London

Experienced engineering leader with a strong interest in distributed, highly-scalable and cloud-based systems. Worked for years in Technical Leadership roles, focused on infrastructure management and Cloud on the 3 major public cloud providers. Ex... Show more

Tony Proctor is an Enrolled Agent and a firm owner with nearly two decades of experience, as well as a former IT manager with over 20 years, including a decade in parallel with his firm. He brings a practical, training-first lens to culture, leadership, and operations. Tony teaches tax law and small-business finance, delivering energetic, plain-language sessions with real-world takeaways. An alum of the Intuit Partner Council, he’s recognized for credibility, integrity, and professionalism. Off the clock, he’s spending time with his family, bowling a few strikes, or riding his sportbike.

Tony Proctor is an Enrolled Agent and a firm owner with nearly two decades of experience, as well as a former IT manager with over 20 years, including a decade in parallel with his firm. He brings a practical, training-first lens to culture, leadersh... Show more

Sam Ayo is a technology leader and AI research engineer focused on building intelligent systems that operate at the intersection of artificial intelligence, financial infrastructure and complex regulatory technology. His work is centered on a problem he believes will define the next generation of applied AI: How do we turn increasingly capable AI models into dependable infrastructure for consequential, real-world systems?

Sam Ayo's work sits at the intersection of AI research and systems engineering. He has designed and deployed intelligent systems spanning machine learning, large language models, data platforms and distributed software, with a focus on the challenges of taking AI from experimental models into reliable production infrastructure. His technical interests include machine intelligence, quantitative modelling, AI systems, distributed computing and the application of intelligent systems to complex real-world problems.

His background combines quantitative economics with computer science, machine learning and production engineering giving him an unusually broad view of both the mathematical foundations of AI and the engineering required to make those systems useful at scale. He has been heavily involved in building ML solutions across various cross-industry fields, including Media & Advertising, IoT, Retail, and Energy.

Sam Ayo's expertise and achievements have earned him speaking opportunities at prestigious events. He was honoured by the Federal Minister for Digital Economy and Innovation, Dr Bosun Tijani at the National AI Strategy Conference 2024 in Abuja.

Sam Ayo has spoken at so many top AI conferences and workshops including Nigeria AI Trust Workshop 2026 organized by the office of Dr Bosun Tijani, Honorble Minister of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy, AIFest, the Nigeria Computer Society [the global body for computer science in Nigeria, where he shared insights on the intersection of AI and business impact], DataFest, Data Science Conference Europe, OscaFEST, GDG DevFest, AWS westAfrica, including the Microsoft Student Learn Community, delivering a talk on leveraging AI for real-world applications to aspiring technologists.

In addition to these engagements, Sam Ayo has been a featured speaker at the Ehingbeti Summit for technology, a renowned conference that brings together thought leaders and industry experts to discuss technological advancements and their impact on various sectors. At the Ehingbeti Summit, Sam Ayo provided valuable insights into the transformative power of AI and data science in driving innovation and sustainable development.

As a versatile and dynamic professional, Sam Ayo is renowned for his results-driven leadership. He thrives on complex problem-solving, creating value streams across product delivery lifecycles, and delivering outstanding results that help companies take their data strategy from plan to prototype to profitability.

Beyond his professional accomplishments, Sam Ayo is dedicated to knowledge sharing and collective growth. He actively engages in community mentorship, open-source development, meetups facilitation, technical writing, and research, contributing to the advancement of AI and data science.

With his deep expertise, commitment to excellence, and passion for sharing knowledge, Sam Ayo is a sought-after speaker and a valuable asset in driving innovation and success in the field of AI engineering and data science.

Sam Ayo is a technology leader and AI research engineer focused on building intelligent systems that operate at the intersection of artificial intelligence, financial infrastructure and complex regulatory technology. His work is centered on a problem... Show more

I am an AI Engineer and Researcher holding a PhD in Computer Science, driven by a desire to unravel complex mysteries and build elegant, scalable solutions. My career spans across high-impact domains—including cybersecurity, FinTech, Blockchain, and gaming—giving me a unique perspective on applying cutting-edge machine learning to real-world challenges.
Most recently, my work has focused on the frontier of intelligent automation and autonomous decision-making. Across my last two professional endeavors, I have deeply specialized in designing and implementing advanced AI agents for vulnerability reports classification and developing prediction Agents within open-source frameworks. By leveraging modern architectures and distributed systems, I focus on taking complex AI models from the research phase and building them into production-ready platforms.
Outside of engineering, I stay curious about the world by exploring astrophysics, organizing tech community events or giving talks around AI, and volunteering in urban family gardens. Let’s connect to talk about the future of AI agents, machine learning, or open-source innovation!

I am an AI Engineer and Researcher holding a PhD in Computer Science, driven by a desire to unravel complex mysteries and build elegant, scalable solutions. My career spans across high-impact domains—including cybersecurity, FinTech, Blockchain, and ... Show more

Fowmy Abdulmuttalib is a Microsoft-certified business intelligence professional with extensive experience in finance, accounting and data analytics. Currently, he is employed by McDonald's Saudi Arabia as the Head of ERP and Business Intelligence. Interested in everything data-related, he would like to share his passion and knowledge with the data community.

Fowmy Abdulmuttalib is a Microsoft-certified business intelligence professional with extensive experience in finance, accounting and data analytics. Currently, he is employed by McDonald's Saudi Arabia as the Head of ERP and Business Intelligence. In... Show more

Akshay Sharma is a Lead Member of Technical Staff at Salesforce, where he works on customer data graphs. He has spent more than 15 years building data and AI platforms for financial services, retail, and healthcare, including principal engineering roles at Capital One and Discover Financial Services, where he designed domain-driven medallion architectures and led legacy ETL modernization.

His recent work asks a practical question: what happens when AI agents and LLMs touch production data? He has built open benchmarks on LLM-driven pipeline repair, legacy ETL translation, bank-statement verification, and governed knowledge-graph retrieval, all released with code. His research is published in IET Software, and he reviews for IEEE Access and IEEE IT Professional.

Akshay has spoken at Dreamforce and The Economist, judged hackathons including LA Hacks and RevolutionUC, and is an invited keynote speaker at TAIMMA 2027. He is an IEEE Senior Member and a Member of the IET.

Akshay Sharma is a Lead Member of Technical Staff at Salesforce, where he works on customer data graphs. He has spent more than 15 years building data and AI platforms for financial services, retail, and healthcare, including principal engineering ro... Show more

Kosi builds smarter, faster data platforms for the real world. With a background across data science, engineering, and platform management, Kosi now drives data and AI initiatives at a major investment bank. Focused on scaling systems, streamlining workflows, and pushing the boundaries of what data can do, Kosi is passionate about making AI and infrastructure work better, not just bigger.

Kosi builds smarter, faster data platforms for the real world. With a background across data science, engineering, and platform management, Kosi now drives data and AI initiatives at a major investment bank. Focused on scaling systems, streamlining w... Show more

Ken Ashe is a CPA and PMP who builds and evaluates AI systems in public at kenashe.ai, publishing what shipped, what broke, and what the evidence supports. His work includes multi-agent experiments with full public transcripts and an autonomous publishing system that labels every post it produces.

He is also the founder of Lucky Domains, a domain acquisition, brokerage, and SEO company, with over a decade of experience investing in domains.

Ken Ashe is a CPA and PMP who builds and evaluates AI systems in public at kenashe.ai, publishing what shipped, what broke, and what the evidence supports. His work includes multi-agent experiments with full public transcripts and an autonomous publi... Show more

Wielfrid BONG MAYI est Trader indépendant et entrepreneur digital, actif dans l’écosystème Bitcoin et des monnaies numériques depuis plusieurs années. Fondateur de Trombon Digital Center (TDC), il développe des solutions numériques et accompagne les acteurs africains dans leur transformation. Fort de 6+ ans d’expérience, il s’engage dans le partage des connaissances pour favoriser la compréhension du Bitcoin, du numérique et contribuer à l’innovation économique du continent.

Wielfrid BONG MAYI est Trader indépendant et entrepreneur digital, actif dans l’écosystème Bitcoin et des monnaies numériques depuis plusieurs années. Fondateur de Trombon Digital Center (TDC), il développe des solutions numériques et accompagne les ... Show more

David Taiwo Balogun is a Data Scientist, AI Expert, AI Researcher, and Lead Analyst with experience building machine learning solutions, credit risk models, and real-time analytics platforms across venture-backed fintechs, financial institutions, edtech, and technology-focused NGOs. He specializes in the intersection of artificial intelligence, financial risk, business intelligence, and data engineering, transforming complex datasets into actionable insights that drive strategic business decisions.

Throughout his career, David has designed and deployed predictive models, automated analytics workflows, and business intelligence solutions that have enhanced operational efficiency, strengthened risk management, and empowered executives to make data-driven decisions. He is experienced in leading end-to-end data projects from data engineering and model development to dashboard design and stakeholder engagement—bridging the gap between technical implementation and business strategy.

Beyond industry, David is an active AI researcher whose work focuses on practical machine learning systems, edge AI, and scalable data infrastructures for resource-constrained environments. His research was presented at the 10th International Conference on Cloud and Big Data Computing (ICCBDC 2026) at the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, where he presented his paper, “Designing a Full-Stack Pipeline: From Data Collection to Edge Deployment in Low-Bandwidth Environment.” He also presented “Crop Disease Detection Using Convolutional Neural Networks in Low-Resource Agricultural Settings” at the Faculty of Computing, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. In addition, David presented his research at the 10th International Conference on Advances in Artificial Intelligence (ICAAI 2026) in London, United Kingdom, with a presentation titled “Chunking and Retrieval Strategies for Reducing Hallucination in Domain-Specific Retrieval-Augmented Generation Pipelines.”

David is equally passionate about developing the next generation of data professionals. He has mentored and trained nearly 3,000 aspiring data scientists and analysts across Europe, Africa, and the United States through technical training, coaching, and community initiatives.

By combining technical excellence, research, and business acumen, David leverages data science, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to solve complex business challenges, advance AI research, and deliver measurable impact for forward-thinking organizations.

David Taiwo Balogun is a Data Scientist, AI Expert, AI Researcher, and Lead Analyst with experience building machine learning solutions, credit risk models, and real-time analytics platforms across venture-backed fintechs, financial institutions, edt... Show more

Nithesh Gudipuri is Associate Director of Technology at Raymond James Financial, with 13+ years across financial services, telecommunications, and healthcare. He modernized 100+ services supporting $1.3 trillion in assets, holds two USPTO patents, and leads SEC regulatory implementations ( T1 Settlement, USTC). Named Innovation Champion (top 1% of 1,800 technologists), he advises on blockchain strategy and has presented research at IEEE/ACM conferences.

Nithesh Gudipuri is Associate Director of Technology at Raymond James Financial, with 13+ years across financial services, telecommunications, and healthcare. He modernized 100+ services supporting $1.3 trillion in assets, holds two USPTO patents, an... Show more

Veronica Fair is a Power Platform Product Manager in the financial services industry, where she helps employees discover what’s possible with low-code, automation, and AI. She works directly with users to turn business challenges into solutions, leads workshops and learning sessions, and helps people build the skills and confidence to become makers themselves.

Her path into technology was anything but traditional. With a background spanning accounting, HRIS, project management, and analytics, Veronica discovered Power Automate while looking for better ways to solve problems in her own work. Curiosity led her from building flows to Power Virtual Agents, Copilot Studio, Microsoft 365, apps, automation, and AI. Along the way, she discovered that her own growth accelerated when she shared what she was learning and brought others along with her.

Today, Veronica combines hands-on Power Platform expertise with a business-first perspective on adoption. Working alongside her team, she helps build governance practices that enable people to innovate responsibly while understanding the standards and best practices needed to create secure, sustainable solutions. For Veronica, successful adoption is not simply about teaching people how to build. It is about helping them understand how to build well.

Certified across multiple Microsoft technologies, Veronica is passionate about creating environments where people can experiment, learn, share knowledge, and develop new capabilities without losing sight of governance and responsible innovation.

Veronica also co-leads a Microsoft Power Platform user community and participates in the Women in Power Platform mentorship and skilling community. She believes successful adoption is about more than deploying technology. It is about helping people see what’s possible, giving them the confidence to try, teaching them the practices to do it responsibly, and encouraging them to share what they learn.

Veronica Fair is a Power Platform Product Manager in the financial services industry, where she helps employees discover what’s possible with low-code, automation, and AI. She works directly with users to turn business challenges into solutions, lead... Show more

I'm a Senior Product & Brand Designer with 7 years across fintech, B2B SaaS and health-tech; I design complex, high-stakes products end to end and then build many of them in code myself.

Most of my recent work lives at the intersection of design and AI-assisted development. I've been building and shipping live products with AI since mid-2025; and I've kept a steady cadence ever since, with new work going out most weeks. Full-stack apps with real users, dashboards, design systems and landing pages. That means what I hand over isn't a mockup waiting on a developer; it's often a finished, deployed product built with the same eye for craft I bring to every design decision.

My design foundation is deep. I've designed treasury and core banking systems for government and financial institutions, a compliance engine unifying multiple third-party APIs, clinical EMR dashboards validated with practising doctors, and a design system spanning an entire product suite. I care most about the hard, invisible parts; dense workflows, expert users, decisions where getting it wrong actually costs someone something.

I also lead design for FlutterBytes, recognised by Google as Africa's largest Flutter developer community; carrying brand, product and event design across every touchpoint.

Portfolio: design.headfavour.com

4 Products I've built with AI:
www.stampdx.com
www.wordmaths.com
www.moniematch.com
www.magznmaker.com

I'm a Senior Product & Brand Designer with 7 years across fintech, B2B SaaS and health-tech; I design complex, high-stakes products end to end and then build many of them in code myself. Most of my recent work lives at the intersection of design ... Show more

12x Microsoft Azure MVP . Founder of the Polish Microsoft Azure User Group. Cloud Lead and Azure Lead Architect working with enterprises and gov also building Dynamics 365 Managed Environments for large business. Experienced in regulated envs like Banking and Insurance.

12x Microsoft Azure MVP . Founder of the Polish Microsoft Azure User Group. Cloud Lead and Azure Lead Architect working with enterprises and gov also building Dynamics 365 Managed Environments for large business. Experienced in regulated envs like Ba... Show more

John DesJardins is senior principal solution architect, focused on data and AI, at Rocket Software. He has been a hands-on CTO and Fractional CTO, driving innovation in real-time data and AI. His career includes leadership roles at Hazelcast, Cloudera, Software AG, and webMethods, partnering with Global 2000 firms such as HSBC, BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, Visa, Target, Walmart, Honeywell, GE, and many others to innovate with real-time data integration, analytics, and AI/ML systems with zero downtime. He has extensive experience with payments and trading systems, as well as Internet of Things.
As Hazelcast Chief Technology Officer, he directed engineering strategy to create a leader in real-time processing capable of billions of events per second with a 10X performance advantage over Flink or Spark and introduce a unified SQL API that simultaneously processes streaming and stored data. He also spearheaded an OEM partnership with IBM including working closely with their Cloud and IBM z Platform teams, and was named an IBM Champion in 2022. John also drove co-engineering work with Red Hat and Intel.

John DesJardins is senior principal solution architect, focused on data and AI, at Rocket Software. He has been a hands-on CTO and Fractional CTO, driving innovation in real-time data and AI. His career includes leadership roles at Hazelcast, Clouder... Show more

Shriya Chaitanya Kamat Tarcar is an AI Engineer at Nuvama Wealth Management Limited, building GenAI, agentic AI, and enterprise automation solutions. A DSSGxUK(1/15) and Outreachy Fellow(1/7), she received the Economic Times Edge AI Rising Star Award and Nuvama’s Top Performer Award. She delivered a talk at Agentics Day @ KubeCon Europe 2026 on securing AI agents using service mesh patterns and is selected to speak at KubeCon North America 2026 on scaling A2A communication on Kubernetes.

Shriya Chaitanya Kamat Tarcar is an AI Engineer at Nuvama Wealth Management Limited, building GenAI, agentic AI, and enterprise automation solutions. A DSSGxUK(1/15) and Outreachy Fellow(1/7), she received the Economic Times Edge AI Rising Star Award... Show more

Hi, I’m Naki Dejo, a Technical Lead at BCP with over six years of experience building high-transaction distributed systems in the financial sector. I specialize in Java development and have also worked as a Solutions Architect and Scrum Master, leading both legacy and modern projects, including large-scale technology migrations and the development of critical enterprise components.

I am currently focused on integrating artificial intelligence and cloud technologies into scalable, inclusive software solutions. I am passionate about creating systems that not only perform at enterprise scale but also promote accessibility, fairness and long-term sustainability.

Hi, I’m Naki Dejo, a Technical Lead at BCP with over six years of experience building high-transaction distributed systems in the financial sector. I specialize in Java development and have also worked as a Solutions Architect and Scrum Master, leadi... Show more

Gracias por tomarte el tiempo para leer mi biografía, lo cual demuestra tu interés en el maravilloso mundo de las finanzas y la contabilidad de costes.

Permíteme una breve introducción: He trabajado como CFO y controller durante mucho tiempo, y soy apasionado de la técnica financiera y de costes. Disfruto analizando procesos, y esta pasión me ha llevado a impartir clases en distintas universidades, donde he aprendido tanto de mis alumnos como espero que ellos hayan aprendido algo de mí.

Una pregunta que a menudo me hacen es sobre los sectores en los que he trabajado. Para mí, el desafío no es en qué sectores he trabajado, sino cuántos me faltan por explorar y aprender.
Como apasionado de las finanzas, el control de gestión y los costes, actualmente me encuentro inmerso en el mundo de Dynamics, lo cual representa toda una aventura.

Si estás buscando una sesión que combine visión de negocio aplicada a Dynamics y que, en algún momento, desafíe tus habilidades con cálculos, no lo pienses más, no vengas a mi sesión, o sí.

Gracias por tomarte el tiempo para leer mi biografía, lo cual demuestra tu interés en el maravilloso mundo de las finanzas y la contabilidad de costes. Permíteme una breve introducción: He trabajado como CFO y controller durante mucho tiempo, y so... Show more

Viren Meghani is a Technical Architect with over a decade of experience governing high-criticality AI systems, enterprise banking infrastructure, and regulatory technology at one of the top ten US financial institutions. He is the originator of five applied research frameworks including the SAGE-Cloud autonomous AI governance framework, the Regulatory Impact Propagation Model, and the Latent Systemic Fragility model, each developed through direct engagement with production banking environments.

His peer-reviewed research has been accepted at IEEE ICIMIA 2026, ICCDS 2026, IC2NC 2026, and I-SMAC 2026. He has published in Techstrong IT and FECSIT journal, and his expert commentary has been cited in CIO.com and AOL.com. He delivered an Invited Distinguished Lecture at Pace University's Seidenberg School of Computer Science and has been featured as a broadcast expert on Future Intelligence for Resonance FM.

He speaks on AI agent governance, operational resilience architecture, regulatory change impact analysis, compliance engineering, and the governance of AI systems in regulated financial environments.

Viren Meghani is a Technical Architect with over a decade of experience governing high-criticality AI systems, enterprise banking infrastructure, and regulatory technology at one of the top ten US financial institutions. He is the originator of five ... Show more

Akash Chandra, Founder & CEO of InsightAI (FintechAI), brings over 10+ years of experience in industrial AI with a focus on financial analytics. An alumnus of IIT Kanpur and the University of Texas at Austin, Akash is recognized for his expertise in fintech, large data pipelines, and AI-based fraud detection. As a public speaker on AI/ML and Graph Databases, he has contributed significantly to the field. Akash has shown his leadership in startup environments using his innovative approach to leveraging advanced AI technologies.

Akash Chandra, Founder & CEO of InsightAI (FintechAI), brings over 10+ years of experience in industrial AI with a focus on financial analytics. An alumnus of IIT Kanpur and the University of Texas at Austin, Akash is recognized for his expertise in ... Show more

Megha Pandey is a Network and Automation Engineer at Wipro, managing two major banking clients, ICICI Bank as a Network Engineer and HDFC Bank as a Storage Area Network (SAN) Automation Engineer. With around four years of experience, she works on building and securing banking infrastructure. She is an active researcher in Post-Quantum Cryptography and Hybrid VLMs for classical systems and is also associated with Women Techmakers (Google) and is a Windows Insider MVP.

Megha Pandey is a Network and Automation Engineer at Wipro, managing two major banking clients, ICICI Bank as a Network Engineer and HDFC Bank as a Storage Area Network (SAN) Automation Engineer. With around four years of experience, she works on bui... Show more

**MarQuita Leonard | Global Wealth Architect, Investor, Enrolled Agent & Keynote Speaker**

MarQuita Leonard is a Wealth Architect, Enrolled Agent, investor, business strategist, and entrepreneur dedicated to transforming how individuals and organizations approach money, ownership, and generational wealth.

With more than 14 years of experience in the financial services industry, MarQuita has built multiple financial enterprises and developed expertise in tax strategy, business development, sales psychology, financial education, and wealth preservation.

As the founder of Financial Dominance and the Born Billionaire Athlete Institute, she is committed to helping CEOs, entrepreneurs, investors, and professional athletes move beyond generating income to building sustainable assets, profitable enterprises, and lasting financial legacies.

Her journey is anything but conventional. After experiencing homelessness in 2014 while raising two children, MarQuita transformed adversity into a driving force behind her entrepreneurial journey. Today, she uses her experiences to challenge conventional thinking about financial success, resilience, business ownership, and economic empowerment.

Known for her bold perspectives, direct communication, and practical approach to financial education, MarQuita delivers thought-provoking presentations that challenge audiences to rethink the difference between making money and building wealth.

Her signature speaking topics include wealth architecture, entrepreneurship, business scaling, executive leadership, sales psychology, financial literacy, and professional athlete wealth development.

**Her message is clear: Making money is an achievement. Building wealth is a strategy. Creating a legacy requires ownership.**

**MarQuita Leonard | Global Wealth Architect, Investor, Enrolled Agent & Keynote Speaker** MarQuita Leonard is a Wealth Architect, Enrolled Agent, investor, business strategist, and entrepreneur dedicated to transforming how individuals and organi... Show more

Edgar Odey is an award-winning entrepreneur and thought leader. While studying at Yaba College of Technology, he founded Yabatech Delivery and is now the Founder & CEO of Packet Africa, where he builds payment infrastructure for universities, polytechnics, and student groups across Africa.

Edgar Odey is an award-winning entrepreneur and thought leader. While studying at Yaba College of Technology, he founded Yabatech Delivery and is now the Founder & CEO of Packet Africa, where he builds payment infrastructure for universities, polytec... Show more

Samuel is a Google Developer Expert for Flutter and Dart, a senior mobile engineer at Busha and a product engineer at Nexlab Studios. Samuel has over 8 years of experience in the software industry having worked in the banking space, crypto space, finance, mobility, to mention a few.

He is a co-organizer of the Flutter Lagos and Flutter Akure communities, as well as the Google Developers Group Akure.

Passionate about open-source technologies and building developer tooling, Samuel enjoys sharing knowledge through technical articles and speaking at events and conferences. Outside of coding, Samuel is an avid gamer, lover of anime.

Samuel is a Google Developer Expert for Flutter and Dart, a senior mobile engineer at Busha and a product engineer at Nexlab Studios. Samuel has over 8 years of experience in the software industry having worked in the banking space, crypto space, fin... Show more

A seasoned Mobile App Engineer with more than 7 years of specialized experience in both Flutter and Kotlin. I've successfully developed a wide range of applications, from complex solutions in the Automotive and Fintech industries to vital tools in e-Health, showcasing deep technical acumen and adaptability.

A seasoned Mobile App Engineer with more than 7 years of specialized experience in both Flutter and Kotlin. I've successfully developed a wide range of applications, from complex solutions in the Automotive and Fintech industries to vital tools in e-... Show more

Erick Bourgeois is a platform engineering specialist focused on Kubernetes operators and infrastructure automation for regulated industries. Creator of Bindy, an open-source DNS controller built in Rust, Erick brings expertise in cloud-native architecture, compliance frameworks (SOX, NIST), and building production-grade Kubernetes operators for enterprise environments.

Erick Bourgeois is a platform engineering specialist focused on Kubernetes operators and infrastructure automation for regulated industries. Creator of Bindy, an open-source DNS controller built in Rust, Erick brings expertise in cloud-native archite... Show more

Mely Lerman is working for more than sixty years in Insurance IT and has in-depth knowledge of Life Insurance and Health Insurance.
He started to work with Fortran then COBOL, SmallTalk to our days Python and JavaScript. Brazilian, lived fifty years in Israel then one year in Portugal and now for the last four years in Spain. His work experience extends to UK, Switzerland, France, Germany, Brazil and Israel.
Speaks English, French, Portuguese, Hebrew, Spanish, and Italian.

Mely Lerman is working for more than sixty years in Insurance IT and has in-depth knowledge of Life Insurance and Health Insurance. He started to work with Fortran then COBOL, SmallTalk to our days Python and JavaScript. Brazilian, lived fifty year... Show more

The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Forbes are among the many outlets that have turned to Brett F. Ewing for his perspective on the markets. He serves as Chief Market Strategist, Senior Financial Advisor and owner of First Franklin Financial Services, an independent wealth management firm in Tallahassee, Florida. Brett Ewing is a Tallahassee native, a third-generation financial planner and a recognized source of economic research and market commentary, with regular appearances in top financial publications and on business news programs at home and abroad. He received his license in 1997, has worked in financial services for close to 30 years, and will celebrate three decades in the industry in January 2027.

For the past 11 years, Brett Ewing has worked with the financial media, and First Franklin has been publishing its economic research for public use since 2011. Beyond the publications already mentioned, he's been quoted by Bloomberg, Barron's, USA Today, the Financial Times, InvestmentNews and MarketWatch. Broadcast audiences have seen or heard him as a guest on CNBC Fast Money, CNBC Europe, CNBC Asia, Fox Business, Schwab Network, Bloomberg Radio, Bloomberg TV, Bloomberg Daybreak, BNN Bloomberg, Reuters TV and Yahoo! Finance.

Market strategy and economic analysis are only part of how he shares his knowledge. Clients and the broader community benefit as well: First Franklin recently wrapped up its Financial Planning Course and keeps producing economic updates and webinars. Brett Ewing is especially passionate about teaching financial planning. He also mentors younger advisors and helps business school students prepare for careers in the field.

With Brett Ewing at the helm, the firm has built up a long list of industry awards. Its first Quantum Leap Award came in 2008, with a second in 2014. First Franklin took home the Top Advisory Firm Award in 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018, and the firm's first MVP of the Year Award came in 2015. It was recognized as Advisory Branch of the Year in 2020 and again in 2021, then as Top Branch of the Year three years running, in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

He has also been honored personally. Brett Ewing was named Top Advisor of the Year in 2022, 2024 and 2025, standing out among 650 competing offices. In 2024 and 2025, he was also recognized for Top Advisory Services of the Year.

The roots of the firm reach back to 1966, the year George F. Ewing established George F. Ewing Insurance. Its early focus was on life insurance, mutual funds and the management of 401(k) plans. Sun Life of Canada became an affiliate of the agency in 1973, and in 1982 the agency added property and casualty insurance to what it offered clients. The 1998 rebranding to First Franklin Financial Services paid tribute to George's father, Leonard Franklin Ewing, the man known as the "First Franklin."

Brett Ewing made his way back to Tallahassee in 2000 and became part of the firm that same year. He took the reins of its operations in 2008. George retired a year later, in 2009, yet continued at the firm in the position of Comptroller. For more than 50 years now, First Franklin has met the retirement and investment needs of businesses, nonprofits, families and individuals all over North Florida, and Brett Ewing considers it a privilege to guide a grassroots, independent firm with such a strong foundation.

Florida State University awarded Brett Ewing a dual degree in Economics and Finance in December 1994. He continued his studies at the University of Central Florida, completing a Master of Business Administration in December 1996. A year later, in 1997, he was licensed.

Brett Ewing has given his time to Tallahassee organizations throughout his career. His leadership roles include President of the Tallahassee Lions Club from 2004 through 2006, President of the Tallahassee Quarterback Club in 2010, and Chairman of the Tallahassee Young Entrepreneur Organization in 2014. He served on the Children's Home Society Board between 2009 and 2012. At the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, he was a member of the Board of Trustees from 2011 through 2013 and an Honorary Trustee from 2014 through 2018, and he has held the title of Life Trustee since 2018.

Much of his volunteer energy has gone toward education. He spent 2014 through 2021 on the Board of Trustees of Holy Comforter Episcopal School, serving as its Treasurer from 2017 through 2019 and its Chairman from 2019 through 2021, and he sat on the school's Finance Committee from 2014 through 2017. Holy Comforter named its endowment after him in the summer of 2021. He was also active at St. John Paul II Catholic High School, where from 2016 through 2020 he was both a School Advisory Council member and the Development and Fundraising Chair. The school honored him as its Principal's Volunteer of the Year for 2017-2018.

Through First Tee, he brings together golf and youth development. Brett Ewing has been Vice President of First Tee of Tallahassee since 2022 and serves on its finance committee, and he's a charter board member of First Tee. He's an enthusiastic supporter of charity golf tournaments, which he sees as a way to build backing for local causes.

First Franklin's charitable reach is broad. Brett Ewing and his team support the American Heart Association, the Economic Development Council of Tallahassee, Independence Landing, the Tallahassee Museum, Pas de Vie Ballet, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Treehouse, AMVETS Post 1776, the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, Refuge House, the Economic Club of Florida, the American Lung Association and Ronald McDonald House. The firm also supports the Tallahassee Quarterback Club, Holy Comforter Episcopal School, the Tallahassee Lions Club and St. John Paul II Catholic High School.

Outside work, Brett Ewing enjoys the hours he spends with his wife and their three daughters. As an empty nester, he places real value on travel and family trips, and he's a passionate golfer. Close to marking 30 years in the industry, he remains dedicated to the values at the core of his career, namely sound planning, clear insight into the economy and service to Tallahassee, the community he calls home.

The Wall Street Journal, Reuters and Forbes are among the many outlets that have turned to Brett F. Ewing for his perspective on the markets. He serves as Chief Market Strategist, Senior Financial Advisor and owner of First Franklin Financial Service... Show more

Andrea Elliott is the CEO, Founder, and Managing Partner of EMG Advisory, the AI-native governance, risk and strategy practice serving regulated, high-stakes industries including Quantum Computing and Financial Services. She most recently served as Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer at a publicly traded global payments technology company, where she led a global risk and compliance transformation, built the company's AI governance framework, and led the outstanding CFPB & State AG Consent Orders to full regulatory compliance, with zero reportable incidents during her tenure. She also designed and led the GRC technology transformation to drive internal risk intelligence, transparency, and enterprise accountability, providing an end-to-end, 360 perspective on risk throughout the enterprise. With 15-plus years across risk, compliance, governance, ethics, and legal, Andrea brings a foresight practitioner's perspective to AI governance failures and mitigation. She is the author of (1) The Deadline on Implicit Governance, (2) The Proportionality Problem, (3) The Architecture of Intuition, (4) The Quiet Rewiring, (5) Bounded Autonomy, (6) The Compounding Bet, and (7) The Missing Middle. She holds a JD from Emory Law [Bankruptcy Journal & Transactional Certificate], an MBA from UGA [Finance focus with an emphasis in Consulting], and the AIGP credential from IAPP. Her undergraduate studies at Auburn University included Architecture, Industrial Design, and Business Administration.

From Andrea: "AI is rewriting what industries can do, and the leaders who govern it with seriousness and imagination will reshape theirs rather than scramble to catch up. I help those leaders imagine beyond what AI makes possible today, then usher them through the transformation for the betterment of the people their industries serve.

It starts with something deceptively simple: helping organizations make sound AI decisions they can stand behind, quickly and confidently. Done right, that discipline is not a brake on ambition. It is what lets a company reimagine what is possible with AI.

My work sits at the intersection of law, risk, ethics, strategy, and systems design. After 15+ years in risk and compliance roles, most recently as Chief Compliance Officer where I built the company's AI governance framework from the ground up, I founded EMG Advisory on a conviction: AI does not need more hype. It needs structure, accountability, and leaders who treat risk as a strategic discipline.

That is the part most people miss. Governance, Risk, and Compliance, done well, is not what slows AI down. It decides where you can afford to move fast and where you cannot, and it is inseparable from strategy; your AI strategy does not survive without it.

The other half of how I work is AI-native wiring. I think in systems, synthesize fast, and collaborate with AI at the conceptual layer as a cognitive partner, translating complexity into strategic clarity. It is also how EMG itself is built: I practice the responsible, operationalized AI I help my clients deploy.

I work with organizations that want to use AI strategically, responsibly, and with foresight. I help leaders:

Turn AI risk and compliance into strategic advantage
Make defensible AI decisions at the speed of business
Translate regulatory ambiguity into operational clarity
Anticipate second- and third-order effects before they surface
Design governance that works in practice, not just on paper

The regulatory landscape shifts faster than most AI roadmaps, and the patchwork of overlapping laws and standards leaves even willing organizations unsure what they must comply with. Pair that with AI that stalls in committee and governance impeccable on paper that no one operates by, and the gap becomes clear. Closing it is where I do my best work.

But closing the gap is the floor, not the ceiling. The organizations that govern AI with seriousness and imagination will not just keep up; they will transform what their industries can do for the people who depend on them. That is the future I am building toward."

Andrea Elliott is the CEO, Founder, and Managing Partner of EMG Advisory, the AI-native governance, risk and strategy practice serving regulated, high-stakes industries including Quantum Computing and Financial Services. She most recently served as C... Show more