Media & Information

Esteemed specialists working in the fields of media education, digital media, multimedia and radio services

Tino Vivo

Tino Vivo

Tino Vivo is co-founder and CEO of Kollectiff, a creative technology company building AI-powered campaigns, interactive platforms and immersive experiences for global agencies and brands. With partners including BBDO, Goodby Silverstein & Partners and MSL, Kollectiff has delivered work for Bayer, Cheetos, Pedigree and Liquid I.V., including Bepanthen’s “Skin Like Me” with Energy BBDO, an AI tool that lets kids with skin conditions see themselves in their favorite cartoon, recognized at Cannes Lions, The One Show and the Clios, to name a few.

An Argentinean entrepreneur based in Los Angeles, Tino leads a team spread across LA, Mexico City, Barcelona and Buenos Aires. He speaks about turning emerging technology into work people actually use, and about how agencies and tech partners can build ambitious ideas faster.

Tino Vivo is co-founder and CEO of Kollectiff, a creative technology company building AI-powered campaigns, interactive platforms and immersive experiences for global agencies and brands. With partners including BBDO, Goodby Silverstein & Partners an... Show more

Rijwan Ansari

Rijwan Ansari

Md Rijwan Ansari is a high performing and technology consultant with 11 plus years of Software Development and Business Application implementations using .NET Technologies, SharePoint, Power Platform, Data, AI, Azure and cognitive services. He is also a Microsoft MVP, Microsoft Certified Trainer, C# Corner MVP, Microsoft Certified Data Analyst Associate, Microsoft Certified Azure Data Scientist Associate, CSM, CSPO, MCTS, MCP, with 15+ Microsoft Certifications.
He is a research and technology lead in Tech One Global, as well as leading Facebook community Cloud Experts Group and SharePoint User Group Nepal.
He is an active contributor and speaker in c-sharpcorner.com community, C# Corner MVP and his rank at 10 among 3+ millions members.
Additionally, he is kneed to learn new technologies, write articles, love to contribute to the open-source community.
Visit his blog RIJSAT.COM for extensive articles, courses, news, videos and issues resolution specially for developer and data engineer.

Md Rijwan Ansari is a high performing and technology consultant with 11 plus years of Software Development and Business Application implementations using .NET Technologies, SharePoint, Power Platform, Data, AI, Azure and cognitive services. He is als... Show more

Jean-Yves Ahouanvoedo

Jean-Yves Ahouanvoedo

Jean-Yves AHOUANVOEDO is a digital professional who combines web development, agile project management, and content creation. He progressed from freelance web developer to IT project manager over the course of more than three years. He has led Digitalize Bénin since 2022 and has been creating content for the media outlet Bénin Bouge since 2024. Since September 2026, he has been the head of information systems in charge of R&D at Agence PROCOM. As an enthusiast of artificial intelligence, he is well-positioned to bridge the gaps between technology, communication, and innovation in Benin, a country that is heavily investing in AI.

Jean-Yves AHOUANVOEDO is a digital professional who combines web development, agile project management, and content creation. He progressed from freelance web developer to IT project manager over the course of more than three years. He has led Digita... Show more

Olga Shpuntenko

Olga Shpuntenko

Olga Shpuntenko is an engineer by training who has spent twenty years building measurement systems for people inside technology companies. She currently leads people and AI adoption inside a distributed European technology group and runs Employee Rocks, an independent research practice on AI adoption measurement. She writes on how LLMs actually work for people who are not engineers and shares her practice openly with the professional community.

Olga Shpuntenko is an engineer by training who has spent twenty years building measurement systems for people inside technology companies. She currently leads people and AI adoption inside a distributed European technology group and runs Employee Roc... Show more

Eve Brennan

Eve Brennan

Eve is a Cloud Engineer IV at a global media company. Her experience spans cloud infrastructure, software engineering, and site reliability engineering. Beyond her core work, Eve organises DevOps Belfast, a meetup group dedicated to fostering knowledge sharing and collaboration between the people building, deploying, and operating modern software. Eve is also a curator for the BelTech conference and an AWS Community Builder.

Eve is a Cloud Engineer IV at a global media company. Her experience spans cloud infrastructure, software engineering, and site reliability engineering. Beyond her core work, Eve organises DevOps Belfast, a meetup group dedicated to fostering knowled... Show more

Christian Bonzelet

Christian Bonzelet

It was 2013 when we built a real-time voting system for a German live TV show on AWS. That project turned me into a builder who cares about one thing: shipping software that solves a real business problem. The code was only ever how we got there.

Today I lead the Bundesliga ContentHub at Bundesliga as Tech Lead and Engineering Manager, a cross-functional team of engineers, a product owner, and designers. My conviction: every builder on the team, not just the engineers, should be able to ship production code with AI-assisted software engineering.

I am an AWS DevTools Hero and the founder of promptz.dev. I write and speak about agentic engineering with Kiro. Not only what the tool can do in theory (spec-driven development, context as currency), but what it actually looks like when a real cross-functional team builds software with it. The PR that got reverted, the process that had to change, the designer who shipped her first backend change.

If you are a builder in the AWS community, or a lead trying to bring AI-assisted engineering into your team, this is where I share what works and what breaks.

It was 2013 when we built a real-time voting system for a German live TV show on AWS. That project turned me into a builder who cares about one thing: shipping software that solves a real business problem. The code was only ever how we got there. ... Show more

Abdul Aleem Khan

Abdul Aleem Khan

Abdul Aleem Khan is a UK-based software engineer and technical co-founder who has been building production AI systems since 2018. His work ranges from computer vision running on edge devices in retail stores to real-time news pipelines that detect and rewrite biased and toxic content. As co-founder and CTO of two AI startups, he built and led engineering and AI teams, designed microservice and edge architectures, and created proprietary datasets where public ones did not exist. Products he built have been recognised by national and Asia-Pacific technology awards, and he was selected for Google for Startups' first AI Academy APAC. He speaks about practical, production-grade AI: what works, what breaks, and how to keep humans in the loop.

Abdul Aleem Khan is a UK-based software engineer and technical co-founder who has been building production AI systems since 2018. His work ranges from computer vision running on edge devices in retail stores to real-time news pipelines that detect an... Show more

Katherine Druckman

Katherine Druckman

Katherine Druckman is a senior technologist, speaker, and longtime advocate for open ecosystems. Currently Head of Community and Partnership Engagement at JetBrains, she specializes in developer experience, combining software ecosystem strategy, content strategy, and community building, grounded in a foundation of hands-on software engineering experience and proven leadership. She is a long-time open source advocate, developer, and podcaster, and is currently the host of the Reality2.0 podcast.

Katherine Druckman is a senior technologist, speaker, and longtime advocate for open ecosystems. Currently Head of Community and Partnership Engagement at JetBrains, she specializes in developer experience, combining software ecosystem strategy, cont... Show more

Francesco Marinoni Moretto

Francesco Marinoni Moretto

Francesco Marinoni Moretto works on agent-native commerce, how merchants and publishers make their catalogs and content legible to AI purchasing agents.

He is the author of the Layered Agentic Retrieval (LAR) working paper and the forthcoming book "Selling to Agents: The Merchant Playbook for Agentic Commerce".

His current focus is the publisher-side surfaces -and the payment rails (UCP/ACP, HTTP Message Signatures)- that sit in front of MCP and APIs. He also builds open tooling for probing and serving agent-consumable commerce endpoints (like ucp-probe and the LAR spec).

He also created two open-source frameworks on AI reliability, Stream Coding, a documentation-first methodology for AI-accelerated development (stream-coding.com), and Clarity Gate, a pre-ingestion verification protocol for RAG epistemic quality (github.com/frmoretto/clarity-gate), both from a single thesis: LLMs don't need help, they need clear and excellent documentation.

Based in Milan, he is AI Practice and Community Leader at N1AI, a 400+ member professional group.

Recently he moderated a roundtable hosted by GS1 Italy on agentic commerce and was the guest in a fireside chat at the ILTA Legal Tech On Tour in Milan. He presents regularly at Milan AI events including Claude Code Meetup, AI Tinkerers and Aperitivo AI.

Francesco Marinoni Moretto works on agent-native commerce, how merchants and publishers make their catalogs and content legible to AI purchasing agents. He is the author of the Layered Agentic Retrieval (LAR) working paper and the forthcoming book... Show more

Jonas Rashedi

Jonas Rashedi

Jonas Rashedi is Chief Digital Officer and a member of the management board at FALKE KGaA, where he owns IT, data and AI — scalable architectures and data-driven decision processes inside an international family-owned business.

Before FALKE he was Chief Data Officer at FUNKE Mediengruppe and Director Data Intelligence & Technologies at Douglas. Across 16+ years he has built data teams, platforms and governance from scratch — in corporates as well as in the German Mittelstand.

He hosts MY DATA IS BETTER THAN YOURS, the largest German-language Data & AI podcast, with 330+ episodes and weekly conversations with CDOs, Heads of AI and data practitioners across DACH. He is the author of six Springer books on data strategy, customer data platforms, data-driven organizations and online targeting — two of them in English.

Jonas has delivered 100+ talks on stages including DMEXCO, OMR, CMCX, d3con, K5, Medientage München and tekom, and lectures on data-driven marketing at DHBW. He also curates the monthly Data & AI Meetup series across DACH cities and the annual conference BEYOND THE DASHBOARD.

On stage he is practitioner-first: no buzzwords, no recycled consulting decks. Monday morning CDO, Friday evening speaker. Available in German and English.

Jonas Rashedi is Chief Digital Officer and a member of the management board at FALKE KGaA, where he owns IT, data and AI — scalable architectures and data-driven decision processes inside an international family-owned business. Before FALKE he was... Show more

Christina Aldan

Christina Aldan

Christina Aldan is a brand strategy consultant, keynote speaker, trainer, and mentor. She offers businesses brand consulting and creative content for everyday media. With over 18 years of experience in the digital realm, Christina is highly regarded for her approach to business, partnering with clients to find unique strategies that ensure their goals are met. She recently became a Licensed Massage Therapist and opened her own bodywork business.

Christina has delivered talks on all 7 continents, presenting training workshops for the Microsoft MVP community, Las Vegas Raiders, Yale School of Public Health, international corporations, and conferences worldwide. Christina uses her charisma and expertise to inspire others by mentoring women in business like herself. She also has sat on state and local boards supporting women in tech, entrepreneurship, mental health, and children with learning disabilities.

She is the recipient of the Las Vegas Women in Tech Community Service Award, the Distinguished Woman of the Year Award in STEM. Learn more at: Luckygirliegirl.com.

Christina Aldan is a brand strategy consultant, keynote speaker, trainer, and mentor. She offers businesses brand consulting and creative content for everyday media. With over 18 years of experience in the digital realm, Christina is highly regarded ... Show more

Deepak Wadhwani

Deepak Wadhwani

Deepak Wadhwani is a New Delhi-based speaker and entrepreneur known as the Business Buddha — a philosophy built on a simple premise: ambition guided by awareness, and calm as a leadership strategy, not a compromise on it.

As a speaker, Deepak has taken the stage at TEDx with "The Art of Persuasion," a talk built around a counter-intuitive idea — that real influence comes not from being louder, but from being clearer. He regularly speaks at business forums, leadership events, and entrepreneur communities on persuasion, conscious leadership, and the discipline of staying still in fast-moving industries. His talks are conversations, not performances — reflective, direct, and built around the question rooms full of business owners are usually too busy to ask themselves.
He is also a frequent voice on podcasts, where his unscripted, in-conversation style has become one of his most recognized formats — long-form discussions on business, persuasion, and leadership where the value lies in honest thinking rather than rehearsed answers.

Alongside his speaking work, Deepak is the founder of Natraj Home Furnishings and serves as India Growth Director for The Alternative Board (TAB), where he advises CEOs and business owners directly. He also runs the Chirag Foundation, a nonprofit established in memory of his late brother.

His core message across stages, podcasts, and boardrooms remains the same: build without noise. The most important decisions are rarely made in urgency — they're made in stillness, after the noise settles.

Deepak Wadhwani is a New Delhi-based speaker and entrepreneur known as the Business Buddha — a philosophy built on a simple premise: ambition guided by awareness, and calm as a leadership strategy, not a compromise on it. As a speaker, Deepak has ... Show more

Oskar Dudycz

Oskar Dudycz

I'm a developer, technical team leader, and architect. I started a career before StackOverflow existed. For over 17 years, I've been creating systems close to the business process. I believe that Event-Driven Architecture and Event Sourcing are great ways to achieve that.

I'm an active open-source developer active especially in the Event Driven space (I was working on tools like Marten, EventStoreDB, and now Emmett). I'm sharing my journey and findings on my blog https://event-driven.io and practical samples at https://github.com/oskardudycz.

I'm a developer, technical team leader, and architect. I started a career before StackOverflow existed. For over 17 years, I've been creating systems close to the business process. I believe that Event-Driven Architecture and Event Sourcing are great... Show more

Kresimir Koncic

Kresimir Koncic

Krešimir Končić is a Croatian engineer, technology writer, and the founder and CEO of Neuralab. Since 2007, he has been building digital products and leading teams developing complex web and eCommerce applications for clients across Europe and the United States. Neuralab’s work has included projects for HBO, P&G and UNICEF.

His academic background spans mechanical engineering and artificial intelligence at the University of Zagreb, followed by a BSc (Honours) in industrial engineering at the UK’s Open University. He also trained in software development at Algebra and participated in engineering projects across Europe, including robotics in Switzerland and aircraft-design workshops in the UK. In 2006, he received the University of Zagreb’s Rector’s Award as part of a team developing an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Krešimir’s work with artificial neural networks began in 2006–2007, when he helped build a financial forecasting model that gave Neuralab its name. His programming experience stretches from QBASIC and ActionScript to C#, JavaScript, SQL and Swift. Running a company has given him plenty of opportunities to discover what those languages cannot settle.

A Netokracija columnist since 2015, Krešimir's writing combines an engineer’s curiosity with a working familiarity with budgets and the awkward distance between a convincing demo and something people can actually use. His book, Coding Is the Easier Part: Makers, Machines, and the Mess in Between, draws on that experience to explore how software gets made and what that tells us about its future.

He lives in Zagreb with his wife and son, who regularly receive detailed answers to tech questions they never asked.

Krešimir Končić is a Croatian engineer, technology writer, and the founder and CEO of Neuralab. Since 2007, he has been building digital products and leading teams developing complex web and eCommerce applications for clients across Europe and the Un... Show more

Heather Day, CPA

Heather Day, CPA

Heather Satterley is the Director of Education of Media at Woodard.

Heather’s passion for helping others and her love for technology have shaped her career in public accounting. Her affinity for facilitating change within an organization is paramount to her work, helping businesses design and automate their business processes using cutting-edge technologies. Heather wholeheartedly believes in the power of community and the magic that is created when people work together toward the same purpose.

In addition to her work with Woodard, Heather is the co-host of The Appy Hour with Liz and Heather, a webinar series devoted to demystifying the world of technology and apps in the accounting profession. She is also the co-creator and producer of Appy Hour Camp, a collaborative retreat experience created to connect and nurture the relationship between accounting professional educators and software developers.

Heather was named a categorical top 10 ProAdvisor in 2017 and 2019 and was listed as one of the top influential people in accounting by Accounting Today in 2019.

Heather Satterley is the Director of Education of Media at Woodard. Heather’s passion for helping others and her love for technology have shaped her career in public accounting. Her affinity for facilitating change within an organization is param... Show more

Rex Rainey

Rex Rainey

Rex Rainey is a creative director, designer, and illustrator based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He specializes in branding, UX design, and illustration. Since 2005, he's combined these skills to develop creative solutions that are engaging, exciting, and effective.

Rex Rainey is a creative director, designer, and illustrator based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He specializes in branding, UX design, and illustration. Since 2005, he's combined these skills to develop creative solutions that are engaging, exciting, a... Show more

Otobong Samuel

Otobong Samuel

Otobong Samuel is a storyteller and writer with a background in Computer Engineering. He blends creativity with clarity, making complex tech ideas simple and relatable. Through his narratives, he shows how technology isn’t just about tools, but about people, challenges, and the stories that shape our future.

Otobong Samuel is a storyteller and writer with a background in Computer Engineering. He blends creativity with clarity, making complex tech ideas simple and relatable. Through his narratives, he shows how technology isn’t just about tools, but about... Show more

Svetlana Kouznetsova

Svetlana Kouznetsova

Svetlana Kouznetsova (Sveta) is an independent B2B accessibility strategy consultant, published author, and international speaker. She advises businesses on identifying and closing gaps between formal compliance and the actual customer experiences of the estimated 1.85 billion disabled people worldwide — a substantial and frequently underserved market. Her work addresses digital platforms, customer service, communications, media, and events.

With more than 25 years of experience in design, technology, and accessibility, Sveta combines professional expertise with lived experience as a deaf person. Her work examines how decisions made by leadership, customer experience, marketing, design, technology, content, and frontline teams can either create or remove barriers.

Sveta is the author of Sound Is Not Enough and the founder of Audio Accessibility. Her book and TEDx talk examine the business value of high-quality captioning and communication access. She holds an MS in Internet Technology and has presented internationally since 2007.

Svetlana Kouznetsova (Sveta) is an independent B2B accessibility strategy consultant, published author, and international speaker. She advises businesses on identifying and closing gaps between formal compliance and the actual customer experiences of... Show more

Tom Meloche

Tom Meloche

A co-founder of QuestionsHeal Inc, and A2Agile Inc., Tom has overseen the delivery of hundreds of projects with budgets counted in the billions. He has been creating, teaching, and implementing agile methodologies for almost two decades with a current focus on building AI enabled teams.

Tom was a co-founder of one of the most successful little agile software development houses in the country, Menlo Innovations LLC. He consults on how to leverage ceremony, feedback, and metrics to achieve higher levels of engagement and success.

Tom has a direct marketer’s view on metrics. His best-selling book Ultimate Guide to Facebook Advertising was first published in 2011 by the Entrepreneur Press, the fourth edition was released in 2020.

Tom is a strong advocate for ceremony, something he considers a forgotten art, and authored the book Ceremony: A Profound New Method for Achieving Successful and Sustainable Change, released June 2017.

A co-founder of QuestionsHeal Inc, and A2Agile Inc., Tom has overseen the delivery of hundreds of projects with budgets counted in the billions. He has been creating, teaching, and implementing agile methodologies for almost two decades with a curren... Show more

Varun Poladiya

Varun Poladiya

Varun Poladiya is a tech marketer with 12+ years of experience across AdTech, EdTech, IT and AI. He started his career as an intern at Google, then worked at Media.net (Directi) helping publishers like Ookla Speedtest, MSN, VentureBeat, Reuters and others to increase their revenue from ad inventory, co-founded EduTronics and taught coding and robotics to 4000+ students and educators across India, Malaysia, Singapore and UAE and then joined navan.ai to lead marketing for AI products and solutions. He has taught vision AI development to 1500+ students and developers across India, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

He has recently founded FIRE with Founders where he helps B2B tech companies to build distribution as a moat. He is also one of the organizers at GDG Cloud Rajkot.

Contact: +918655482220 / varun@firewithfounders.com

Varun Poladiya is a tech marketer with 12+ years of experience across AdTech, EdTech, IT and AI. He started his career as an intern at Google, then worked at Media.net (Directi) helping publishers like Ookla Speedtest, MSN, VentureBeat, Reuters and o... Show more

Amit Grinvald

Amit Grinvald

Amit Grinvald is a keynote speaker, moderator, and communication strategist who works with leaders and experts across corporate, startup, and investor environments to communicate complex ideas with clarity and conviction in high-stakes situations.

Over the past decade, he has worked with everyone from Fortune 500 executives and award-winning founders to Olympic medalists and aerospace engineers. His clients include leaders from organisations such as Microsoft, NVIDIA, Deloitte, Capgemini, Red Hat, Rolls-Royce, and Johnson & Johnson.

His work in the venture ecosystem spans both founder and investor perspectives. He is a mentor with Google for Startups and the Startup World Cup, and has supported companies through €60M+ fundraising rounds.

Amit regularly hosts and leads conversations at international conferences, including TED, SXSW London, and South Summit. He is also the founder and long-time lead organiser of TEDxUNYP, one of Europe's most recognised TEDx events, with multiple TED Editor's Picks and several talks ranked among the global Top 100.

His sessions are practical, interactive, and built for the room in front of him, whether that room is full of engineers, executives, or first-time speakers. Attendees leave with tools they can use in their very next meeting, pitch, or presentation.

Amit Grinvald is a keynote speaker, moderator, and communication strategist who works with leaders and experts across corporate, startup, and investor environments to communicate complex ideas with clarity and conviction in high-stakes situations. ... Show more

Carson McKee

Carson McKee

My goal is to help people develop media literacy in an environment where culture is accelerating faster than most people can interpret.

My work focuses on the systems underneath contemporary digital life: how memes encode cultural behavior, how algorithms reorganize attention, how advertising collapses spatial boundaries, and how the underlying protocols of media shape what we believe, share, and understand.

I’m a digital culture analyst and media theorist and I’ve spent my life moving through every major shift in digital culture. I began on a Commodore Vic20 writing BASIC programs on loose-leaf paper. I discovered the early web through Netscape in art school, studying Intermedia when digital experimentation was still a fringe idea. I worked through the rise of social platforms, the marketing era of Web2, the speculative creativity of Web3 and I’ve now arrived in the AI era as an educator and media theorist trying to explain what all of this means.

My work explains the systems behind contemporary digital life: meme dynamics, protocol aesthetics, algorithmic influence and the collapse of traditional media logic. Rather than focusing on tools, I work to uncover the deeper structures that shape how people think, communicate and create.

I’ve spent my life moving through every major shift in digital culture. I began on a Commodore Vic20 writing BASIC programs on loose-leaf paper. I discovered the early web through Netscape in art school, studying Intermedia when digital experimentation was still a fringe idea. I worked through the rise of social platforms, the marketing era of Web2, the speculative creativity of Web3, and I’ve now arrived in the AI era as an educator and media theorist trying to explain what all of this means.

I’m not teaching people how to use tools. I’m trying to map the deeper structures.

I believe in what I’m talking about because I’ve been there to see it form:

A student in Web1.
A practitioner in Web2.
An educator in Web3.
A theorist in the AI era.

Everything I publish - talks, videos, essays, posts and digital projects is an attempt to make digital culture legible.

My goal is to help people develop media literacy in an environment where culture is accelerating faster than most people can interpret. My work focuses on the systems underneath contemporary digital life: how memes encode cultural behavior, how al... Show more

Jeff McWherter

Jeff McWherter

Jeff McWherter is a seasoned business leader and tenacious problem solver with over 26 years in the tech industry. He has a deep understanding of the business landscape with a keen ability to navigate complex challenges with creativity and agility. From local startup to Fortune 500, he has worked with a wide client range, always adapting to the unique needs and challenges of each project. He has developed a deep understanding of the trends and technologies shaping the future of business, and is constantly seeking out new ideas and insights to stay ahead of the curve. Jeff is a three time published author and avid speaker at technical conferences across the world. A Michigan State University graduate, Jeff has also been instrumental in improving the software development community in Michigan and beyond. He founded Gravity Works Design & Development during the 2009 recession, which has since grown into one of the country's leading digital agencies. Jeff has led more than a decade of consistent, managed growth and numerous creative accolades, including Addy, W3, Vega, Davey, and PACE awards.

Jeff believes strong relationships are the foundation of any successful business venture, and is committed to fostering those connections both inside and outside the office. As a father and active community member, Jeff knows success isn't just about achieving your own goals: it's about helping others reach theirs. Whether leading a project, volunteering locally, or cheering on his daughters, Jeff is always looking to make a positive impact in the world around him.

Jeff's commitment to helping others achieve their goals is a testament to his leadership, fresh perspectives, and innovative solutions. Join the conversation, and get information about speaking engagements and projects.

Jeff McWherter is a seasoned business leader and tenacious problem solver with over 26 years in the tech industry. He has a deep understanding of the business landscape with a keen ability to navigate complex challenges with creativity and agility. F... Show more

Maximillian Naza

Maximillian Naza

Maximillian Naza is an entrepreneur and technology executive who founded PasciVite and Hope Records, where he serves as CEO and CTO, respectively. He is also a General Partner at Bias Capital. With a background in computer science and software engineering, his work spans artificial intelligence, go-to-market strategy, media, and business development.

He mentors startups through Techstars, Alchemist Accelerator, and Plug and Play, with a particular focus on helping international companies enter and grow in the U.S. market. He has also delivered workshops for startup founder delegations from Italy, the Netherlands, and Kazakhstan, covering market research, go-to-market strategy, public relations, and enterprise sales.

As a speaker, Maximillian explores the decisions behind business growth, from how enterprises evaluate risk and unfamiliar vendors to how companies establish credibility, win customers, and expand into new markets. Drawing on his experience as a founder, operator, and investor, he examines how technology, marketing, and organizational reputation influence commercial outcomes, challenging conventional assumptions and sharing lessons grounded in practical experience.

Maximillian Naza is an entrepreneur and technology executive who founded PasciVite and Hope Records, where he serves as CEO and CTO, respectively. He is also a General Partner at Bias Capital. With a background in computer science and software engine... Show more

Astrid Ruppin

Astrid Ruppin

Diplom-Soziologin und Betriebsinformatikerin
2002 - 2014: Consultant für die Bereitstellung von Websites und die Einführung von Intranets und IT-Trainerin
Seit April 2014 bei WBS GRUPPE
Digital Experience Managerin
- Projektteam Einführung eines Social Intranets
- Interne Kommunikation
- Projektleitung Einführung Microsoft 365 im Unternehmen
- Microsoft 365 Cloud Navigator
- Microsoft 365-Champion
- Service Owner Microsoft 365

Diplom-Soziologin und Betriebsinformatikerin 2002 - 2014: Consultant für die Bereitstellung von Websites und die Einführung von Intranets und IT-Trainerin Seit April 2014 bei WBS GRUPPE Digital Experience Managerin - Projektteam Einführung eines ... Show more

Leslie L. Sharp

Leslie L. Sharp

Leslie has spent 16 years blending creativity and strategy to help businesses increase sales. Understanding communications is both an art and a science, she develops brand messaging that isn’t afraid to be bold with customer connection. Known for enhancing digital presences that spark new profits and secure buy-in, she's trusted by corporations and nonprofits to deliver results.

A champion of entrepreneurship, Leslie teaches how she turned her side hustle into a life-time six-figure business through her signature P.L.A.N. Method. She now shares that framework in workshops and keynotes, inspiring new entrepreneurs across the country. Daily, she runs her communications consulting firm, Sharpline Messaging Group, where she transforms businesses and nonprofits into brands that exceed revenue goals, and build lasting customer relationships.

Leslie is a proud alum of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where she received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration & Marketing. Through her academic excellence she was recognized as a Johnetta Haley Scholar, Dean's List Scholar, and Enterprise Corporation awardee. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the SIUE Alumni Association.

In 2025 she earned a certification in Artificial Intelligence Essentials for Business from Harvard Business School Online. In her career, she's led communications projects for corporations like 3M, Boeing and the American Heart Association, and guided digital growth as Communications Director for the largest church in Madison County, IL.

Originally from Chicago, she now calls the St. Louis area home and enjoys traveling with her husband, Jarrod.

Leslie has spent 16 years blending creativity and strategy to help businesses increase sales. Understanding communications is both an art and a science, she develops brand messaging that isn’t afraid to be bold with customer connection. Known for enh... Show more

Alok Band

Alok Band

Alok Band is a product leader with 18+ years of experience building and scaling streaming platforms, developer ecosystems, and adtech services. He is currently Head of Product for Developer Platform and Media Services at The Trade Desk, where he is part of the founding team of the Ventura CTV operating system. Previously he led product and partnerships at Google (Google TV ecosystem, 50M+ partner devices; Google Duo, 1B+ downloads), Roku (Director of PM, built The Roku Channel's ML-powered growth platform), Google Fiber, and Netflix (200M+ partner device activations). He writes about product strategy in the agentic AI era and is pursuing independent speaking on AI agents, developer platforms, and product leadership.

Alok Band is a product leader with 18+ years of experience building and scaling streaming platforms, developer ecosystems, and adtech services. He is currently Head of Product for Developer Platform and Media Services at The Trade Desk, where he is p... Show more

Adam Sprague

Adam Sprague

I run Hit My Algo, a marketing agency in Saint Louis.
We build client-owned marketing systems that report their own results.

Content, social and funnel run as one machine.
A plan first, then the build, then the client either takes it from there or we run it for them.
The domain, the data and the accounts stay theirs.

The piece I build myself is the measurement layer.
PostTrace tracks post to payment, joining social, GA4, scheduling and payments into one place the business owns.
It has an MCP connector so you can ask it questions in plain language instead of reading a dashboard.

Before this, nine years in content across roughly a dozen industries.
I ran socials for Forbes-listed AI and SaaS platforms at Series A and B, and grew the personal brands of leaders at tech companies valued up to ten figures.

I run Hit My Algo, a marketing agency in Saint Louis. We build client-owned marketing systems that report their own results. Content, social and funnel run as one machine. A plan first, then the build, then the client either takes it from there ... Show more

Mollie Adler

Mollie Adler

Mollie Adler is the creator and host of Back from the Borderline, a long-form podcast exploring depth psychology, philosophy, religious history, Western esotericism and the ways human beings develop their understanding of reality.

Her work investigates how we come to believe what we believe, how institutions influence our understanding of the world and how ideas change as they’re passed between generations. Through conversations with scholars and independent researchers, alongside her own audio essays, she explores everything from Jungian psychology and Christian mysticism to artificial intelligence, occult history and contemporary culture.

Her independent platform has grown into a substantial creator-supported community, with:

* 7,000+ Patreon members
* A global ranking in the top 0.5% of podcasts, according to Listen Notes
* Hundreds of long-form episodes exploring psychology, philosophy and contemporary life

Adler approaches controversial subjects with intellectual independence, investigating unconventional theories while remaining willing to question the authorities promoting them. Her work draws on historical research, depth psychology and cultural criticism, with a particular concern for how institutions can preserve valuable knowledge while also restricting the ways people understand and use it.

She is also the co-founder of MOODS, a reflective intelligence platform that uses AI to support dreamwork, Tarot study and sustained personal inquiry. The project explores how emerging technologies might support human reflection rather than simply provide instant answers.

Adler has spoken at South by Southwest (SXSW) about artificial intelligence and consciousness, and her work has been featured in outlets including Novara Media.

Her speaking subjects include artificial intelligence and consciousness, the psychology of emerging technologies, Western esotericism, religious history, Jungian psychology, institutional authority and the cultural forces influencing contemporary belief.

She welcomes invitations for conference talks, podcast interviews, panel discussions and media collaborations.

Speaking and media inquiries can be submitted through ⁠backfromtheborderline.com.

Mollie Adler is the creator and host of Back from the Borderline, a long-form podcast exploring depth psychology, philosophy, religious history, Western esotericism and the ways human beings develop their understanding of reality. Her work investi... Show more

Vontavius Hurd

Vontavius Hurd

Vontavius Hurd is an award-winning marketing strategist ,and content creator. He helps entrepreneurs, business owners, real estate pros, and organizations grow strategically so they stay relevant and never become extinct. When he’s not speaking, he runs his marketing agency, sells out impactful webinars and workshops, and partners with brands as a lifestyle and travel influencer. Off the clock, you’ll probably find him gaming or streaming.

Vontavius Hurd is an award-winning marketing strategist ,and content creator. He helps entrepreneurs, business owners, real estate pros, and organizations grow strategically so they stay relevant and never become extinct. When he’s not speaking, he r... Show more

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