Paul Ivanov currently works at Google DeepMind and owns and operates Stoic Hedgehog LLC. He has previously worked at Mechanize, Sage AI Labs, Citadel, Noteable, Bloomberg, Disqus, and UC Berkeley.

Paul is a long time open source scientific Python ecosystem participant: most recently as a member of the Jupyter Software Steering Council, program co-chair of the SciPy conference, and has previously served as a core developer of Matplotlib, IPython, and Jupyter projects.

Away from the keyboard, you'll find him either biking or beekeeping.

Paul Ivanov currently works at Google DeepMind and owns and operates Stoic Hedgehog LLC. He has previously worked at Mechanize, Sage AI Labs, Citadel, Noteable, Bloomberg, Disqus, and UC Berkeley. Paul is a long time open source scientific Python ... Show more

Wanjun Gu is a PhD student in bioinformatics at UCSF, working in the Baranzini Lab, Department of Neurology, and the Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute. Wanjun develops Biorouter, an open-source research agent that lets institutionally hosted models operate on protected health data. Current work spans statistical genetics, multi-omics, electronic health records, biomedical knowledge graphs, and bioinformatics AI coding agents.

Wanjun Gu is a PhD student in bioinformatics at UCSF, working in the Baranzini Lab, Department of Neurology, and the Bakar Computational Health Sciences Institute. Wanjun develops Biorouter, an open-source research agent that lets institutionally hos... Show more

Theodore Walrond (Rex) is a University of Florida neuroscience graduate from the Tampa Bay area. He speaks about two things he knows firsthand: making sense of scientific evidence, and working in demanding outdoor environments.

As a researcher at UF's McKnight Brain Institute from 2022 to 2023, he worked through more than 300 studies on subarachnoid hemorrhage and Alzheimer's disease and helped turn them into a framework the team used to plan its next experiments. A summer at Romark Laboratories in Tampa in 2021 had him tracking COVID-19 drug candidates as new trial data arrived.

Outside the lab, he was a divemaster and teaching assistant for UF's Scientific Diving Program from 2020 to 2023, helping students from Open Water through Master Diver. He has climbed Mount Rainier with International Mountain Guides and backpacked the John Muir Trail, the Teton Crest Trail and Glacier National Park.

Topics he can speak to: reading conflicting research without getting lost in it; what teaching scuba teaches you about leading a group; preparing for a first big mountain.

He lives in St. Petersburg, Florida, where he is working on a new company in consumer health. More at theodorewalrond.com and rexwalrond.com.

Theodore Walrond (Rex) is a University of Florida neuroscience graduate from the Tampa Bay area. He speaks about two things he knows firsthand: making sense of scientific evidence, and working in demanding outdoor environments. As a researcher at ... Show more

Felix Desyatirikov is a Senior AI and Backend Engineer with six years of enterprise experience building and scaling backend systems, with deep hands-on work in Kubernetes and microservices. He has spoken in the main program at Joker, the international conference for experienced Java developers, and at IEEE conferences. He conducts research at ITMO University in St. Petersburg on AI applied to infrastructure and distributed systems, including machine learning for runtime orchestration.

Felix Desyatirikov is a Senior AI and Backend Engineer with six years of enterprise experience building and scaling backend systems, with deep hands-on work in Kubernetes and microservices. He has spoken in the main program at Joker, the internationa... Show more

Oluwasegun Adeniyi Adedigba is a cloud software engineer with a strong background in building and managing secure, scalable cloud infrastructures. With extensive experience in AWS, he has implemented solutions involving networking, virtualization, containerization, and serverless architectures. His interests span serverless, event-driven architecture, CAD, CAM, CAE, and robotics. He is 5x AWS Certified and 1x Hashicorp Certified. He is an AWS Community Builder in the AWS Serverless Category. Oluwasegun Adedigba is also a Mechanical Engineer. His hobbies include playing football and basketball.

Oluwasegun Adeniyi Adedigba is a cloud software engineer with a strong background in building and managing secure, scalable cloud infrastructures. With extensive experience in AWS, he has implemented solutions involving networking, virtualization, co... Show more

Adeola is a Cyber AI Solutions Architect in a leading technology company. She has over 5years of experience across various domains having worked on social computation and Network Analysis, accelerated Data Science, Conversational AI, Speech to Text services and Machine Learning Operations (MLOps), she is now focused on developing and deploying Cybersecurity AI solutions at scale.

Adeola is a Cyber AI Solutions Architect in a leading technology company. She has over 5years of experience across various domains having worked on social computation and Network Analysis, accelerated Data Science, Conversational AI, Speech to Text s... Show more

AI ERP Solution Architect at Cegeka specializing in Pharma & Medtech industry solutions with a focus on AI and Dynamics 365 Finance & Supply Chain Management.

AI ERP Solution Architect at Cegeka specializing in Pharma & Medtech industry solutions with a focus on AI and Dynamics 365 Finance & Supply Chain Management. Show more

Nishanth Vepachedu is a Principal Engineer with over two decades of experience in software engineering, enterprise architecture, artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, security, and large-scale distributed systems. Throughout his career, he has led the design and implementation of mission-critical technology solutions across retail, customer experience, financial services, industrial engineering, and biomedical research domains, consistently delivering scalable systems that improve operational efficiency, reliability, and business performance.
Currently serving as a Principal Engineer at Target, Nishanth has been responsible for several strategic technology initiatives. He developed an intelligent assistant for store employees using Large Language Models (LLMs), integrating ChatGPT APIs with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), Elasticsearch, and PineconeDB to provide dynamic procedural guidance while optimizing performance and operational costs. He also enhanced the stability and resiliency of Target's MyDay store operations platform by implementing architectural improvements, resilience frameworks, and task optimization algorithms. In addition, he led the re-architecture and migration of legacy AWS-based applications to Target's on-premises infrastructure, transforming monolithic systems into event-driven microservices and delivering significant cloud cost savings while supporting critical business operations. He also designed the architecture for Microsoft's Xbox All Access financing solution on Target.com, enabling customers to purchase Xbox consoles through a financing program.
Prior to joining Target, Nishanth served as Principal Engineer at Concentrix, where he engineered an enterprise-grade biometric multi-factor authentication platform incorporating facial and voice recognition technologies. Leveraging TensorFlow, MobileNet, OpenCV, and edge computing architectures, he developed a secure and scalable authentication framework for global contact center operations, improving security, compliance, and agent productivity.
Before Concentrix, Nishanth spent nearly a decade at Convergys as a Senior Staff Engineer. During this period, he led the development of an intelligent agent assistance platform that integrated robotic process automation, enterprise knowledge graphs, and large-scale event processing to support customer service operations. He also designed and implemented a global workforce management platform supporting more than 150 contact centers across 31 countries, incorporating scheduling automation, payroll compliance, predictive analytics, and operational reporting capabilities.
Earlier in his career, Nishanth worked as a Research Engineer at the University of Cincinnati, where he contributed to bioinformatics and comparative genomics research. He developed scalable platforms that integrated thousands of human and mouse phenotypes with disease-gene datasets, enabling advanced disease-phenotype exploration and supporting scientific research through semantic technologies, ontology integration, and web services. During his tenure at the University of Cincinnati, he worked on research initiatives that resulted in a publication in Nucleic Acids Research.
Nishanth began his professional career at Tata Consultancy Services, where he worked on multiple enterprise initiatives for organizations including General Electric and ING. His contributions included single sign-on implementations, payroll integration platforms, identity management systems, supply chain applications, and optimization solutions for industrial engineering programs. He played a key role in developing secure enterprise architectures and large-scale business applications that supported global operations.
His technical expertise includes software architecture, artificial intelligence, machine learning, microservices, event-driven systems, cloud and on-premises infrastructure, data engineering, security, and enterprise platform modernization. He is proficient in Java, Python, Kotlin, and Rust and has extensive experience with technologies including AWS, Azure, Kafka, Elasticsearch, PineconeDB, Neo4j, TensorFlow, OpenCV, Kubernetes, and modern DevOps practices.
Nishanth holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and a Bachelor of Technology in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the Regional Engineering College, Warangal, India. His career reflects a sustained record of developing innovative technology solutions and leading complex engineering initiatives across global organizations.

Nishanth Vepachedu is a Principal Engineer with over two decades of experience in software engineering, enterprise architecture, artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, security, and large-scale distributed systems. Throughout his career, he h... Show more

Sam Rajamanickam, AIA, WELL AP, is a Principal at Design Collective who focuses on student housing and campus life facilities. Over 30 years, he has partnered with institutions including Marquette University, Rutgers University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Idaho and Towson University to plan and deliver student life environments that support belonging, wellness, and connection.

Sam became interested in Third Place theory while observing a persistent challenge: students living in close proximity yet feeling increasingly lonely. This paradox led him to explore how Ray Oldenburg's sociological framework could become a practical tool for housing professionals to evaluate and strengthen campus environments.

His approach emphasizes that physical design, programming, and policy must work together as an integrated system. As a WELL Accredited Professional, he brings wellness expertise to creating spaces that serve all students, with particular attention to equity, accessibility, and psychological safety—empowering housing officers to audit existing spaces and intentionally design environments where students naturally connect.

Sam Rajamanickam, AIA, WELL AP, is a Principal at Design Collective who focuses on student housing and campus life facilities. Over 30 years, he has partnered with institutions including Marquette University, Rutgers University, Johns Hopkins Univers... Show more

Chukwukaidibia Onyekwere is Nigeria's pioneer n8n Ambassador and an AI/ML educator, researcher, and community builder. Over the past year, he has trained three cohorts of Nigeria's Federal Government 3MTT initiative across Machine Learning, Data Science, and AI, and trained approximately 10,000 people in AI Automation Engineering. he is the founder of OpenStack Africa,(https://www.openstack-africa.online/) a community initiative helping African developers build on shared infrastructure instead of reinventing it. Her bioinformatics research — including work on genomic characterization and ML prediction of antimicrobial resistance in E. coli from West Africa, and prediction of carbapenemase activity in β-lactamases using protein language model embeddings — is set for publication in top-tier journals in 2026. he has hosted community-driven AI and automation events in Lagos and Port Harcourt, bringing together HR leaders, founders, CTOs, and developers around practical automation and AI adoption.

Chukwukaidibia Onyekwere is Nigeria's pioneer n8n Ambassador and an AI/ML educator, researcher, and community builder. Over the past year, he has trained three cohorts of Nigeria's Federal Government 3MTT initiative across Machine Learning, Data Scie... Show more

Anemone Kasasbeh, PhD, is Manager of Data Science & Clinical AI at Ascension, one of the five largest health systems in the U.S.

She was named one of RE·WORK’s Top 25 Women in AI in Healthcare in 2022.

She is a subject matter expert in healthcare AI, predictive modeling, and real-world clinical implementation. With experience across health systems and the pharmaceutical industry, her work focuses on translating advanced analytics and AI into measurable healthcare impact. She has many publications in the field and her PhD work focused on Applications of AI in Healthcare.

Anemone Kasasbeh, PhD, is Manager of Data Science & Clinical AI at Ascension, one of the five largest health systems in the U.S. She was named one of RE·WORK’s Top 25 Women in AI in Healthcare in 2022. She is a subject matter expert in healthca... Show more

Lead the design and development of agentic AI applications that enable scientists
to explore experimental, proprietary, and research data to generate actionable scientific insights.
Own end-to-end delivery of production-grade AI products, including agentic AI systems, fine-tuning, RAG pipelines, vector databases with Python and PyTorch.

Key responsibilities:
• Designing and implementing conversational AI agents using modern LLM platforms and agentic architectures
• Developing RAG systems that connect LLMs with proprietary scientific datasets and knowledge bases
• Evaluating model customization strategies, including fine-tuning, and optimization techniques
• Architecting vector search and embeddings pipelines using modern retrieval technologies
• Implementing AI evaluation frameworks, monitoring, security controls, and governance practices for regulated scientific environments
• Integrating AI services with AWS cloud infrastructure and enterprise data platforms
• Establishing CI/CD workflows, automated testing, and scalable deployment strategies
• Collaborating closely with scientists, bioinformaticians, product teams, and engineers to identify high-impact AI opportunities
• Mentoring engineers and contributing to long-term AI platform strategy

Technologies:
LLMs, Agentic AI, RAG, Python, PyTorch, Vector, relational and non-relational databases, PostgreSQL, AWS, CI/CD, Cloud Architecture, AI Evaluation & Monitoring.

Driving the development of next-generation AI assistants that accelerate scientific discovery and operational efficiency across the organization.

Lead the design and development of agentic AI applications that enable scientists to explore experimental, proprietary, and research data to generate actionable scientific insights. Own end-to-end delivery of production-grade AI products, including... Show more

DR. GURURAJ H L (Senior Member, IEEE) received the Ph.D. degree in computer science and engineering from Visvesvaraya Technological University India in 2019. He has published more than 200 research articles in peer-reviewed and reputed international journals. He has authored 15 Edited books in Springer, IET, IGI Global and Taylor & Francis. He has presented more than 100 papers at various international conferences. He is a Senior Member of ACM. He received a Young Scientist International Travel Support ITS-SERB, Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, in December 2016. He was a recipient of best paper awards at various national and international conferences. He was appointed as an ACM Distinguish Speaker (2018–2021) by the ACM U.S. Council. He has honoured as Keynote Speaker, Session chair, TPC member, Advisory committee member at International Seminars, Workshops and Conferences across Globe. Prof. Gururaj’s research interests are Applications in Machine and federated Learning, data mining, Blockchain and cyber security.

DR. GURURAJ H L (Senior Member, IEEE) received the Ph.D. degree in computer science and engineering from Visvesvaraya Technological University India in 2019. He has published more than 200 research articles in peer-reviewed and reputed international ... Show more

Sonam Kumari is an AI and healthcare technology professional, product leader, and data strategist with 9+ years of experience spanning technology consulting, data analytics, product management, and digital transformation. She holds a Computer Science Engineering degree and an MBA from Boston University’s Questrom School of Business.

Her work focuses on applying AI, machine learning, data analytics, and intelligent automation to solve complex challenges in healthcare and enterprise environments. She has led cross-functional teams and developed data-driven products and solutions involving healthcare analytics, intelligent supply-chain optimization, GenAI, clinical reporting, and decision-support systems.

Sonam brings a unique combination of technical depth, product strategy, and business leadership. Her experience includes developing AI-enabled solutions, optimizing healthcare operations and costs, improving data-driven decision-making, and translating complex technology into practical business outcomes.

As a speaker, Sonam is passionate about making AI and emerging technologies accessible and actionable. She enjoys sharing practical insights on responsible AI adoption, AI product management, Clinical products, healthcare innovation, data-driven transformation, GenAI, and the future of intelligent enterprise systems.

Sonam Kumari is an AI and healthcare technology professional, product leader, and data strategist with 9+ years of experience spanning technology consulting, data analytics, product management, and digital transformation. She holds a Computer Science... Show more

Soy Cloud & Software Architect y actualmente trabajo como Cloud Security Consultant en MPIV Partners. Cuento con certificaciones en Google Cloud, Kubernetes, Azure y Generative AI, lo que me permite abordar la arquitectura moderna desde una perspectiva cloud-native, segura y orientada a producción.

He liderado migraciones a la nube, diseño de arquitecturas con Kubernetes y microservicios, e implementación de prácticas DevOps en entornos empresariales reales, logrando mejoras concretas en escalabilidad, resiliencia y optimización de costos. Anteriormente, me desempeñé como IT Manager, donde impulsé iniciativas de transformación digital con impacto medible.

Soy organizadora de Cloud Native Santo Domingo desde 2024, donde colaboro en la planificación de eventos, workshops y charlas técnicas para la comunidad. En este espacio he impartido charlas sobre DevOps y prácticas cloud-native, fomentando la adopción de herramientas open source como Kubernetes, Docker y frameworks cloud-native, además de mentorizar a miembros de la comunidad y promover la colaboración dentro del ecosistema CNCF.

Mi experiencia en arquitectura de software abarca backend, frontend, seguridad y plataforma, lo que me permite ofrecer una visión integral y práctica, más allá de los diagramas. También he trabajado en roles de liderazgo y mentoría, facilitando la adopción de buenas prácticas técnicas y metodologías ágiles en equipos multidisciplinarios.

He sido speaker en eventos comunitarios como Barcamp RD 2025, donde presenté la charla “Arquitectura de Software Cloud en el Mundo Real: Más allá de los diagramas”, enfocada en decisiones arquitectónicas reales, errores comunes y aprendizajes obtenidos en producción.

Mis charlas conectan fundamentos técnicos, seguridad y experiencia de la vida real, con el objetivo de ayudar a equipos y profesionales a diseñar sistemas que puedan evolucionar de forma sostenible en el tiempo.

Soy Cloud & Software Architect y actualmente trabajo como Cloud Security Consultant en MPIV Partners. Cuento con certificaciones en Google Cloud, Kubernetes, Azure y Generative AI, lo que me permite abordar la arquitectura moderna desde una perspecti... Show more

Jimmy Song is a VP of Open Source Ecosystem at Dynamia.ai, CNCF Ambassador, and founder of the Cloud Native Community (China). He focuses on AI-native infrastructure, GPU scheduling and utilization, and agentic runtime at the intersection of cloud-native and AI systems. A longtime cloud-native practitioner and open-source community builder, he is also a book author and frequent speaker and writer.

Jimmy Song is a VP of Open Source Ecosystem at Dynamia.ai, CNCF Ambassador, and founder of the Cloud Native Community (China). He focuses on AI-native infrastructure, GPU scheduling and utilization, and agentic runtime at the intersection of cloud-na... Show more

He works as a Support Engineer at Chronosphere, helping both customers and the Fluent community. He's been a developer and support engineer for 20+ years.

He works as a Support Engineer at Chronosphere, helping both customers and the Fluent community. He's been a developer and support engineer for 20+ years. Show more

Language nerd (Elixir, Haskell, Rust, Nix, Cobol, 6502 Assembly), retrocomputing and game development. Worked making games at Nickelodeon, medical research at Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine, and making internet stuff at Netscape.

Language nerd (Elixir, Haskell, Rust, Nix, Cobol, 6502 Assembly), retrocomputing and game development. Worked making games at Nickelodeon, medical research at Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine, and making internet stuff at Netscape. Show more

Maxim Schepelin has been an engineering leader in various industries, including Game Dev, e-commerce, and travel building teams capable of launching products from idea to world-scale. With over a decade of experience leading engineering teams, Maxim has mastered the art and science of management, as well as how to exit both Vim and Emacs.
Maxim continues exploring ways to build effective engineering teams that deliver value at a sustainable pace.

Maxim Schepelin has been an engineering leader in various industries, including Game Dev, e-commerce, and travel building teams capable of launching products from idea to world-scale. With over a decade of experience leading engineering teams, Maxim ... Show more

* BSc (Hons) Pure Mathematics (UK), BSc (Hons) Applied Chemistry (UK), Master of Philosophy Physical Chemistry (UK) and Doctor of Philosophy Chemistry (wine) (Aus).

* Research and development chemist with experience in food flavourings, concrete, wood preservation, fuel cells, printing ink and red wine colour.

* Quality assurance specialist in biotechnology, engineering, manufacturing and software.

* Currently a technical writer producing documentation for proprietary software (e.g., software release notes and tooltips), aligned with wire-based 3D printing (i.e., CAD design and MIG welding), security and ISO 9001 quality assurance documentation.

* BSc (Hons) Pure Mathematics (UK), BSc (Hons) Applied Chemistry (UK), Master of Philosophy Physical Chemistry (UK) and Doctor of Philosophy Chemistry (wine) (Aus). * Research and development chemist with experience in food flavourings, concrete, ... Show more

Rama Samantapudi is a Sr. Staff AI/ML Architect at ServiceNow, specializing in Search, Ranking, Recommendations, Conversational AI, Generative AI, and Agentic AI. With over 13 years of experience across Walmart, Zillow, State Street, and FactSet, Rama has led large-scale AI initiatives that bridge applied research and production systems. His work focuses on building intelligent search, ranking, reasoning and structured extraction models that enhance user experience, automation and decision-making at scale.

Rama Samantapudi is a Sr. Staff AI/ML Architect at ServiceNow, specializing in Search, Ranking, Recommendations, Conversational AI, Generative AI, and Agentic AI. With over 13 years of experience across Walmart, Zillow, State Street, and FactSet, Ram... Show more

Étudiant en 7ème année médecine à l'Université Joseph Ki-Zerbo (Burkina Faso) et développeur autodidacte en IA, je conçois des outils open-source à la croisée de l'informatique médicale et de la pratique clinique, à travers Xcept-Health. Créateur d'Episia, une bibliothèque open-source d'épidémiologie et de biostatistique. Intervenant à IndabaX Burkina Faso, AMLD et DevFest Afrique francophone sur l'IA en santé dans les contextes à ressources limitées. Team Leader IOAI 2026 pour le Burkina Faso.

Étudiant en 7ème année médecine à l'Université Joseph Ki-Zerbo (Burkina Faso) et développeur autodidacte en IA, je conçois des outils open-source à la croisée de l'informatique médicale et de la pratique clinique, à travers Xcept-Health. Créateur d'E... Show more

Isabella Ganas is a media strategy and business development specialist with experience in advertising, consumer packaged goods marketing, and technology-focused solution consulting. Raised in New Jersey, she was introduced early to an entrepreneurial mindset through her family’s retail and installation business. That environment provided early lessons in customer relationships, operational discipline, and long-term planning that later became foundational to her professional path.

She grew up in a multicultural environment that encouraged adaptability and cross-cultural awareness. As a first-generation college graduate, she developed a strong commitment to education and continuous professional development. These early influences shaped a practical, relationship-focused approach that continues to guide her work in complex, evolving business environments.

Isabella also benefited from early exposure to structured operations, which reinforced the importance of accountability, consistency, and trust. Those principles remain central to her professional conduct, especially in collaborative settings that require clear communication and dependable execution. She approaches challenges with patience, curiosity, and a steady focus on long-term improvement.

Isabella Ganas established a strong academic foundation centered on communication and strategic thinking. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Alabama, majoring in Public Relations with a minor in Communication Studies, and graduated with a 3.89 GPA. Her education emphasized strategic messaging, media awareness, and collaborative project development.

Her university coursework strengthened skills in analytical reasoning, presentation development, and structured writing. These areas of focus supported effective communication across varied audiences and prepared her for agency- and client-facing responsibilities that require clarity and organization.

Isabella also studied in Rome for a short period, an experience that broadened cultural awareness and reinforced adaptability. Exposure to different communication styles and perspectives fostered a global outlook that continues to inform professional interactions and thoughtful decision-making.

Isabella Ganas began gaining hands-on industry experience during her junior year through an internship at AdMarketplace. This opportunity provided practical exposure to digital advertising platforms, media strategy fundamentals, and agency workflows, allowing academic knowledge to be applied in real-world campaign environments.

After graduation, she continued working full-time in roles supporting campaign execution, performance analysis, and cross-functional coordination. These responsibilities strengthened an interest in data-informed marketing and deepened understanding of how scalable advertising programs operate within fast-paced organizations.

Isabella later advanced her career through roles at Carat USA and Wavemaker US, supporting multiple Procter & Gamble accounts and progressing into leadership in commerce strategy. Beginning in September 2024, she served as Manager of Commerce Strategy, overseeing multi-million-dollar investments, supporting more than a dozen Church & Dwight brands, and translating advanced analytics into actionable guidance. Outside of her professional responsibilities, she maintains interests in cooking, baking, and interior design, reflecting a balanced commitment to creativity, continuous learning, and strong relationship-building.

Isabella Ganas is a media strategy and business development specialist with experience in advertising, consumer packaged goods marketing, and technology-focused solution consulting. Raised in New Jersey, she was introduced early to an entrepreneurial... Show more

Dr. Joel Ross has dedicated nearly 40 years to medicine as a physician, clinical researcher, teacher, lecturer, and author. His professional life reflects a consistent commitment to patient care, medical education, and clinical research, with a strong focus on older adults. His achievements include being named Teacher of the Year, becoming the first geriatrician in New Jersey, and establishing the state's first geriatric fellowship program. He has also been recognized as a Best Doctor in New Jersey and has contributed to the development of FDA-approved oral and transdermal medications for Alzheimer’s disease. He is the founder and CEO of J&D Pharmaceuticals LLC in Monmouth, New Jersey.

His clinical expertise centers on geriatric medicine, including the diagnosis and treatment of conditions associated with aging. Dr. Ross has focused on caring for patients with cognitive disorders while also managing a wide range of medical conditions that affect older adults. His work emphasizes careful evaluation, evidence-based decision-making, and long-term continuity of care.

On a personal level, he has been happily married for nearly 47 years and maintains an active lifestyle. He is ranked number one in the country at the highest level of expertise in men’s doubles pickleball, ages 70-74, and is ranked in the top 5 nationally in men’s singles. His accomplishments include many gold, silver, and bronze medals earned in both singles and doubles competition.

Dr. Joel Ross received his undergraduate education at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, where he earned a BA in Biology. He later obtained his Medical Degree from Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn and became chief resident at Nassau County Medical Center. He completed a Fellowship in Geriatric Medicine at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York under the mentorship of Dr. Robert N. Butler, the first Director of the National Institute on Aging.

Following his formal training, he was selected as the first Medical Director of the Anna Alexander Greenwall Geriatric Program at Monmouth Medical Center, an endowed position. He also served as Director of the Geriatric Fellowship Program at Monmouth Medical Center, which became the first geriatric fellowship program in New Jersey and trained physicians who later practiced throughout the state and the United States.

He later served for seven years as Director of the Geriatrics Section in the Department of Internal Medicine at Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune. In 2000, he opened the Memory Enhancement Center of America in New York and New Jersey, where multidisciplinary teams provided care for patients with cognitive disorders and conducted clinical research focused on Alzheimer’s disease.

Dr. Joel Ross has also played an essential role in pharmaceutical development and clinical research leadership. He co-founded RN NanoPharmaceuticals, LLC, in Monmouth Beach, and in 2023, founded J&D Pharmaceuticals, continuing his long-standing focus on translating scientific research into potential treatments for severe medical conditions.

Through this work, he and his collaborators completed an animal study on traumatic brain injury at the University of Oklahoma. In that study, proprietary compound JD-005 reduced acetylated tau levels and significantly improved neurological outcomes in rats following head trauma.

He and his colleagues at the University of Florida in Gainesville are currently conducting clinical research examining acetylated tau as a biomarker in traumatic brain injury patients. J&D Pharmaceuticals has received three Orphan Drug Designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for compounds JD-004 and JD-005, including for Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease, Progeria and related laminopathies, and hepatocellular carcinoma. In addition to his research leadership, he has lectured widely, authored peer-reviewed publications, holds several patents, and volunteers at Parker Health Center in Red Bank, where he provides free medical care, testing, and medications to underserved populations.

Dr. Joel Ross has dedicated nearly 40 years to medicine as a physician, clinical researcher, teacher, lecturer, and author. His professional life reflects a consistent commitment to patient care, medical education, and clinical research, with a stron... Show more

Chris Fuller is co-founder and Chief Product Officer at Spacewalk AI in California. He was previously a product leader at Obsidian Security and, before that, an Intelligence Officer at GCHQ. He has a PhD in observational astrophysics.

Chris Fuller is co-founder and Chief Product Officer at Spacewalk AI in California. He was previously a product leader at Obsidian Security and, before that, an Intelligence Officer at GCHQ. He has a PhD in observational astrophysics. Show more

Experienced data engineer, building reliable scalable data pipelines for enabling scientific research.

Experienced data engineer, building reliable scalable data pipelines for enabling scientific research. Show more

Shana is an accomplished Senior Architect with over 13 years of experience and a strong foundation in Cyber Security and Software development. She has successfully led and delivered complex, high-quality consulting and architecture projects, including systems of critical national importance. Shana has also played a pivotal role in architecting one of the largest cloud transformations and migrations in Europe and designed an award-winning CIAM solution for a major electricity system operator.

A passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion in technology, Shana has been instrumental in establishing and driving internal communities within the organisations she has worked for. She is dedicated to attracting, retaining, and promoting women in tech. Shana is also the founder of ArchitectHer, a community platform devoted to supporting, inspiring, and elevating women in technology architecture.

Shana is an accomplished Senior Architect with over 13 years of experience and a strong foundation in Cyber Security and Software development. She has successfully led and delivered complex, high-quality consulting and architecture projects, includin... Show more

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

Chanel Power doesn't just build technology — she builds the systems that determine who gets to.

A Senior Machine Learning Engineer, Developer Relations leader, and Founder & CEO of Mentor Me Collective, Chanel operates at the intersection of technical excellence and global access. She has shipped production ML systems, advised 30+ early-stage AI product teams annually, and built a global technical institute serving 40K+ developers across 120+ countries, generating $45M+ in career outcomes for 600+ first-generation technologists.

Mentor Me Collective is a Google for Startups partner, Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center alumni, and by every measure, a developer relations program at true scale, with enablement programs running at 3x industry engagement benchmarks and partnerships spanning Google Cloud, IBM, and Grow with Google.

Her technical range is matched by her ability to translate it across engineering rooms, executive briefings, and communities the industry too often overlooks.

Chanel works at the frontier of Generative AI, Agentic AI, and accelerated computing. She builds fast, speaks plain, and closes the gap between what's possible and who gets to build it.

She is not building toward legacy. She is already living it.

Chanel Power doesn't just build technology — she builds the systems that determine who gets to. A Senior Machine Learning Engineer, Developer Relations leader, and Founder & CEO of Mentor Me Collective, Chanel operates at the intersection of techn... Show more

Gloria Manavi is a Clinical AI Researcher within the MATRIX AI Consortium at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She holds a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering and specializes in designing human-centered evaluation frameworks, interactive testing platforms, and clinician feedback mechanisms for healthcare AI. Her current research focuses on human-in-the-loop validation of generative AI models, with an emphasis on incorporating clinical expertise into decision support for high-acuity trauma care.

Gloria Manavi is a Clinical AI Researcher within the MATRIX AI Consortium at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She holds a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering and specializes in designing human-centered evaluation frameworks, interactiv... Show more