Founder and Principal, Leke Services
Focus Areas: Innovation and technology adoption, operations, strategic planning and management
Industry Experience: Smart cities and Internet of Things, space exploration and aerospace, transportation and mobility
About Me: I am the founder and principal of Leke Services, a consultancy that partners with leaders to improve performance margins by helping to instill operational discipline. With more than a decade of experience across companies such as McKinsey, Navistar, Faraday Future & TrueCar, I specialize in helping mobility companies address challenges with the energy transition while establishing sustainable operations. I have aerospace and mechanical engineering degrees from 91ÖÆƬ³§ Tech's Armour College of Engineering, an M.B.A. from Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, and I live in Los Angeles with my wife.
Irewole Akande (Wole)
General Manager, Utility Services Ltd. | Product Manager, Microsoft
Focus Areas: Research & Development, Design, Innovation and Technology Adoption
Industry Experience: Artificial Intelligence, Smart Cities & IoT, Technology Innovation
About Me: A passionate electronics engineer & software product leader with 8 years of experience innovating at the Intersection of AI, Hardware, Public Health, and Enterprise Technology. I’m passionate about helping businesses unlock their potential through technology. Whether it’s defining a product vision, streamlining development processes, or integrating cutting-edge hardware and software solutions, I aim to empower teams to create products that solve real problems, delight users, and drive measurable growth. Let me assist you in turning ideas into impactful, market-ready innovations.
Iskandar Gadirzade
Founder, BLD Consult | Private Equity & Startup Advisor
Startup Focus Areas:
Fundraising & Finance Strategy, Strategic Planning & Management, Supply Chain & Logistics
Industry experience:
Transportation & Mobility, Space Exploration & Aerospace, Quantum
About Me: I’m a business designer, entrepreneur, and private equity advisor who has built and exited multiple companies in transportation and logistics. I advise funds and founders by combining commercial due diligence with human-centered design to create practical, scalable growth strategies.
Deborah Hill
Executive in Residence
Focus Areas: Operations, Public Speaking & Pitching, Strategic Planning & Management
Industry Experience: FinTech, Healthcare & MedTech, SaaS
About Me: Deborah activates start-ups by identifying, evaluating and growing market opportunities and revenue. She also serves on two boards. Her previous experience includes executive and C-level roles at eight startups, three of which had exits. Deborah holds a BA in Economic Theory, an MBA and is a CAIA certification. Outside of work, she enjoys Dragon Boating and volunteering.
CFO, The Boring Company
Focus Areas: Fundraising and finance strategy, sales, strategic planning and management
Industry Experience: Artificial intelligence, software as a service (SaaS), transportation and mobility
About Me: I am an operator, advisor, and investor with growth companies in the areas of strategy, finance, and operations. I have held operational and leadership positions in a variety of sectors building useful products and services including communications satellites, flying cars, enterprise software, and underground transportation systems.
Haibo Lu
CEO/Co-Founder of SmashUp Sports
Focus Areas: Product and Design, Public Speaking and Pitching, Strategic Planning and Management
Industry Experience: Entertainment and Media, Healthcare and Medtech, SaaS
About Me: Haibo is a multiple time founder and entrepreneur. He co-founded CancerIQ—an enterprise digital health SaS company as well as SmashUp Sports, a fantasy sports strategy company. Prior experience includes Director of Basketball Operations for the Shanghai Sharks and quant analyst at a quantitative hedge fund. He received his B.A. from Harvard University and his M.B.A from University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Arunava (Ron) Majumdar
Founder, CEO, Research Net.AI
Focus Areas: Research & Development, Automation and Software Engineering, AI
Industry Experience: Artificial Intelligence, Biotechnology, Technology Innovation
About Me: Arunava (Ron) Majumdar is the former Head of IBM Center for Advanced Studies (CAS) US and the coordinator for CAS India, CAS Australia and CAS Africa. He was the Principal Solution Architect with more than 28 years of software design, architecture and development leading the IBM Application Modernization portfolio for Signature Telecommunication Accounts. Ron spearheaded numerous Academic Research initiatives with top universities (NC State, Northwestern, University of Chicago, etc.) across multiple industries. He has led teams and provided Architecture Solutions, Design, Development and Deployment of 50+ Projects with 40+ Fortune 500.
Seth Rao
Co-Founder and CEO, FirstEigen
Focus Areas: Cloud data management and data governance
Industry Experience: Artificial Intelligence, data, and software as a service (SaaS)
About Me: I serve as the co-founder and CEO of FirstEigen, a pioneering startup that specializes in autonomous data quality validation. Through FirstEigen's innovative software, I lead efforts to ensure the accuracy and reliability of operational and transactional data, fostering its integrity for diverse applications. Before establishing FirstEigen, I held diverse and impactful roles, including corporate venture capital positions, overseeing profit and loss for a multinational 3D printing business, engaging in mergers and acquisitions, serving as a management consultant, conducting research and development as an engineer, and delving extensively into analytics, notably during and following completion of a Ph.D.
Charlie Sommers
Attorney, Founders Law
Focus Area: Corporate Law
Industry Experience: Entity formation and incorporation, venture-backed financings, commercial contracting
About Me: I am a startup attorney who counsels innovators from all backgrounds. By forming a relationship with my clients at the idea stage, I understand their non-negotiable entrepreneurial principles and use this to tailor a legal strategy to their individual needs. As outside corporate counsel, my approach goes beyond a recitation of the law; I actively engage clients on the business side as well, illustrating the implications of legal approaches on business initiatives.
Program Manager, mHUB Climate and Energy Accelerator
Focus Areas: Fundraising and finance strategy, public speaking and pitching, strategic planning and management
Industry Experience: Sustainability and greentech, hardware/hardtech, wellness
About Me: I am the program manager for the mHUB Climate and EnergyTech Accelerator, and I am responsible for tech sourcing, evaluation, and program operations. My passion for helping early stage founders came from my time at the University of Dayton, where as an undergrad, I was part of the first cohort of Leonardo Enterprises, a university-ran incubator. Since then, I have worked at worldwide startup accelerator organizations such as gener8tor and Techstars, along with Chicago-based tech and Innovation non-profit P33. I am also the co-host of the podcast Ventures by the Lake, which talks with Chicago-based founders, community leaders, and investors to showcase how to turn your side project into a business and a full-time job.