Didem Ün Ateş is an internationally recognized expert in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Generative AI, and Responsible AI, with over 25 years of experience in technology strategy, innovation, and business transformation. She is the Founder and CEO of LotusAI Ltd, advising global Private Equity firms, Hedge Funds, and Financial Institutions on AI strategies and implementations. Previously, Didem served as Vice President of AI Strategy & Innovation at Schneider Electric and has held leadership roles at Microsoft, Accenture, and Motorola.

A passionate advocate for diversity in technology, she initiated the ‘Girls in AI’ hackathons, fostering increased female participation in the AI sector. Didem is also a certified executive coach and has been recognized with multiple awards, including the TechWomen100 Champion and Trailblazer 50.

Pankaj Kedia is a globally recognized AI thought leader with over three decades of experience across the Internet, Mobile, Cloud, and AI technology eras. As the Founder and Managing Partner of 2468 Ventures, he has invested in 150+ early-stage startups and 15+ VC funds across silicon, systems, software, and services, currently focusing on accelerating the AI ecosystem. He is a sought-after Chief AI Officer and CXO advisor, consulting with leading names in the professional services (e.g., BCG), healthcare (e.g., Biossmann), financial (e.g., Goldman Sachs), enterprise (e.g., Mason), and technology (e.g., Wearable Devices) sectors.

Previously, as a Tech Intrapreneur at Intel and Qualcomm, Pankaj has been credited for driving the growth of the Internet with laptop PCs, establishing mobile Internet with smartphones, and capitalizing on cloud expansion with IOT and wearable devices. Pankaj is an adjunct MBA professor for AI at the University of San Diego and serves on multiple public, private, and non-profit boards of AI companies. He holds degrees from the University of Michigan, The Wharton School, Stanford University, and the Indian Institute of Technology. Pankaj has been recognized with the Lifetime AI Innovation Award by TiE, inclusion in the CXO Innovators Circle by Bloomberg, and the Global AI150 Honoree by Constellation Research for his contributions as an investor, inventor, and intrapreneur.

Jennifer Lee is a senior investor relations professional experienced in facilitating venture capital investments between the U.S. and Asia while guiding startups through fundraising and strategic communications from inception to IPO. She is also an accomplished host and moderator at major tech conferences, fostering dialogue among global leaders in AI, cloud, and blockchain. Previously, she served as a financial news anchor for Phoenix Television, delivering Wall Street insights to a global audience of over 360 million.

Jennifer earned her MBA from The Wharton School, where she was a Wharton-Omnicom Communication Fellow and recipient of the Joseph Wharton Fellowship. She currently serves as VP of the Wharton Club of Taiwan.

Balu Masti is a DeepTech entrepreneur and global startup enabler who works with early-stage startups across the USA, EU, Japan, and India. He collaborates with top accelerators like UC Berkeley SkyDeck (also serves as the India Ambassador for Skydeck), and CMU’s Venture Bridge, AI @ Wharton, and Indian hubs such as IIM-B NSRCEL, IIM-K Live, NASSCOM, and THub.

As co-founder of HUM Consulting Services, he guides startups on product market fit, GTM, architecture, product development, staffing, resourcing and scalability. Balu is building Industry-Academia collaborations that help startups and academia. Balu was an engineering leader at Qualcomm and Intel. Balu is helping and advising top student SIGs in UC Berkeley, including AI Entrepreneurs @ Berkeley and UX @ Berkeley. At RV University, Bangalore, he leads international startup collaborations.

Balu is also an Indian Carnatic Classical musician and a professional level Saraswathi Veena artist. He is also a yoga teacher and a champion for student entrepreneurship and STEAM education.

Gary Richman is a seasoned strategy, marketing, and business leader with over 30 years of experience in the technology industry. As the principal of Gary Richman Consulting, based in Los Gatos, California, he advises startups and small to medium-sized businesses on strategic planning and marketing initiatives. Gary holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from The Wharton School. His career includes significant roles at Intel Corporation, where he led marketing organizations for various divisions, contributing to the launch of innovative products like touch screens on laptops.

Beyond his professional endeavors, Gary is an accomplished speaker, having instructed courses on strategic thinking for marketing professionals, and co-authored a case study, published in the Journal of Critical Incidents. He also has a history of community involvement, including leadership roles in youth development programs, as well as a private practice in college counseling.

Achim Welter has 30 years of international IT leadership and strategy experience across different industries. He is the Vice President for Enterprise Data and Architecture at The Hershey Company. In his current role he is leading the development and implementation of Hershey’s Enterprise Data Strategy, accelerating the leverage of data analytics and AI. Before he led Hershey’s multi-year ERP implementation. Prior to joining Hershey, Achim was Senior IT Strategy Manager at Accenture, advising clients on how to leverage & operate IT to drive their business strategy. Prior to Accenture, Achim worked as Business Solution Architect for Fiserv’s Healthcare Banking and Payment Division.

Prior to Fiserv he worked at Bertelsmann AG where he held various positions and roles starting from a consultant to CIO/CTO for some of their international subsidiaries. Achim holds a M.S. in Computer Science from the University of the German Armed Forces in Munich, and MBA from The Wharton School.