Debbie Irwin is a founder advocate, ecosystem builder, and the Executive Director of Lighthouse Network, a Richmond, Virginia-based founder development organization with a 13-year track record supporting over 153 companies, 17 exits, and more than $500 million in capital raised. She also serves as Managing Director of Lighthouse Network Ventures LLC, the organization's for-profit innovation arm. Debbie came to this work the hard way. Before stepping into ecosystem leadership, she was a founder herself, and when her business failed, she nearly lost herself in the process. That experience didn't push her away from entrepreneurship; it made her determined to build something better for the founders who would come after her. She has been working in founder development since 2015, and when she took over Lighthouse Network, she fundamentally redirected its mission around one core belief: that building great companies starts with building whole, resilient people. That belief is the foundation of the Founder Mobility Index, a proprietary framework measuring founder growth across mindset, resilience, self-awareness, and the capacity to lead through ambiguity. Debbie has been a consistent voice at the intersection of capital access, ecosystem equity, and policy. She lives in Richmond with her husband and three kiddos.

Kamel Greene is a two-time venture-backed founder and the Founder and CEO of FibrX, a dual-use deep technology company building the next generation of infrastructure intelligence for aerospace, defense, energy, and industrial markets. By combining fiber optics, artificial intelligence, edge analytics, and digital twin technology, FibrX enables real-time visibility into mission-critical systems to improve reliability, extend asset life, and transform how infrastructure is monitored and maintained. Prior to FibrX, Kamel founded and scaled Poly Platform, a GovTech company focused on modernizing public engagement for U.S. cities, and worked in national security at the National Nuclear Security Administration in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Kamel is a graduate of Techstars Columbus powered by The Ohio State University and holds a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Brigham Young University, where he was also a Division I football athlete. His work today is focused on turning emerging technologies into scalable platforms that strengthen infrastructure, advance industry, and expand what is possible.

Donna Harris is CEO of Builders + Backers, creator of an AI-powered platform that helps anyone turn ideas into successful and growing businesses. Through the platform and its nationwide network of partners, Builders + Backers is making entrepreneurship more accessible by giving everyday people the tools, guidance, and confidence to build ventures. A six-time entrepreneur with multiple exits, Harris is also an active angel and venture capital investor. She serves as General Partner at 1776 Ventures and has been recognized by Business Insider as one of the world's top 25 female seed investors. Through her widely read Builder's Field Guide, Harris explores how AI is reshaping entrepreneurship, investing, and economic opportunity. She argues that AI is dramatically lowering the barriers to starting a business, creating an unprecedented opportunity for millions more people to become entrepreneurs. Harris serves on the Board of the Global Entrepreneurship Network and the Policy Council of the Economic Innovation Group.

Rick Harlow is a partner at Physics of Creativity, a Grand Rapids design studio and innovation office, with 25 years of building value across consulting, product innovation, and customer experience.

As Chief Partnerships Officer at Rev1 Ventures, Julia Dewey leads marketing and strategic collaboration with private and public sector funding partners, including corporates, research institutions, and economic development entities. Rev1 is a Midwest venture studio that partners with innovators in SaaS/AI, deep tech, and life sciences, helping startups validate markets, gain traction, and become venture ready. Julia's partnerships team works with enterprises to innovate through Rev1's startup studio framework, helping to source, vet, engage, and invest in market-leading technologies. Prior to Rev1 Ventures, Julia played instrumental roles in scaling and shaping several notable organizations. At CoverMyMeds, she helped navigate the company through a billion-dollar acquisition, expanding market reach through the development of health plan and payer partnerships. She also held key positions at CAS, where she led commercial and academic partnerships that facilitated the exchange of scientific knowledge and drove innovation across various sectors. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Master's in Public Health, both from The Ohio State University. This foundation gives her a unique perspective, blending scientific rigor with a comprehensive understanding of healthcare dynamics and their impact on entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Kris Rockwell operates at the intersection of venture capital, emerging technology, and philanthropic leadership. With more than fifteen years of experience in the eLearning industry, he subsequently led the S. Kent Rockwell Foundation, advancing initiatives in conservation, entrepreneurship, and addiction recovery. He currently serves as President of the Kris Rockwell Foundation, Founder of AoS Ventures — a Pittsburgh-based venture capital firm — Head of Product Development at Play Piper, Inc., a San Francisco-based edtech company, and Co-Founder of Praxis Science, which applies artificial intelligence and blockchain technologies to decentralized scientific research. Kris also serves on the boards of the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, the National Deer Association, The Kiski School, Indifly, and the Minority Outdoor Alliance. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Information Systems and Communications at Robert Morris University.

Alex Husted is a Partner at OH.io, a performance venture platform backed by Ratmir Timashev, where he sources, evaluates, and selects the B2B software and AI startups the firm partners with. OH.io helps founders build predictable, scalable revenue with a mission to make Columbus a top-tier global tech hub and bring 100 software and AI companies to Ohio. Before OH.io, Alex led venture capital and fund strategy for The Ohio State University and co-founded multiple startups.

Jason Mejeur is the Co-Founder and CEO of Coya, a pioneering health and performance coaching platform that integrates wearable technology, behavioral science, and personalized coaching to help individuals achieve peak performance and longevity. Jason spent 15 years coaching college basketball, developing a deep understanding of motivation, accountability, and sustained excellence under pressure. He now brings those locker-room-tested motivational techniques into the boardroom, helping business professionals and leaders perform at their best. His approach is also shaped by his personal health journey, including a 30-pound weight loss achieved through sustainable habit changes over three years. Through his work at Coya, Jason inspires individuals and organizations to take ownership of their health, performance, and long-term success.

Mickayla is Partner at Groove Capital, a pre-seed venture fund and angel network focused on Minnesota companies. Mickayla is the creator and visionary behind the annual conference, Angel Fest, which has quickly become a beloved early-stage investor conference. Additionally, Mickayla is a columnist at Twin Cities Business Magazine writing on early-stage investing. Mickayla served as a Fellow at Forge North, leading their statewide initiative to engage more angels, especially women and underrepresented investors for four years. Previously, Mickayla first started out in private equity through her work at the North Dakota/Minnesota EB-5 Regional Center – which helped local companies secure foreign investments through the federal EB-5 investment program. Mickayla quickly earned the trust of her board and respect of industry peers. At 25, Mickayla took over as the Director of the Regional Center where she led the organization to its first year of profitability and grew their portfolio from $1M to $138M in foreign investments over her tenure. As a result this investment created a total of 52,650 direct and indirect jobs. Mickayla then went on to serve as the Chief Strategy Officer of Proxy Financial. Mickayla also worked at the Department of Homeland Security's Center of Innovation, working with industry giants like Intel and IBM. Mickayla first cut her teeth in venture in 2009 at Dakota Venture Group. Mickayla has been recognized as 40 Under 40; Minnesota business leaders to watch in 2023; and 2022 Women in Business Honoree, among others. She also obtained a series 82 and series 63 license.

Tim Grace is Managing Director at Techstars Columbus powered by The Ohio State University, where he invests in founders building AI-native and deep tech solutions for critical industries - Aerospace, Advanced Manufacturing & Defense. Prior to Techstars, he co-founded and led LongJump, a first-check venture fund based in Chicago that has backed nearly 50 companies since 2021, becoming one of the most active pre-seed investors in the Midwest. Tim also previously co-founded Draftbit, a no-code, collaborative product development tool focused on mobile apps, backed by YC. Before diving headlong into entrepreneurship, he had a long career in product management where he held early-team roles in product leadership at Trunk Club, Signal, Apartments.com and Cars.com. Sometimes he runs marathons.

Andy Sparks is an executive coach who works with 20 startup CEOs. He spent a decade as a founder, co-founding Mattermark (a B2B analytics company that grew to $5M ARR and 150,000 newsletter subscribers) and Holloway (a digital book publishing company). He raised over $20 million in venture capital, wrote The Holloway Guide to Raising Venture Capital, and is building Management Craft, a library of mental models and frameworks for management.

Alex Frommeyer is co-founder and chairman of Beam Benefits, a technology-enabled insurance company serving more than 500,000 members in 47 states that has raised $250M from Kleiner Perkins, Drive Capital, and more. Today, Fro is founder and CEO of Stack Health, which is building a more transparent and consumer-driven healthcare system and aims to accelerate the transition to healthcare being owned by individuals rather than employers.

Michelle has more than 25 years of finance, accounting, administration and investment experience, in publicly traded, privately held and not for profit corporations, startups and billion-dollar enterprises, regional investment funds, investment advisory service firms and highly performing national funds. Michelle has served as a C-level consultant to early-stage start-up companies since 2013 providing strategic financial services as their contract Chief Financial Officer, advising on a number of complex financial transactions, and to an investment advisory firm as Venture Partner, supporting the investment process for Series B, C and later stage syndicated venture transactions, including due diligence, financial modeling, investment document preparation and portfolio reporting. She launched Book+Street in early 2018 to address a big gap in the startup ecosystem in the Midwest, providing on-demand CFO and controllership services to a growing number of tech and service companies throughout Ohio. Michelle is a Certified Public Accountant in addition to her Certified Equity Professional designation, earned a BS in Business Administration with an emphasis in Service Sector Management from California State University, San Marcos, and an MBA from The Ohio State University.

Spencer Abrams moves product teams from discussion to direction. As Principal Product Manager at Innovatemap, he helps teams clarify what success looks like, align on priorities, and build the roadmap to get there. With experience at companies like Salesforce, DemandJump, and Aha!, he knows what it takes to lead cross-functional teams, ask the tough questions, and keep progress steady. Spencer is sharp on the details but always tuned to the bigger picture—what matters to the user, what drives business value, and what's possible with the team in place. He's known for tackling hard conversations with honesty and care, helping teams move past blockers and toward real progress. Ask anyone who's worked with him—Spencer brings focus, candor, and accountability when clarity matters most.

Brian Folmer is the founder of FirstLook, and Managing Partner of FirstLook Ventures. FirstLook is a private investor group that provides members intimate community, deep network connections, and proprietary access to top tier Pre-seed through Series B consumer brand deals. FirstLook Ventures is an LP syndicate that invests $300K-$600K into Series A and B consumer brands. Brian is a native Clevelander and proud Ohio State Alum. He believes founders are the dreamers in action and lifeblood of the global economy. Their efforts drive innovation, push the world forward, and shape human history.

Give Kristin something messy to untangle, and she's already three steps ahead. She started her career in UX research, which shaped her belief that great products start with understanding people. Now, as a Senior Product Designer, she helps leaders move from ideas to polished, high-impact experiences, guided by clear goals, real user needs, and the realities of scale. She's worked across startups and PE-backed SaaS companies, so she knows how to chart a path toward traction and growth without losing momentum. At Innovatemap, Kristin turns concepts into usable products. She synthesizes research, maps flows, and designs interfaces that make sense to both users and the business. She's quick to bring AI into her process to move faster through exploration, but the judgment behind every decision is still hers. She explores every option, then chooses the simplest, most effective path forward for each partner. Teams appreciate Kristin for how she helps them think. She makes complex problems approachable, builds shared understanding, and leaves stakeholders confident in both the design and the plan to bring it to life.

Wolf Starr is the founder of Venture Atlas, a venture and leadership advisory firm working with family offices, angel networks, and venture capital teams to build modern, inclusive investment platforms. His work focuses on capital strategy, community engagement, and network design—helping investors align strong financial performance with measurable social and economic impact.

Suresh Rachuri is an entrepreneur, growth executive, and exited founder who has spent more than two decades helping companies grow from vision to value. After building and successfully exiting his own technology consulting firm, he now advises founders on leadership, AI, scaling operations, and strategic execution to help create companies that attract customers, talent, and investment.

Arnab Nandi is a Professor of Computer Science & Engineering at The Ohio State University. He has been recognized by the Association for Computing Machinery as an ACM Distinguished Member for his contributions to human-in-the-loop data infrastructure, next-generation query interfaces, and interactive data analytics systems. At Ohio State, he co-founded the OHI/O Program, that fosters a tech culture through hackathons and informal learning, and The STEAM Factory, an interdisciplinary research and collaboration network. Arnab is a recipient of the US National Science Foundation's CAREER Award, a Google Faculty Research Award, and IEEE's TCDE Early Career Award for his contributions towards user-focused data interaction. Previously, Arnab was founder and CEO of Mobikit, a connected vehicles data analytics startup that was acquired by Azuga Inc., a Bridgestone company. Arnab holds a PhD in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Michigan.

Adam Berk has spent nearly two decades inside the machinery of startup programs — designing them, running them, mentoring through them, and eventually writing the book on them. He is the co-author of Startup Program Design (McGraw-Hill, 2022, with Paolo Lombardi, PhD), a working handbook for the accelerators, incubators, corporate innovation teams, and civic economic-development groups that want to stop guessing and start compounding. It's a book built from practice, not theory: the frameworks in it were earned across cohort programs in cities, universities, and corporations throughout the U.S. and Europe. Adam is the son of two Buckeyes. His mentoring résumé runs through Google for Startups, Lean Startup Co. — where he holds a dual role as faculty and the in-house practitioner running real startup work alongside the teaching — and Techstars (Columbus), where he has served across several cohorts as both mentor and "experi-mentor". With Paolo Lombardi, Adam is co-organizing All Innovation Roads Lead to Rome, a hybrid summit taking place November 5, 2026. The event centers on the future of startup programs and how AI is changing the way they're run — from sponsor discovery and cohort curation to founder go-to-market support and program operations. Beyond programs, Adam works directly with founders on funding: he helps them find angel investors who invest in their sprints and experiments — backing the learning, not just the pitch. He also runs the WPAYS Fund, a small "n+1" grant model that rewards founders for sharing what they learn back into a peer-reviewed community. Underneath all of it is a single through-line: Adam is interested in ecosystems, both literal and figurative — the natural ones outside his Michigan home and the innovation ones he's spent his career helping build. He thinks they follow the same rules: diversity beats monoculture, healthy systems compound quietly, and the most important work usually happens beneath the surface. Adam graduated from Emory University in 2000 and is based in Michigan. The one question he keeps asking every founder he meets — and the one he'll be asking in Columbus — is simple: what problem are you solving?

Densil Porteous is a nationally recognized nonprofit executive, strategist, investor, and movement leader whose career has been defined by one central belief: lasting change happens when people are equipped, connected, and inspired to lead. As Vice President of Volunteer Leadership at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), he works with volunteer leaders in more than 30 communities across the United States, strengthening the organization's national network of grassroots leadership and helping build the people-powered movement advancing LGBTQ+ equality. Before joining HRC, Densil served for six years as Executive Director and CEO of Stonewall Columbus, one of the nation's largest LGBTQ+ community centers. Under his leadership, the organization experienced significant growth in community engagement, fundraising, strategic partnerships, and year-round programming while navigating unprecedented challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and a rapidly evolving landscape for LGBTQ+ advocacy. His tenure was marked by a focus on organizational sustainability, civic engagement, and expanding opportunities for LGBTQ+ people to connect, thrive, and lead. Earlier in his career, Densil held leadership roles spanning enrollment management, marketing, communications, advancement, and strategic partnerships at Stanford University, Kenyon College, Columbus College of Art & Design, the Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University, and UC San Diego Extension. He later founded DePorteous, a strategic advisory practice focused on leadership, innovation, and organizational growth, and has advised startups and emerging companies across education technology, civic innovation, and the nonprofit sector. Densil also brings a unique perspective from the venture capital ecosystem. He served as the founding CEO of Pride Fund 1, one of the nation's first venture capital funds dedicated to investing in LGBTQ+-led and LGBTQ+-affirming businesses, helping establish the fund's strategy, operations, and national presence. Throughout his career, he has advised founders, investors, and entrepreneurial organizations, bringing together the disciplines of innovation, philanthropy, and community impact. A trusted voice on leadership, nonprofit governance, volunteer engagement, organizational strategy, and inclusive community building, Densil has served on numerous nonprofit and civic boards, including the Human Rights Campaign Board of Directors, Advocates for Youth, Equitas Health, The Columbus Foundation's Legacy Fund, Experience Columbus, and the Columbus LGBTQ+ Affairs Commission. Originally from Jamaica and now based in Columbus, Ohio, Densil's own journey informs his work and perspective. As an immigrant, naturalized American, Black queer leader, husband, and father, he brings an authentic and intersectional lens to conversations about identity, community, and public life.

Abby Danger Grimm is a leader at Cintrifuse, where she helps grow the StartupCincy innovation ecosystem by connecting entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, universities, and civic partners. Prior to her work in economic development, she helped lead U.S. market expansion for global retailer UNIQLO before transitioning into community-building and organizational strategy. She is also the founder of RADICO, which helps civic organizations move with the speed and mindset of startups, and currently serves as Interim Executive Director of the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce, where she is leading an innovative regional partnership model for neighborhood business advocacy. Abby is passionate about building stronger communities through collaboration, innovation, and bold ideas that create lasting civic impact.

Helen Todd is Co-Founder of CincyAI for Humans, Ohio's largest AI community, and Founder of Tide Rise, a consent-based community intelligence platform reimagining how organizations listen, learn, and coordinate with the people they serve. After founding one of the first-ever dedicated social media agencies, Sociality Squared, in 2010 in New York City, Helen is now based in Cincinnati, where she champions responsible machine intelligence, publishes the Creativity Squared newsletter, and speaks to the emerging Imagination Age — a future centered on human agency, creativity, and community. Her work explores how conversational technologies can strengthen human relationships, cognition, and collective capacity. An award-winning marketer, SXSW Conference Advisory Board member, and international speaker — including a SXSW Featured Session — Helen is known for translating complex technological change into practical, human-centered ideas people can understand and apply. Helen earned her B.S.B.A. in Marketing from Xavier University and her M.A. in Integrated Marketing Communications from Emerson College. She serves on ASCEND, Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval's AI task force.