Get Inspired
Find insight and inspiration to conquer the world. Check out our lineup of headline speakers.
Sunday Fireside Chat
John Dearie
Founder & President, Center for American Entrepreneurship
John Dearie is the Founder and President of the Center for American Entrepreneurship (CAE), a nonpartisan research, policy and advocacy organization – founded in 2017 and based in Washington, DC – that works with US policymakers on behalf of American entrepreneurs and startups.
As technology transfer continues to evolve from a transactional model to one that is heavy with startup development, Dearie will address the importance of sound public policy to thriving entrepreneurship, including expanding I-Corps, SBIR programming, full implementation of the CHIPS and Science Act, high-skilled immigration reform and improving access to capital for women founders and entrepreneurs of color.
Dearie is the former Acting CEO of the Financial Services Forum, a financial and economic policy organization composed of the CEOs of the largest financial institutions in the US. Prior to the Forum, he spent nine years at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York where he held positions in the Banking Studies, Foreign Exchange, and Policy and Analysis areas.
He is the co-author of Where the Jobs Are: Entrepreneurship and the Soul of the American Economy, which was lauded by the American Enterprise Institute. His writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Financial Times, The Hill, Politico, American Banker and USA Today.
Sponsored by
Monday Keynote
Ed Damiano, PhD
Founder & Executive Chair, Beta Bionics
Ed Damiano, PhD, is a co-founder of Beta Bionics. Ever since his son developed Type 1 diabetes at 11 months of age, Damiano has been committed to building a bihormonal bionic pancreas. He has been a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University since 2004. He was an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois prior to that. Damiano received a PhD in Applied Mechanics and a BS in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MS in Mechanical Engineering from Washington University in St. Louis. (Photo Credit: PBS)
Sponsored by
Tuesday Keynote
The Present and Future of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Hilary Mason
Co-founder and CEO of Hidden Door, Founder of Fast Forward Labs
Hilary Mason's career is defined by pushing the limits of what big data and machine learning can achieve. She is the co-founder and CEO of Hidden Door, a gameplay platform that uses generative artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLMs) to allow users to play in the world of their favorite book, movie or TV show. She is also the founder of Fast Forward Labs, a machine intelligence research company.
In her former role as the Data Scientist in Residence at Accel, a leading Silicon Valley venture capital firm, she advised companies large and small on their data strategy. In her four-year tenure as Chief Scientist for bitly, the popular link-shortening service, she led a team that studied attention on the internet in real time, doing a mix of research, exploration and engineering.
Mason is the co-founder of hackNY, a non-profit that helps talented engineering students find their way into the startup community of creative technologists in New York City; co-host of DataGotham, an annual event for professionals involved in data science; and member of NYCResistor. She advises a number of companies, including Mortar, collective[i], DataKind, Betaspring, and TechStars New York City. She also served on Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Technology and Innovation Advisory Council.
Mason was one of Fast Company's 100 Most Creative People in Business 2013 and 1000 Most Creative People in Business 2014. Other honors include the TechFellows Engineering Leadership award, the Fortune 40 under 40 Ones to Watch list and the Crain’s New York Business 40 under 40.
Sponsored by
