Meet The Speakers

TECH Panel

Current State of Tech Founders

Sydney Holness is an investor at Collab Capital, where she leads the firm’s health tech thesis and backs companies shaping the future of care. A magna cum laude graduate of Florida A&M University, she began her entrepreneurial journey building a startup at ACT House before interning at Precursor Ventures and leading Apple’s App Design Series at Ed Farm.

She is deeply committed to expanding access to venture and education. As co-founder of the Black Venture Capital Consortium HBCU program, she has helped open pathways for the next generation of investors and founders. She also served as an adjunct professor at Morehouse College, teaching entrepreneurship and innovation.

Sydney serves on advisory boards including Miami Dade College, Georgia Tech, Founders on the Yard, and Bank of America’s Breakthrough Labs. Across her work, she focuses on supporting innovative founders and strengthening the ecosystems around them.

Sydney Holness

Investor, Collab Capital

Jay is a partner on the investing team at a16z crypto, where he focuses on application layer venture and liquid opportunities.

Prior to joining a16z in 2022, Jay was an investor at Maven Ventures, a seed-stage consumer software fund, where he led the firm’s crypto investing. Before Maven, Jay was an Analyst in Goldman Sachs’ Global Markets Division for two years. Prior to Goldman Sachs, Jay graduated from Amherst College, where he studied Law and was a member of the Men’s Track & Field team.

Jay is a proud Chicago native and currently lives in Brooklyn, New York. Outside of work, you can often find him playing basketball, running, cooking, playing the piano. He's also an avid writer, publishing on crypto, consumer software, and sports culture on his Substack blog, The Blueprint.

Jay Drain Jr.

Partner, a16Z Crypto

Gabriel Williams is a Senior Product Manager at Squarespace, where he builds products helping entrepreneurs grow their audience and scale their business. Originally from Maryland and now based in NYC, he doesn’t come from a traditional technical background. Equipped with a communication degree, a family of entrepreneurs, and a few failed business attempts in college that shaped how he approaches building products. That scrappy path led him through product and growth roles at fast-paced startups like Flocabulary and BentoBox before both were acquired. Outside of work, he regularly partners with local businesses in Maryland to advance AI literacy in his community.

Sr. Product Manager, Square Space

Gabriel Williams

Tech Workshop

Nurşen Öğütveren

Yale SOM Student

Nurşen Öğütveren is a software engineer and strategy consultant specializing in health technology and life sciences. She holds a B.S. in Computer Science and Molecular Biology from MIT, where she conducted gynepathology research. She is currently completing her MBA at Yale School of Management as a Consortium Fellow. Previously at Microsoft and Verily Life Sciences (Alphabet), she builds at the intersection of code and clinical complexity: HIPAA-compliant platforms, medical image systems, EMR integrations, and data tools for teams that speak in ICD-10 codes, cell stains, and assay protocols. In her workshop, she'll share how founders can use AI tools to punch above their weight, drawing from her own experience using AI to deliver consulting-grade market research, financial models, and working prototypes at startup speed

Healthcare Panel

Breaking into Healthcare as a First-Time Founder

Ashlee Wisdom

Founder & CEO, Health in Her Hue

Ashlee Wisdom is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Health In Her HUE, the premier digital health platform aimed at reducing racial health disparities by leveraging the power of technology, media and community to improve health outcomes for Black women and women of color.

Wisdom holds over a decade of experience working across the healthcare industry at companies such as Weill Cornell Medicine, NYC Health + Hospitals, and Junto Health. Her previous roles span grants management, clinical research and consulting strategic healthcare investors.

As a public health innovator and an advocate for equitable access to quality care, Ashlee has successfully raised over $4 million in venture capital funding to advance Health In Her HUE’s mission. Under her leadership, the platform has grown into a critical resource for Black women, connecting them to culturally responsive providers, evidence-based health content, and supportive peer communities.

Ashlee serves as a board member of the nonprofit Peer Health Exchange. Her leadership has been recognized through several prestigious fellowships and awards, including being named a 2025 Echoing Green Fellow, an Aspen Institute Healthy Communities Fellow, a First in FemTech Award recipient by FemTech Focus, and a Rock Health Top 50 in Digital Health honoree. Her thought leadership on health equity has been featured on Good Morning America, CBS News, ESSENCE, EBONY, Business Insider, Forbes, and Vogue, and she has shared her insights in a TEDx talk.

Wisdom holds a Master of Public Health in Healthcare Policy and Management from New York University’s School of Global Public Health and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Howard University.

Justin Williams is a Principal at Seae Ventures, a $200M healthcare venture capital firm investing in early-stage companies transforming care delivery and improving health outcomes. His investment focus spans behavioral health, women’s health, diagnostics, and technology-enabled care models.

Justin currently serves as a Board Director for Willow Behavioral Health and Bloomwell Autism Therapy, and as a Board Observer for Functional Fluidics and Kiyatec, where he works closely with founders scaling innovative healthcare solutions.

Prior to venture capital, Justin worked in investment banking, healthcare consulting, and the biopharmaceutical industry, experiences that shaped his focus on supporting founders building impactful healthcare companies. He holds a graduate degree in biotechnology from Morehouse School of Medicine and a finance degree from the University of Georgia where he was a Division 1 collegiate athlete.

Justin Williams

Principal, Seae Ventures

Brian Gibbs

Yale Ventures Fellow

Brian holds a Ph.D. in Cell and Developmental Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he focused on elucidating the role of genetics using multiple animal models and embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells to study congenital heart defects. As a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins Heart and Vascular Institute, Brian studied the role of Hedgehog signaling in regulating cardiac progenitor cells during heart development using novel in vivo mouse models and in vitro embryonic stem cell systems. 


Prior to joining as a Blavatnik Fellow, Brian was a life sciences venture analyst with experiences in venture capital, technology commercialization, and patent law. His background covers supporting startup development from academia to evaluating early to mid-stage biotech companies for investment opportunities.

Health Care

Workshop

Kaakpema “KP” Yelpaala

Entrepreneur

Kaakpema “KP” Yelpaala is a global entrepreneur and public health practitioner with experience working across the public and private sectors in the United States, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Caribbean. He is a Senior Fellow and Lecturer at the Yale School of Public Health and the Inaugural Faculty Director of the Future of Health Innovation Hub. His work focuses on how digital technologies, policy, and entrepreneurship can be combined to expand access to care and strengthen health systems globally.

KP has founded two venture-backed digital health companies focused on expanding access to care. In 2018, he co-founded InOn Health, which improved access to healthcare in the United States by using digital communication channels and consumer insights to better connect multicultural populations to health services. He also founded access.mobile International, a global digital health company that developed mobile-based solutions to improve access to health information and services across African countries.

During his career, KP was among the early employees of the Clinton Health Access Initiative and worked as a management consultant at Dalberg Global Development Advisors. He has also served as a digital health consultant with the World Bank.

KP is a Venture Partner at Heuristic Capital and a member of the Expert Network for Fusion Fund, a leading early-stage venture capital firm in Silicon Valley.

He received a Bachelor of Arts with Honors from Brown University and a Master of Public Health from the Yale School of Public Health. KP was named a 2023 Rock Health Top 50 in Digital Health Luminary.

SMB Panel

Scaling with Intention: Maximizing the Power of Your Capital

Jason Ray is the President & Chief Investment Officer of Zenith Wealth Partners, a Philadelphia-based firm providing financial planning and investment management to families, businesses, and institutions. He founded Zenith to address wealth disparities by expanding access to high-quality advice. Jason previously held advisory roles at Carnegie Wealth Management, FS Investments, and Lincoln Financial Group, and brings expertise in leadership, capital markets, and advice. A Princeton graduate and former Ivy League football champion, he lives in Philadelphia with his wife and two daughters and serves on several nonprofit boards.

Jason Ray

President & CIO, Zenith Wealth Partners

Amanda Morriar is a dynamic entrepreneur, visionary creative, and proud New Haven native whose career reflects both innovation and resilience. With an academic foundation in physics from Southern Connecticut State University and formal training in cosmetology from Paul Mitchell, Amanda has built a unique path that blends science, beauty, and business.

She launched her entrepreneurial journey in 2011 with the opening of her first salon: Pizazz Salon and Boutique, quickly establishing a reputation for excellence and client-centered service. By 2014, she expanded with a second location, further solidifying her presence in the beauty industry. Driven by a passion for holistic hair health, Amanda became a certified trichologist, specializing in scalp care and hair regrowth treatments. Her commitment to natural solutions led her to create Aubrey Christien, an organic haircare line now carried in multiple retail locations.

Throughout her career, Amanda has continuously invested in her growth as a leader, participating in prestigious women’s leadership cohorts at both Harvard and Cornell University. Her evolving vision led her into the world of design, where she founded Style and Stone, an interior design firm known for its refined aesthetic and attention to detail—skills she honed through years of precision in the beauty industry.

In addition to her ventures in beauty and design, Amanda is also a partner in a theater and special events venue, expanding her footprint into the hospitality and entertainment space. A dedicated mother and serial entrepreneur, she has successfully scaled multiple businesses while building a portfolio in real estate.

Amanda’s journey is a testament to perseverance, adaptability, and ambition. Through challenges and triumphs alike, she continues to create opportunities, inspire others, and leave a lasting impact across industries.

Amanda Morriar

Entrepreneur

Racheal Ankrah-Fosu is a technologist, entrepreneur, and social impact leader with over 25 years of experience spanning fintech, media, and education. She began her career at Accenture before joining the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), where she built and led a global technology performance team responsible for optimizing mission-critical trading systems. Her work contributed to the evolution of ultra-low-latency trading and supported record-breaking IPOs. She later held leadership roles at Broadridge Financial, driving global technology strategy and business development.

Beyond her corporate career, Racheal is a serial entrepreneur committed to empowering the next generation. She is the founder of CTRL ROOM, a multi-podcast studio and digital media campus focused on Gen Z technology and creative expression, and What Ya Mama Didn’t Tell Ya Media, a platform dedicated to intergenerational conversations around career, identity, and purpose. She is also the Founder and Chair of Galileo Preschools, a network of early learning centers advancing educational equity.

Racheal’s work sits at the intersection of innovation, education, and community impact. Through her ventures, leadership, and mentorship, she is dedicated to creating access, building opportunity, and equipping individuals across generations to thrive.

President & COO, ConSol USA

Racheal Ankrah-Fosu

Mark F. Hayles is CEO of Better Local Capital LLC and Better Local Ecosystems LLC, where he leads efforts to expand access to capital and build stronger local business ecosystems for underserved entrepreneurs and communities. His work focuses on innovative lending, fintech-enabled solutions, and partnerships that help small businesses, particularly BIPOC-led businesses, start, grow, and thrive.

With experience across the U.S. and Europe, Mark has worked at the intersection of community economic development, small business finance, and entrepreneurship training for many years. He previously led Connecticut’s Minority Business Growth Program at the CTSBDC and, through his work with New York City’s FastTrac program, helped graduate more than 1,000 entrepreneurs over three years while coordinating dozens of training events annually. Mark brings a practical, mission-driven perspective on capital access, ecosystem building, and the tools small businesses need to succeed.

Mark Hayles

CEO, Better Local Capital LLC & Better Local Ecosystem LLC

SMB Workshop

Eugene Morton

Entrepreneur

Eugene Morton Jr., known artistically as Gene June, is a dynamic artist, visionary event producer, and dedicated entrepreneur whose work is rooted in activating communities and shifting the culture through memorable creative experiences. He possesses a rare talent for curation and collaboration, consistently bringing together diverse artists and audiences to forge meaningful, shared moments. Gene June’s extensive portfolio shows his ability to execute culturally significant projects. His notable contributions include establishing Cita Park in New Haven and the vibrant picnic 2000. He has also played a pivotal role in the celebration of the new year, producing First Night Hartford in both 2021 and 2023. Central to his entrepreneurial efforts is Wherehouse Productions. This collective was born from the spirit of the former Hartford venue, "Wherehouse," which served as a crucial open-event space for live music, rehearsals, film shoots, and community fundraisers before the pandemic. Wherehouse Productions continues that legacy, operating in the spirit of collaboration and deep curation to create new platforms and spaces for artistic expression and community engagement across the greater Hartford area.

CT- Based Pitch Finalists

  • Anthony Valentine

    Sole Ties

    SoleTies is a social wellness brand and product ecosystem that brings people back to what matters: emotional wellness, real conversation, shared stories, and authentic connection. Through conversation driven products, immersive live experiences, and a growing digital platform, SoleTies creates structured spaces where people can reflect, express themselves, and build meaningful relationships at scale. We believe connection is more than a moment, it’s something that can be created, nurtured, and carried forward. SoleTies is building a brand around that idea.

  • Maya Caine

    Helix

    Helix is a city-first fashion marketplace that reimagines resale by turning clothing into living archives. By enabling local buying, selling, and renting while tracing each garment’s story across owners, Helix keeps clothing in circulation longer and ensures value flows back to the communities that sustain it.

  • Tyrone Dotson

    Wyndergy

    At Wyndergy, our patent-pending range-boosting technology recovers wasted aerodynamic energy and converts it into electrical power. This process extends EV range by a minimum of 11% while actively reducing carbon emissions.

  • Monique Rainford

    Enrich Health

    Enrich Health is on a mission to eliminate maternal health disparities, transform maternity care, and improve the lifelong health of mothers and their babies.

Beyond CT Pitch Finalists

  • Darian Duah

    CHEB

    At CheB, we believe the future of fashion isn't just about what you wear, it’s about what you truly own. Right now, billions of dollars in high-value goods are "trapped" because there’s no simple way to prove they are real. We are changing that by giving every physical product a "Digital Pass

  • Amara Onwukaeme

    Femigist

    Femigist is transforming women's wellness with inside out product systems that simplify hormonal care.

  • Jeremy Vincent

    GLOBEKIN


    A platform that turns kids’ screen time into real-world learning experiences. GlobeKin connects interactive digital adventures with hands-on enrichment like STEM activities, museum visits, and tutoring.

  • Twi McCallum

    Loop Groop

    Loop Groop provides invoice financing to nonprofits that have a contract from a grant or client, leveraging a custom underwriting and pricing structure.