Lauren Cox is the Deputy Communications Director for Mayor Jim Kenney and has worked for the City of Philadelphia for over six years. In her current position, Lauren supports a portfolio of more than a dozen City departments and initiatives – handling media relations, providing strategic guidance, and assisting with digital needs. Over the course of her career, Lauren has been part of communications efforts for some of the biggest events and projects in Philadelphia's history, including: the annual July 4th festival, 2015 Papal Visit, 2016 Democratic National Convention, Eagles Super Bowl parade, and Amazon HQ2 bid. Lauren is a graduate of Temple University and has a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Communication.

Paul Dehel is the one of the founders and current manager of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia which is focused on developing and commercializing the innovation projects and ideas of CHOP employees. While at CHOP, Paul has remained involved with the local startup community by supporting recruiting efforts for the 2018 Comcast LIFT Labs Accelerator powered by Techstars. Prior to CHOP, Paul earned his degree from Temple University's Fox School of Business during which time he worked with local startups including Yellowdig and ChargeItSpot. In his spare time, Paul is an avid Philadelphia Eagles fan and amateur trivia host.

Carol Eggert is the Senior Vice President of Military and Veteran Affairs at Comcast NBCUniversal. In this role, she leads an eight-person team that works collaboratively across Comcast NBCUniversal to provide strategic leadership to all aspects of programs and outreach engaging the military and veteran community. Carol is a retired U.S. Army brigadier general and brings more than 30 years of military and civilian experience to Comcast. Her leadership in the private sector has been recognized by We Are The Mighty, and her military awards and commendations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart.

Adam Furtado is the Lab Director & Branch Chief for Kessel Run, a U.S. Air Force digital transformation initiative revolutionizing how the Air Force builds and delivers software. The Air Force veteran leads a team of 200+ government disruptors who are changing the way the Department of Defense does business. Kessel Run has introduced agile and lean principles to the Air Force and navigated the complexities that come with rapid growth and is driving significant change within the world's largest bureaucracy.

Mike Gadsby is the Co-Founder and Chief Experience Officer at O3 World. He oversees UX, design, and strategy at the company, and brings more than 15 years of experience advising everyone from startups to Fortune 500 brands. In addition to his client work, Mike directs O3's Labs initiative – a program in which employees experiment with design and emerging technologies. Outside of work, Gadsby shares his business and design knowledge with people as a professor, conference speaker, and mentor. He has designed curriculum and has taught graduate-level UX courses at Philadelphia University and has spoken to industry professionals at numerous events throughout the region.

Dave Lauer is the CEO of Urvin AI, an artificial intelligence agency and consultancy that specializes in helping firms navigate the AI lifecycle and develops full-stack solutions leveraging this advanced technology. His current work focuses on combining unique approaches to analyzing quantitative and text data with a focus on business value and challenges across industries, including automotive, aerospace, financial services, legal and politics. In addition, he continues consulting for a wide range of financial services market participants – including institutional buy-side, sell-side, ATSs, exchanges, regulators and retail robo-advisors. He serves as an Independent Director on the Aequitas NEO Board of Directors, sits on FINRA's Market Regulation Committee and advises multiple FinTech start-ups.

Michael Lebowitz is the Founder and CEO of Big Spaceship. Since launching Big Spaceship in 2000, he has defined its innovative structure, strategy, and vision, while working closely with the agency's clients, including Brightstar Care, Chase, Google Fi, Google Maps, Hasbro, International Rescue Committee, JetBlue, Kirkus, NFL, Puma, Roku, Sidewalk Labs, SiriusXM, Stadia, Starbucks, and YouTube. He is a visiting lecturer at both Harvard Business School and the Stern School of Business at NYU and was recently named to the Mayor's Creative Council for the City of New York. He also sits on the boards of several companies and organizations.

Edy Liongosari is Accenture's Chief Research Scientist and Managing Director. He is responsible for the agenda and outcomes of Accenture Labs' applied technology research across all seven lab locations around the world. His research defines the future for large enterprises, shapes the technology market, and creates strong business results for our clients. Edy has been with Accenture for over 30 years. Edy and his team have received numerous patents and awards for innovation. A copy of his research work has also been placed into the Smithsonian's permanent research collection. Edy has a Master's degree in Computer Science from Indiana University.

Jenn is the CEO of 1776, the largest network of incubator spaces in the country with 10 locations across 5 states. She is a leader and operations ninja – focused on scaling her company efficiently and effectively. She uses resources in a creative way to implement processes and designs to scale the company along the Northeast Corridor, as well as to better serve 1776 members. Jennifer started her professional career as an attorney with an AmLaw 100 law firm in Philadelphia. While practicing full-time, she co-founded Benjamin's Desk in 2012, which later merged with 1776 in 2017, and launched First Base, a commercial real estate brokerage focusing on tenant representation of growing companies.

Natalie Nixon, PhD is a Creativity Strategist and the President of Figure 8 Thinking, LLC. She advises leaders on change management and helps them develop inventive thinking and achieve priority business goals: resulting in happier customers and employees. She applies her expertise in strategic foresight, qualitative research and design thinking. Natalie is a global speaker and a published author (Strategic Design Thinking, INC online and a forthcoming book on creativity published by Berrett-Koehler in 2020). She earned her BA in Anthropology and Africana Studies from Vassar College and her PhD in Design Management from the University of Westminster.

Eliza Pollack is the Assistant Director of Innovation Strategy for the City of Philadelphia, where she oversees initiatives that increase the municipal government's capacity for innovation and creative problem-solving. Eliza primarily manages a portfolio that includes the Innovation Academy, Lab, Fund and Consulting, a new initiative that leverages human-centered design to help municipal departments and external stakeholders solve challenges and think about their work in new ways. In recognition of her work around growing and supporting Philadelphia's innovation ecosystem, Eliza was named 2019 Innovator of the Year by Rad Girls, an organization that honors inspirational women leaders in the fields of technology, media, culture science, and business.

Pamela is an established digital, design, and strategy leader who has spent the last 25 years helping brands like Microsoft, Bank of America, CVS, and YouTube create meaningful, memorable, cross-channel touch-points. Pamela began her career on Madison Avenue and was privileged to work across channels with large consumer brands. Her expertise centers around helping clients establish or reset their brand identity, leading enterprise-level digital initiatives, and fostering human-centric innovation and design thinking practices into her clients' work, and cultures. As Chief Strategy Officer at Bellatrix Group, Pamela oversees all aspects of the firm's go-to-market strategy and service portfolio.

Melissa Doran Rayer is Director of Digital Consumer Strategy at SEI. Leveraging over 30 years of experience in wealth management, financial planning, and product development at SEI, Melissa leads SEI's effort to expand their direct-to-consumer business. She oversees the development and distribution of digital solutions based on investors' diverse and unique needs. Melissa received her MBA in finance from Villanova University and her B.A. in economics and political science from Yale University.

Keith Scandone is partner and CEO of O3 World. He guides the agency's strategic direction and focuses on strengthening and expanding the company's overall impact. From spearheading the Forge Conference and 1682 to co-founding the Philadelphia chapter of the Awesome Foundation, Keith looks for unique ways to differentiate the company and bring the industry and community together. His efforts to consistently craft and curate O3 World's culture have lead to the agency being recognized as Entrepreneur's “Top Company Cultures” and “Best Entrepreneurial Companies.” Keith is also working with the leadership team on building out O3 World's Ventures program, which is a separate entity that takes an equity stake in digital product ideas.

Will Toms is the Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer of REC, serving as the visionary behind the company's endeavors. Will's experience guiding successful marketing efforts for artists such as Eminem, Ice Cube, and Pearl Jam has solidified his position as a true futurist. Powered by his innate innovative aptitude, Will's dream is to scale REC's model to span across international communities, establishing a network of independent creators that all have access to the resources, strategies, and opportunities necessary to own their future.

Andy Verone is the Global Vice President for Oracle's Construction and Engineering Business Unit responsible for Innovation and Industry Strategy. Andy is also the co-founder of Oracle's Construction and Engineering innovation lab located in Chicago, IL. Andy has over 30 years of executive and international business experience across the globe in the Engineering and Construction industry. His background includes the implementation of global project-based information and delivery systems and knowledge management programs, as well as Board of Directors-level experience developing IT Strategic Plans and Governance programs. He also has managed large capital projects and government contracts.

Greg Willrich is Vertex's Director of Enterprise Incubation. He leads a business unit focused on disruption in the world of digital commerce, regulation and taxation. Still in its nascency, his team collaborates with an ever-growing network of customers, partners, and universities to run disciplined experiments with new business models and technologies. Greg has been with Vertex for fifteen years and served in a variety of strategic and operational roles.