Bio
Dave Blakely
Dave Blakely leads the Technology Strategy practice at IDEO, which explores the business opportunities created when emerging technologies are linked with customer needs. As a Senior Director based in Palo Alto, Dave manages various strategic business relationships and advises executives of technology-focused companies. Much of his advisory work involves helping IDEO clients — from Silicon Valley executives to NASA officials — build cultures of innovation and develop products and services to maintain market leadership.
Dave also conducts innovation workshops, speaks to academic and business groups, and serves on several advisory boards. He is particularly proud to serve on the board of University of California, Berkeley’s College of Engineering, where he assists his alma mater in adjusting its engineering curriculum to the needs of a rapidly changing global economy, and as a faculty adviser at Singularity University, a new academic institution that strives to educate and inspire people how to develop technologies to address broad challenges to humanity.
Dave earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering physics and a master’s in mechanical engineering with a controls specialization from UC Berkeley. In his free time, he tries to keep up with his two teenage sons.
Sir Alan Collins
Sir Alan is a former British diplomat and brings to Nair & Co. a wealth of experience in international trade and investment particularly in the U.S., Asia and the Commonwealth countries. His association with various international industry bodies and government organizations provides invaluable political and economic insight to the company's strategies and operations. Sir Alan is currently serving as Director General/Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC).
Previously, he has been the Ambassador to Singapore and the Philippines, Deputy Ambassador to Ethiopia and the Director General of the British Trade and Cultural Office in Taiwan. He was also the Director General Trade and Investment USA and Consul General New York, where he worked extensively to attract high-value inward investment to the UK.
During his time in Singapore, Sir Alan was part of the delegation that won the Olympics for London in 2012. He is also working as the Olympics Ambassador for the UK and is directing international business-related work from the London 2012 Games aiming at outcomes worth over $1.5 billion to the UK economy.
Hans Haringa
Mr. Hans Haringa is an international petroleum engineer with some 29 years on the "Shell clock." Mr. Haringa has held a range of diverse roles, from some that were "very technical" to others that were very "nontechnical". Hans, who took on his current role in January 2010, manages an exciting innovation portfolio of disruptive ideas at the forefront of the Shell innovation process. He believes that "it is better to know some of the questions than all of the answers," as American author, cartoonist and humorist James Thurber said. He subscribes to the Jedi Master Yoda way-of-living: "Do, or do not. There is no try."
Salim Ismail
Salim Ismail is a sought-after speaker, strategist and entrepreneur based in Silicon Valley. He travels extensively addressing topics including breakthrough technologies and their impact on a variety of industries.
Salim spent the last three years building Singularity University based at NASA Ames and before that built and ran Brickhouse, Yahoo’s internal incubator. His last company, Angstro, was sold to Google in August 2010.
He has a unique perspective and track record on how to innovate, how to turn cutting edge ideas into thriving startups and how to apply leading edge thinking to invigorate entire industries.
Johann Jungwirth
As President and CEO of MBRDNA, Johann Jungwirth is responsible for all Mercedes-Benz Research & Development activities in North America, including Infotainment & Telematics, Customer Research & HMI, and Society & Technology. He fulfills these responsibilities using his past experience as the head of development for Mercedes-Benz's "New Telematics Generation 2.5" head-units, and overall more then 17 years of experience at Mercedes-Benz R&D and Daimler.
Bob Richards
Dr. Robert (Bob) Richards is a space entrepreneur/ futurist and co-founder and CEO of Moon Express, Inc. (MoonEx), a privately funded lunar transportation and data services company
competing in the Google Lunar X PRIZE competition. Bob will outline how a carefully planned private Moon mission could set in motion the technological, political, legal and regulatory precedents that will allow humanity to peacefully embrace and develop the Moon as the world's eighth continent.
Lucien Vattel
A prolific filmmaker, game developer, lecturer, writer, and philanthropist.
Owns and operates Chizuru Games, an educational game company.
Executive Director of GameDesk, a nonprofit organization reshaping K-12 education through games and game development.
Director & Writer - Vattel Films
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