Tech.Emotion 2024

Howard Schultz built Starbucks Coffee Company into one of the world’s most recognized and respected businesses, a company committed to strengthening communities through human connection and innovation.
Howard grew up in public housing in Brooklyn and was the first in his family to graduate college.
As a young entrepreneur, he set out to build a different kind of company, one that delivers business excellence through a culture of compassion. Under his leadership, Starbucks grew from eleven stores with 100 partners (employees) to more than 28,000 stores in 77 countries, employing nearly 350,000 partners serving approximately 90 million customers per week. As ceo, he pioneered programs like comprehensive healthcare, stock ownership and free college tuition for full and part-time employees. In 2011, Fortune named Howard ceo of the year and, in 2019, Fortune ranked Starbucks fifth on its list of “World’s Most Admired Companies.”
From 1987-2018, Howard served as ceo and executive chairman of Starbucks board of directors, one of America’s most diverse corporate boards. He led the company’s IPO and presided over more than 100 quarterly earnings calls. From the time the company went public in 1992 until 2018, his last year as executive chairman, he oversaw a 21,826 percent return to shareholders. In 2014, he predicted a seismic shift in consumer behaviour for brick and mortar retailers and decided to invest heavily in mobile technology to elevate the experience in stores and drive customer loyalty. As a result, today Starbucks has the number one ranked retail mobile app platform.
Since leaving Starbucks, Howard has turned his attention with his wife Sheri to ways to create greater opportunity, accessible to all. Together they co-founded the Schultz Family Foundation, focusing on helping young people successfully navigate the transition to adulthood. Through the Emes Project LLC, Howard is bringing an entrepreneurial lens to public-private partnerships, strategic advocacy, policy challenges, and political reform with the goal of enabling everyone to access the full promise of America. Both organizations are being funded in part by investments the Schultz family is making in the entrepreneurial companies of tomorrow. As part of investing in values-based, innovative people and companies, Howard is offering mentoring and guidance through the lens of his experience building Starbucks. Returns from many of these investments will be re-invested in the Schultz Family Foundation and the Emes Project to increase the family’s impact over the long-term, with the goal of creating meaningful change for generations to come.

Brunello Cucinelli is the founder of the eponymous fashion house, renowned worldwide for its exclusive cashmere garments that exemplify Italian elegance. Today, Cucinelli leads the company as Executive Chairman and Creative Director.
In addition to making a mark in the world of informal luxury prêt-à-porter, Cucinelli has been an innovator in entrepreneurial thought through the development of "humanistic capitalism." His main goal is to create a work environment and a production philosophy that respect human needs. For this purpose, he has actively sought to integrate ethical and economic principles, finding a balance between profit, sharing, and care, and engaging in philanthropic initiatives.
Brunello Cucinelli has received numerous national and international awards for his original vision. In 2010, he was appointed Cavaliere del Lavoro by the President of the Republic, and in the same year, he received an honorary degree in Philosophy and Ethics of Human Relationships from the University of Perugia. In 2018, the University of Messina awarded him an honorary Doctorate in Philosophy, describing him as a "concrete thinker, cultural promoter, and true patron of our times."
Cucinelli has never strayed from the path set by his ideals, continuing to pursue them year after year. In September 2021, he was named "Designer of the Year" by the British men's fashion magazine "GQ" in London, in recognition of his ongoing humanitarian commitment as a designer and entrepreneur. That same year, he participated in the G20 summit in Rome, presenting his vision to the world's leading leaders.
In 2022, the University of Rome "La Sapienza" awarded him an honorary Doctorate in Management, Banking, and Commodity Sciences. The rector, Antonella Polimeni, praised his ability to combine entrepreneurial success with deep respect for the land and social values. In March 2023, he was honored with the prestigious "Neiman Marcus Award for distinguished service in the field of fashion" by the luxury department store in Dallas.

Anu Duggal is the founding partner of Female Founders Fund, the first early-stage fund for female founders. She launched Female Founders Fund in 2014 to start a movement to diversify venture capital and direct more dollars to female founders. Over the last ten years, Anu has played an instrumental role in not only investing in female founders, raising seed capital with over $4 billion in enterprise value, but shifting the VC industry as a whole to make more investments in female-founded companies. She has led Female Founders Fund in two funds and invested in over 45 of the fastest growing female-led companies nationwide. These include category leaders like Zola, ELOQUII, Billie, Co-Star, Peanut, Real, BentoBox, Tala, Maven Clinic, WinkyLux, and more.
Anu has been honored in Fortune’s “40 Under 40” list and Crain’s “Notable Women in Tech” list and been included in Business Insider’s “Ultimate List of Female Startup Investors” and “Top 4 Venture Firms Investing in Women.” Anu has appeared in leading outlets like The TODAY Show, Bloomberg TV, TIME, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC Squawk Alley, Fortune, Inc, Yahoo! Finance and is the host of the podcast, The 2%. She has spoken at the Milken Institute, Vogue Business x Google Summit and TechCrunch Disrupt. Anu holds board member/observer roles for Maven Clinic, Billie, VIOLETTE_FR, Co--Star, and WinkyLux.
Prior to starting Female Founders Fund, Anu co-founded Exclusively.in, a private-sale e-commerce company backed by Accel Partners and Tiger Global, which was acquired by Indian fashion e-commerce company Myntra in 2011. Her first entrepreneurial venture was in 2005 with the launch of India’s first wine bar ,The Tasting Room in Bombay. She holds an MBA from London Business School and a BA from Vassar College.

Executive Chairman and founder of Italo SpA, the first European private high-speed railway company and founder of Itabus, the first Italian private company of long-distance buses, where he have been member of the board until April 2023.
He is also President of Manifatture Sigaro Toscano and Fondazione Telethon.
He has been Chairman and CEO of Ferrari Auto S.p.A. since 1991 until 2014 where he won 19 world title and Chairman of Fiat Group and of Maserati S.p.A.
He has been President of Confindustria, President of LUISS University, Chairman of the Bologna International Trade Fair and Chairman of FIEG, the Italian Federation of Newspapers Publishers.
On 2015 he has been inducted in the Automotive Hall of Fame of Detroit, the international most prestigious award of this sector.
He was awarded with four honorary degrees: in Mechanical Engineering by the University of Modena, in Management Engineering by the University of Genoa, in Industrial Design Engineering by the Polytechnic of Milan and, finally, in Materials Physics by SISSA (Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati) of Trieste.

In 1983, at just 22 years old, Nerio Alessandri founded Technogym in his home garage by combining his passion for innovation (TECHNO) and that for sport (GYM). In the early 1990s Alessandri coined the concept of Wellness, a lifestyle that aims to improve the quality of life thanks to regular physical activity, a healthy diet and a positive mental attitude. Today Technogym is a world-leading brand in products and digital technologies for fitness, sport and health and is present in 85 thousand wellness centers and 400 thousand private homes in over 100 countries. Technogym has been the Official Supplier of the Olympic Games for over 20 years: Paris 2024 will be the ninth edition in this role. In addition to Technogym, Nerio Alessandri also created the Wellness Foundation, a non-profit organization aimed at promoting wellness as a social opportunity for all stakeholders: Governments, Businesses and Citizens.

Caryl M. Stern is the Chief Impact Officer at LionTree, an independent investment and merchant bank with deep roots in the media, technology, communications, consumer, and creative industries. The former Executive Director of the Walton Family Foundation (2020–2023), she previously served for 14 years as President and CEO of UNICEF USA, and, before that, as Senior Associate National Director and Chief Operating Officer at the Anti-Defamation League; the founding director of its A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute; and the Dean of Students at Polytechnic University. Caryl was invited to present at the White House’s inaugural summit on The United State of Women and was named one of “25 Women Changing the World in 2017” by People Magazine. She serves on the boards of directors of The Container Store and the We Are Family Foundation, in addition to being a member of the Chime for Change Advisory Board. The recipient of five honorary doctoral degrees, Caryl earned a bachelor’s degree in studio art and a master’s degree in college student personnel administration, and completed her Ph.D. coursework in the same field.

Marco Perego, born in 1979 in Vimercate (MI), lives and works in Los Angeles. The artist has a profound interest in the reuse of materials full of history as well as avant-garde. His body of work addresses the turbulent situations and times we are living in. The artist aims to start a conversation about the incessant change of the world around us and within us, with the continuous search for transformation and transcendence. His works have been exhibited in international group exhibitions at the Rennie Museum in Vancouver, BC, Canada, the Museum of Modern Art in Bologna, the Archaeological Museum in Florence, The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh and the Untilthen in Paris, France . Perego's personal exhibitions have also been hosted at the Michele Maccarone Gallery and in Paris at Untilthen. The artist is a part of the 2024 Venice Biennale for the Vatican Pavilion. In 2025 an installation will be presented at The Capsule of the Center Pompidou - Mertz. His works are present in public collections, from the Jumex in Mexico City, CDMX, to the Rennie Museum in BC, Canada, to the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, California. He just completed his writing and directing debut on his first feature film, "The Absence of Eden," starring Zoe Saldana, Garret Hedlund and Adria Arjona. “The Absence of Eden” is produced by Oscar winner Martin Scorsese. Currently, Perego resides in Los Angeles with his wife and their three children.

Davide is the Founder and CEO of Algebris Investments, a global investment manager with a historical focus on the financial sector across the capital structure. Founded in 2006, Algebris has gradually expanded its expertise and entered the global credit, Italian equity and green transition space to capture a broader set of value opportunities. Algebris currently manages $23 USD billion of assets and maintains offices in London (FCA regulated), Boston (SEC), Singapore (MAS), Tokyo (FSA), Dublin (CBI), Milan, Zurich and Rome. Davide, a dual Italian and British citizen, is recognised as one of the World's leading experts on financial services and is often consulted by the World's Central Bankers and Regulators on policy matters and regularly contributes to the discourse on financial reform. Furthermore, Davide has been awarded the Commendatore designation, a decoration of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. Before founding Algebris, Davide was Managing Director at Morgan Stanley where he headed the European Banks Research Team and was the Global Banks team coordinator. Davide was rated individually among the top European banks analysts for the period 1999-2006. Prior to Morgan Stanley, Davide worked in the top-rated UBS Banks research team as a senior analyst (1995-2000). He is Chairman and Trustee of the Hakuna Matata foundation (hakunamatata-charity.org), a registered UK charity which he founded with his wife in April 2010. The primary focus of the foundation’s work is assisting orphaned children in Central Tanzania. Davide is a graduate cum laude of Bocconi University in Italy and holds a Master CEMS. He speaks Italian and is fluent in English and French. Davide played volleyball professionally in Italy from 1985 and 1990 and reached Series A1. He is a keen alpinist and enjoys sailing around the world.

Fabrice Grinda is among the world’s leading Internet entrepreneurs and investors. He has over 300 exits on 1100 angel investments. Fabrice has served as CEO for three multinational companies and has an impressive track record as an early investor in Alibaba, Flexport, Delivery Hero, Betterment and Brightroll. Fabrice is currently running the startup studio and venture fund FJ Labs, which he cofounded with business partner Jose Marin. Fabrice was named the #1 Angel Investor in the world by Forbes.
Prior to FJ Labs, Fabrice was co-founder and co-CEO of OLX, one of the largest websites in the world with over 300 million unique visitors per month. The company operates in 30 countries and has over 10,000 employees. OLX is the largest classifieds site in India, Brazil, Pakistan, Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Portugal and many other emerging markets.
Fabrice started his entrepreneurial journey in 1998, at 23, when he co-founded and was CEO of Aucland. Soon after, Aucland grew into one of the largest auction sites in Europe.
Before his entrepreneurial endeavors, Fabrice worked as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company.
Fabrice holds a BA in Economics from Princeton University. He graduated Summa Cum Laude in 1996, and was awarded the Halbert White prize, given to the most distinguished economics student, as well as The Wolfe Balleisen memorial prize, awarded for best thesis. In his free time, Fabrice likes to travel the world, kitesurf, play tennis, and blog about his personal and professional life at www.fabricegrinda.com.

Beatriz Martin Jimenez became Head Non-core and Legacy as well as President UBS Europe, Middle East and Africa of UBS Group AG, in May 2023. She has been the UBS GEB Lead for Sustainability and Impact since March 2024 and the UBS Chief Executive for the UK since 2019. Her previous UBS roles included Group Treasurer for UBS Group AG, Chief Transformation Officer for UBS Group AG, COO for UBS Investment Bank, and Chief of Staff to the CEO for UBS Investment Bank. Before joining UBS in 2012, Ms. Martin held various roles in fixed income sales and trading at Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank. With her experience in markets, Ms. Martin has a deep understanding of the industry and has built an extensive network and credentials globally, in addition to her restructuring experience as well as a thorough knowledge of our Investment Bank.

Founder, Chairman and CEO of T.I.P. - Tamburi Investment Partners S.p.A., an independent and diversified industrial group focused on the development and growth of medium-sized Italian companies with characteristics of excellence, listed on the STAR market of Borsa Italiana. Currently the largest private investor in Italy - 5 billion invested including club deals - in medium-sized companies.
Board member of Alpitour, Azimut Benetti, Amplifon, Beta Utensili, Eataly, Interpump, Dexelance, Itaca Equity Holding, OVS, Roche Bobois and others.

A pioneering voice on ethical technology and human-centric innovation, Ruma Bose seamlessly blends business strategy with social impact. Her diverse experience as an entrepreneur, investor, author, and global keynote speaker offers a unique perspective on leveraging transformative technologies to drive sustainable growth and positive societal change.
Bose is co-author of the international bestseller "Mother Teresa, CEO," distilling the legendary humanitarian's principles into an innovative leadership framework centered on humanity, humility, and execution.
As former Chief Growth Officer at fintech unicorn Clearco, Bose rapidly launched and scaled international operations across 11 countries in just 12 months. Her entrepreneurial expertise also catalyzed better food access as President of Chobani Ventures and Foundation, and created economic opportunities for refugees as the Founding President of Tent Foundation.
Currently, Bose is Managing Partner at Amura Growth Partners, advising companies and investors on growth strategies. She serves on the boards of deep tech, AI, and impact investing leaders like SealSQ, Improvability AI, Calvert Impact Capital, and KAO Corporation's ESG Advisory Board.
A passionate advocate for ethical leadership, Bose's insights have been featured by The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and the World Economic Forum. She has received an honorary doctorate from Dalhousie University and the prestigious Scotiabank Ethical Leadership Award. As a keynote speaker, she inspires audiences to embrace technology as a catalyst for humanity's greatest opportunities.

Mariarosaria Taddeo is Professor of Digital Ethics and Defence Technologies at the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, and is Defence Science and Technology Ethics Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute. Her work focuses mainly on digital ethics, the ethical analysis of artificial intelligence (AI), ethics of AI for national defence, cybersecurity, cyber conflicts, and ethics of digital innovation. Her research has been published in major journals like Nature, Nature Machine Intelligence, Science, and Science Robotics. She has received multiple awards, the 2010 Simon Award for Outstanding Research in Computing and Philosophy; the 2016 World Technology Award for Ethics. In 2018, InspiringFifty named her among the most inspiring 50 Italian women working in technology. ORBIT listed her among the top 100 women working on Ethics of AI in the world. She is one the twelve 2020 "Outstanding Rising Talents" named by the Women's Forum for Economy and Society. In 2023, she has been awarded the title of Grande Ufficiale al Merito Della Repubblica Italiana, by the Italian President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in recognition of the impact of her research. Since 2016, Taddeo serves as editor-in-chief of Minds & Machines (SpringerNature) and of Philosophical Studies Series (SpringerNature). Since 2020, Taddeo serves in the Ethics Advisory Panel to the UK Ministry of Defence.

Dr. KR Sridhar is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Bloom Energy. Prior to founding Bloom Energy, Dr. Sridhar was Director of the Space Technologies Laboratory (STL) at the University of Arizona, where he was also a professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering.
Under his leadership, STL won several nationally competitive contracts to conduct research and development for Mars exploration and flight experiments to Mars. Dr. Sridhar has served as an advisor to NASA and has led major consortia of industry, academia, and national labs. His work for the NASA Mars program to convert Martian atmospheric gases to oxygen for propulsion and life support was recognized by Fortune Magazine, where he was cited as "one of the top five futurists inventing tomorrow, today."
Dr. Sridhar serves on the Board of Directors for C3 ai, Inc., the External Advisory Board at Caltech’s Resnick Sustainability Institute, and the Board of Visitors at the Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Additionally, he has served as a strategic limited partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and as a special advisor to New Enterprise Associates. An early pioneer in green tech, Dr. Sridhar has also served on many technical committees, panels, and advisory boards and has several publications and patents. He received his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with Honors from the University of Madras (now called NIT, Trichy), India, as well as his master’s degree in Nuclear Engineering and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

Ken Meyer is a veteran retail executive, mission-driven entrepreneur, and conscious leader with 30+ years of experience in the natural foods industry.
His remarkable journey commenced with Fresh Fields, where he initially specialized in labor scheduling and logistical planning—an experience that supported the company merger with Whole Foods Market in 1996. Over the next 24 years, Meyer ascended to various senior leadership roles, ultimately serving as the Executive Vice President of Operations, North America, and the United Kingdom for Whole Foods Market. Meyer served as a member of the Executive Leadership Team, reporting to John Mackey Co-Founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market.
In his role as EVP of Ops, Ken held a pivotal position overseeing the day-to-day operations, development, design, and innovation of both existing and new stores and acquiring numerous manufacturing and retail food companies. Under his leadership were six Presidents of Regions, Global Retail Operations, Supply Chain and Logistics and Global Culinary and Hospitality.
Meyer’s creative vision and ability to identify emerging industry trends and promising brands helped
shape the grocer’s best practices, including innovative product development, store design, and launching new business ventures and strategic partnerships supporting the world class store experience and culinary programs at Whole Foods Market.
Meyer was first to initiate and played an integral role in Whole Foods Market's merger team when it
was acquired by Amazon in 2017. He left Whole Foods Market in 2019 to pursue his entrepreneurial
interests, launching two companies as the founding Managing Director and CEO of “Connectivity” and “Spring Foods” focused on the transformation of commodity ingredients through sustainable growing and sourcing practices, creative supply chain solutions, and modern mission-based consumer brands. In 2020 Meyer was inducted into the Whole Foods Market Hall of Fame.
Meyer's reach extended further with the launch of "One Handshake Partners," a holding company and advisory platform aimed at discovering, nurturing, developing, and investing in the next generation of entrepreneurs and emerging brands. His wealth of experience and extensive network are assets that can benefit organizations of all sizes, along with his passionate commitment to transformative products that make a sustainable impact while nourishing the world, and his distinctive approach to leadership and purpose-driven business.
He is a Founding Partner and Investment Committee Member of Midnight Ventures Partners, a purpose-built investment fund to invest and scale emerging consumer brands and food companies.
Ken is currently an Operating Partner for STORY3 Capital a leading alternative investment manager that employs a flexible investment strategy focused on investing in the consumer value chain. Ken is active Board Member for Daylesford Organic, the world-renowned leading UK organic farm and retailer. He also serves as a strategic advisor and coach to multiple companies in natural foods, health, and wellness. Ken was a Founding member of the Whole Kids Foundation Board and continues to serve as an external member of the foundations.
Beyond his professional endeavors, Ken is a devoted father to three remarkable children—Hannah, Jon, and Laney—all currently pursuing their education at university. He also leads an active lifestyle as an avid triathlete, experienced alpine and expedition mountaineer, and passionate cook who explores the world through its diverse cuisines and savoring every meal.

Lorenzo Thione is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and expert in Artificial Intelligence He is a public speaker, advocate for ethical representation, and passionate about the power of storytelling. His multifaceted startups, investments, achievements and contributions across multiple fields make him a compelling and inspiring figure in both technology and the arts.
He is an expert and practician at the intersection of AI and Technology, Storytelling, and Social Advocacy. He has a deep background in Artificial Intelligence (AI), and has gone from AI researcher and technologist at FXPal/Parc, to being the co-founder of Powerset, a pioneering AI company that developed one of the earliest AI-powered web search engines. Powerset was later acquired by Microsoft and became a part of the launch of Bing in 2009.
Currently, he serves as the Managing Director of Gaingels, where he oversees AI, deep-tech and consumer tech investments. Gaingels is a leading investment syndicate dedicated to balancing minority representation in venture, and one of the most active private investors in North America. He is also a co-founding chairman of StartOut, which is dedicated to supporting and elevating LGBTQ+ founders in the venture startup ecosystem.
Beyond technology and venture capital, he is a celebrated storyteller and creative producer in the Theater. He is a four-times nominated and twice winner of the Tony Award for his work in producing on Broadway. His productions include "Hadestown," "The Inheritance," “&Juliet”, “Days of Wine and Roses”, “The Notebook” and "Allegiance," a musical he co-created and produced which starred George Takei and Lea Salonga.
He is also an active investor and advisor to numerous AI startups, in his ongoing involvement in the advancement of AI and in the technological and social revolution it is ushering. His career, roles, and the numerous projects - both creative and philanthropic - he has taken part in highlight his belief in the power of representation and inclusion in both business and the arts. In addition to being a cofounder of StartOut and co-managing partner of Gaingels, he was also recognized as one of the most influential LGBT people in tech in 2014 and 2018.
He was born and raised in Milan, and completed his studies at the University of Texas at Austin, from which he holds an M.S in Computer Engineering.