Vishal Vasishth, CoFounder Obvious Ventures

Vishal Vasishth is the co-founder of Obvious Ventures with Evan Williams and James Joaquin. Obvious Ventures invests in world positive technology companies across three themes: Sustainable Systems, Healthy Living & People Power. Most recently Vishal was the founding partner of SONG Investment Advisors, an India- based fund backed by Soros Economic Development Fund, Omidyar Network and Google. He also served as a senior executive at Steve Case’s Revolution, LLC and as Chief Strategy Officer at Patagonia, a leading multichannel retailer of outdoor and active lifestyle products in the US.  Vishal has demonstrated track record of operating and investing both in USA and Asia and creating value across diverse consumer oriented businesses. He was selected as a Henry Crown fellow of the Aspen Institute and a Next Generation Fellow of the American Assembly, both fellowships that recognize value-based leaders. Vishal earned a B. Tech degree in India, a Master’s degree in Sciences from North Carolina State University and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. Vishal grew up in the fast growing city of Chandigarh, India.

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Jake Chapman, Founder Gelt Venture Capital

Jake Chapman, Founder Gelt Venture Capital. He believes that technology can be a force for good in the world and invests in companies making an impact. Jake focuses on technology companies working on the frontier of technology including robotics, autonomy, advanced manufacturing, space and artificial intelligence. Prior to Gelt VC Jake ran a Silicon Valley based corporate venture fund, founded a successful ad tech company that at its peak generated 65M targeted ad impressions a month, lead global logistics for a startup, was a venture capital attorney, dealt poker and made a damn fine cup of coffee. When not working with his companies Jake enjoys writing about the tech sector and is a contributor to TechCrunch, WIRED, Venture Beat and Pando and has been featured in global publications like US News & World Reports and Forbes.

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Ann Winblad, CoFounder/Managing Director Hummer Winblad Venture Partners

Ann Winblad, CoFounder/Managing Director Hummer Winblad Venture Partners. Hummer Winblad Venture Partners is a leading venture capital firm focused exclusively on software investing and manages over $1 billion in cumulative capital. Since Hummer Winblad Venture Partners’ inception in 1989 the firm has launched over 160 new software companies. Ann has over 30 years of experience in the software industry as a successful software entrepreneur, strategy advisor, technical author and venture capitalist. Her background and experience have been chronicled in many international business and trade publications. Ann has a B.A. in Mathematics and in Business Administration from St. Catherine University. She has an M.A. in Education with a focus in International Economics from the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minnesota. Ann also has an honorary Doctorate of Law degree from the University of St. Thomas. Ann has served as a Director of numerous start-up and public companies. Ann currently serves on the Boards of Ace Metrix, MuleSoft (NYSE: MULE), OptiMine, and Sonatype. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of St. Thomas, and a Board member of the Richard Schulze Family Foundation. Ann also serves as an advisor to many entrepreneurial organizations.

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