Gordon Daugherty is a seasoned business executive, entrepreneur, startup advisor, investor, and best-selling author. He is the co-founder and president of Capital Factory, a startup accelerator, seed-stage venture fund, and co-working facility based in Austin, Texas....
Rob Austin McKee is an Assistant Professor of Leadership and Entrepreneurship at the University of Houston–Downtown and the President for Business Development at Flexios, a medical device startup working on a solution for hand tendon repair. He earned his Ph.D. and MBA from the University of Houston and currently conducts research in decision-making, leadership, personality, and visceral states. His work...
Roslynn Velasquez is the Marketing Director for the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, a program for launching successful tech ventures through entrepreneurship education, mentoring, and networking connections, and the initiative under which OwlSpark was founded....
Dr. Smriti Zanefeld is the co-founder and research director of Lazarus 3D, creating anatomically accurate, high-fidelity models directly from patient MRI/CT data doctors and medical device companies can use to perform surgical rehearsals and training workshops in highly realistic conditions....
A graduate of Washington & Lee University and Rice University, Gray Hancock, started his career focused on qualitative finance. After a few years in consulting, Gray transitioned to operations, serving as head of trade and investment for UKTI as well as director of operations for biotechnology company DNAtrix....
When you think of a stereotypical entrepreneur, what do you think of? Someone with a degree in business? Brittany Barreto is unconventional. She jumped into the entrepreneurship world with a science-centered background—bachelor’s in biology and a doctorate in human genetics—and a crazy idea from college. As she worked tirelessly to finish the doctorate, Brittany devoted the little time she had...
Graduating from Texas A&M University with a marketing and business degree in 2007, Chris Buckner had his heart set on working for a large advertising agency. He wanted to be Matthew McConaughey in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days—pitching advertising ideas to large companies (and marry Kate Hudson). Though he did not land his dream gig, he gained...
Jacques Zaneveld is the founder of Lazarus 3D, a company that 3D prints silicone body parts. The common misconception is that all organs look the same, but in reality, they all look different. Everyone’s tumors look different as well. The problem arises when physicians have to prepare for a new surgery with generic alternatives for that operation and they go...
With a deep background in sales and marketing, Leland Putterman dove into the entrepreneurship community almost inadvertently. After spending years at IBM, he transitioned to a smaller company, Oracle. He later invested in a startup called ACORN, who then asked him to join them in building another startup. In 2012, he co-founded Trivie, a trivia-based corporate training app, and holds...
Leaning on a background in software development and business, Adam Wulf launched several ventures after graduating from Rice University in 2005, working for several major software companies along the way. He now resides in Houston, Texas where he runs his two companies, Graceful Construction and Milestone Made, and serves as a mentor for OwlSpark....