Michael is a Design Leader, Tech Strategist, and Educator from Brooklyn, New York. He's currently Director of Design at Heady. He specializes in Design Leadership and management, Design Strategy, Process, and Operations, Inclusive Design and Accessibility, and Design Systems. He's been an educator for more than five years having taught at General Assembly and CareerFoundry and currently a Design Professor at CUNY. Before Design Leadership and Design and Tech Education, Michael was a Front-end Developer, Visual Designer, then a Product/UX Designer and Strategist. All in all, he's been building digital products for over 10 years and have been loving every bit of it!

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Experienced Software Engineer with a rich background in startups and renowned institutions like Goldman Sachs. Transitioning into Developer Relations, I bring a unique blend of technical acumen and community-focused skills. Built a security product RadarFi, a pioneering Web3 security tool. Beyond my role as a Web3 engineer, I am a passionate public speaker, community builder, and educator, dedicated to fostering collaboration and understanding in the rapidly evolving Web3 landscape.

Morgan has about a decade in product management and user experience roles. He’s worked with a lot of teams over the years to ensure their product is not only delightful but scales to success in the market. Today, he helps train the future of tech talent in the ways of Agile at Tech Fleet.

An experienced business consultant, and researcher, with expertise in areas like community partnerships, entrepreneurial ecosystem building, and technology optimization. I am passionate about promoting tech equity, connecting communities, expanding access and opportunity, and driving organizational impact through quality research and advising support.

Jeffrey Scruggs is a self-motivated engineer with a rich background in research engineering and software development, specializing in AI and machine learning. His expertise includes spearheading computer vision initiatives, designing and implementing cutting-edge machine learning models, and collaborating on global projects for clients like the Pentagon and in sectors like national defense. Jeffrey's ability to innovate and educate, combined with his hands-on experience in AI, makes him an ideal facilitator for the Women's Rights Buildathon, where his passion for technology and empowerment can inspire and guide participants.

Kedasha Kerr is a Developer Advocate at GitHub. She began her career as a software engineer in the fintech space, where she held various roles including Associate Software Engineer and Software Engineer II on the internal designs systems team. As a developer advocate and technical content creator, she excels in demystifying complex technical concepts into digestible, byte-sized information.She is passionate about helping others learn about the tech industry and loves sharing her experience as a software developer. You can find her online @itsthatladydev.

Abran Maldonado is a leading AI expert, OpenAI ambassador, and co-founder of Create Labs, a Black and Brown-founded startup disrupting the AI and metaverse design space. A keynote speaker with the Prophets of AI speaking agency, Abran has over a decade of experience in both entertainment and education technology, including a background in Hip-Hop, digital media, and youth culture. Abran brings a unique perspective to the AI community and is dedicated to advancing diversity in tech and has worked to expand 5G VR/AR edtech solutions to schools nationwide. He is recognized as one of the first AI prompt engineers of the GPT era and the creator of the first GPT-powered virtual avatar, Claira. Abran's pioneering work in generative AI and metaverse design has earned him a reputation as a visionary in the development of AI technology, and he is dedicated to bringing culture and innovation to life with authentic, AI-powered immersive experiences.

Christina Cyr is the CEO of dTOOR, a company that makes "Non-Rectangular Phones for Non-Rectangular People", starting with an innovative Android smartphone called The Cyrcle Phone. By trade she is a Senior Principal Electrical Engineer who designs advanced printed circuit boards in Altium (or Eagle) and Autodesk for smartphones and IoT devices using technologies such as GNSS (GPS, etc.), NFC, BLE, Wi-Fi, and 2G/3G/4G/LTE/5G. Engineer Cyr ("Cyr" rhymes with "year") holds multiple patents in the field of mobile communication devices and systems, and has taught over 300 people nationwide how to make their own smartphone.

Coy Griffin is a Fashion Technologist, Educator, Author and TEDx speaker, and the founder of the creative technology consulting company,  Your Own Creativity (YOC). She is the Operations Director of the Council for International African Fashion Education (CIAFE) which is committed to advancing the development and innovation of fashion education and research in Africa.Griffin is a guest lecturer specializing in fashion analytics, technology and operations with experience teaching at Virginia State University, the London College of Fashion and Hult International Business School.Griffin is the contributing author of the text book ‘Fashion Marketing in Emerging Economies’ by Palgrave Macmillan.

Angela Reyeshas over 25 years of experience in the non-profit sector, Angela has devoted her career to making a positive impact on the lives of others. Angelaserves as the Chief Program Officer at SafeNest, a pivotal role where she oversees and coordinates the organization's programs and services aimed at supporting victim survivors in the Las Vegas Valley.

K.S.: Senior Cyber Professional with 6+ years of experience in Cybersecurity and a background as a U.S. Army Veteran. Proficient in blending defensive and offensive strategies in cyberspace operations for federal clients such as the DoD, DHS, and IC. Specializing in safeguarding the nation’s most sensitive high-value networks and critical assets against advanced persistent threats (APTs), with a focus on pragmatic prioritization of risks. An adept technical leader known for driving team success and customer impact in areas such as Threat Hunting, Digital Forensics, Incident Response, Detection Engineering, and Penetration Testing. ; D. I: Contributed to the security posture of DoD systems by conducting vulnerability assessments responding to potentially malicious incidents on the network, endpoint protection, and risk management. I leveraged my skills in Splunk Enterprise, Splunk(Enterprise Security) , Crowdstrike Falcon, and various security applications to monitor, analyze, and respond to cyber incidents, ensuring compliance with policies and standards. Currently pursuing my bachelor's degree in cloud computing with a multi-cloud concentration at Western Governors University, while expanding knowledge in threat hunting , detection engineering, and cloud security.

Posh, the trailblazing avatar, made in RJ likeness made history by becoming the first to secure a professional modeling contract. Beyond the virtual runway, RJ is the proud owner of a professional men's team and the visionary force behind 'Ballin in the Metaverse,' all while staking claim to the largest plot of digital real estate as black Women.

Phillip Daineka is a seasoned professional with an MSc in Financial Economics and a strong background in computer science. He has made significant contributions to Flatlogic, leading the company's revenue growth from inception to a remarkable seven-figure milestone. Phillip adeptly manages a team of 35 professionals, driving productivity and fostering a culture of excellence within the organization. His expertise and leadership have been instrumental in shaping Flatlogic's success story.

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Christina Cyr is the CEO of dTOOR, a company that makes "Non-Rectangular Phones for Non-Rectangular People", starting with an innovative Android smartphone called The Cyrcle Phone. By trade she is a Senior Principal Electrical Engineer who designs advanced printed circuit boards in Altium (or Eagle) and Autodesk for smartphones and IoT devices using technologies such as GNSS (GPS, etc.), NFC, BLE, Wi-Fi, and 2G/3G/4G/LTE/5G. Engineer Cyr ("Cyr" rhymes with "year") holds multiple patents in the field of mobile communication devices and systems, and has taught over 300 people nationwide how to make their own smartphone.

Camille Camejo is the founder of Spectral Theory, a Tech and Wellness Agency dedicated to providing Black professionals, entrepreneurs, and startups with the resources they need to develop and learn the magic behind software, web, and product design. Camille loves education just as much as she loves the craft of engineering. She is currently pursuing her 2nd Master's in Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech, performing Engineering Education research. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from the illustrious Howard University, a 2nd Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Florida Atlantic University, and her 1st Master's degree in Software Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. With over 15 years of teaching experience, over 10 years of experience in digital design, and 5 years as a full-stack developer and Software Engineer at Qualcomm, she now enjoys spending her time sharing the beauty of software design and co-curating life-long dreams to reality with her community.

Christina Cyr is the CEO of dTOOR, a company that makes "Non-Rectangular Phones for Non-Rectangular People", starting with an innovative Android smartphone called The Cyrcle Phone. By trade she is a Senior Principal Electrical Engineer who designs advanced printed circuit boards in Altium (or Eagle) and Autodesk for smartphones and IoT devices using technologies such as GNSS (GPS, etc.), NFC, BLE, Wi-Fi, and 2G/3G/4G/LTE/5G. Engineer Cyr ("Cyr" rhymes with "year") holds multiple patents in the field of mobile communication devices and systems, and has taught over 300 people nationwide how to make their own smartphone.

Rizel Scarlett is a Staff Developer Advocate at TBD, Block's newest business unit. With a diverse background spanning GitHub, startups, and non-profit organizations, Rizel has cultivated a passion for utilizing emerging technologies to champion equity within the tech industry. She moonlights as an Advisor at G{Code} House, an organization aimed at teaching women of color and non-binary people of color to code. Rizel believes in leveraging vulnerability, honesty, and kindness as means to educate early-career developers.

Current Director of Marketing, Demand Generation at Refine Labs helping SaaS & Tech B2B companies scale their marketing efforts

• Been in the SaaS / Tech industry doing Marketing & Operations for the past 6/7 years

• Consults on the side giving expert advice to start-up companies seeking to make their brand's presence known.

Kanene Ayo Holder is an award winning diversity expert who advises companies on ethical AI, DEI and inclusive marketing. She launched her consultancy FutureFixer to support companies be more inclusive, authentic and icon in an increasingly more discerning world. Kanene believes powerful questions and introspection can drive innovation and rapid growth due to getting past fluff and hype to the truth. The truth makes you stand out from the crowd.Kanene has led transformational workshops for companies including The American Red Cross, MAGNA Global and the Atlanta School District.Kanene is currently the AI Integrations for DEIGPT a state of the art AI tool to support teams navigate their diversity goals.

Ari McDaniel is the Founder and Head of Community Relations for the Black Tech Public Relations Society (BTPRS) – a global advocacy platform and community amplifying diversity in communications across tech and venture capital.

Dina Lynch Eisenberg JD MBA is an Ombuds, mediator and educator with three decades of experience helping individuals navigate workplace conflicts in companies like Twitter, Bank of America and Coca Cola. She founded http://ombudsology.com/ to offer mentoring programs that teach Black women how to speak up powerfully without making career-ending moves.

Huralain Mohamed is Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Cytec Solutions, a Woman Veteran-Owned Minority Small Business based in Washington, DC offering cybersecurity solutions to government agencies and private organizations. Huralain brings over 15 years of expertise in the infosec industry supporting and overseeing strategic security programs with various agencies including the DoD, DHS, DOE, CISA, DISA, USSOCOM, & AFSOC. She is passionate about addressing the critical issue of diversity and representation in the tech industry through the creation of accessible real-world cybersecurity training and solutions.

Brandon is the Founder and CEO at WriteSea, one of the fastest-growing SaaS platforms that helps job boards, hiring platforms, and associations to unlock revenue and elevate their member experience. Over the past seven years, Brandon has helped thousands of jobseekers land their next job opportunity and trained resume writers to scale their businesses. Prior to launching the company, Brandon worked as a technology consultant for PwC, a global accounting, and advisory powerhouse. He has been featured in Yahoo Finance, Earn Your Leisure, Black Wealth Renaissance, and Linkedin for his career and technology insights. He is a go-to resource for automation and scalability. Brandon is passionate about helping small businesses succeed and frequently facilitates corporate workshops for Fortune 500 companies, including Google, Price Waterhouse Cooper, and Morgan Stanley.

Charis Loveland joined AWS in 2019 leading AI/ML strategy for the Cloud Intelligence team. She now works full time as the global program manager for the EPIC program. Before joining Amazon, Charis worked independently in AI product strategy and taught data science for MIT, Columbia, and Dartmouth, as well as product management, agile, metrics, and communication for General Assembly. Prior to that, Charis founded Rue La La’s data science team. At Microsoft, she launched a global crowdsourcing platform for data scientists and previously led technical projects at EMC and SAP. She began her career as an editor teaching people how to use SAP software, and has been translating technology to business stakeholders ever since. She is an Emotional Intelligence evangelist, IDE ambassador, Class Chat coach, and Hour of Code organizer. Charis lives in the New England woods and has a 14 year old daughter and 2 cats. She loves to travel, read, practice yoga and mindfulness, and share transformational tips to inspire colleagues on their EQ journey.

Niara Patterson, a Seattle-based tech professional with a Computer Science degree from North Carolina A&T State University, brings a rich background working with industry leaders like Cisco, Apple, and Microsoft. Her exceptional combination of technical proficiency, creative thinking, and commitment to mentorship positions her as an excellent workshop facilitator for the Women's Rights Buildathon, inspiring aspiring tech professionals with her unique journey.

Allie Joy is a Ghanaian-American speaker, entrepreneur, and DEI Talent Acquisition expert. Having transitioned into a career in technology in 2018, Allie's journey was marked by being the "only" in her workplace, igniting her dedication to advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion in the tech industry.

Since 2019, Allie has spearheaded the growth of Baddies in Tech into an authentic, community-powered ecosystem. This platform provides a safe space for women of color to thrive in the technology sector. Through inclusive community networks, mentorship programs, and career development initiatives, Baddies in Tech empowers black and brown women to break into and excel in technology careers. Allie's vision is to increase the representation of women of color in computing roles to 10% by 2030.

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