Speakers

Jason Weaver is a tech founder, author, and product strategist who has raised over $50 million for his own startups and helped other startups raise an additional $50 million. He built and exited two venture-backed companies: Shoutlet, a leading social media management platform, and Spendsetter, a mobile loyalty platform.

Today, Jason leads Halo, a firm that helps companies accelerate product development and go-to-market execution. He is also the creator of Tractionary, a platform designed to help founders test and validate startup ideas with potential customers and investors.

Jason is the internationally published author of Manager’s Guide to Online Marketing (McGraw-Hill). His upcoming book, The Startup CEO Survival Guide, is set to launch in August 2025. He holds a Bachelor of Science from Ohio University.

Matt is a seasoned AWS expert who transforms cloud chaos into clarity, ensuring that CTOs and engineering leaders can rest easy knowing their infrastructure is secure, scalable, and resilient.

With a track record of being the first call when outages threaten to cost companies $100,000 per hour, Matt is the go-to authority for building robust AWS environments that withstand the unexpected and is a trusted advisor for companies navigating the complexities of AWS.

He has been raising the bar as a web application architect for two decades, with his passion for problem-solving leading him from winning the TechCrunch Disrupt Hackathon, to founding Schematical — where he has been instrumental in scaling many businesses, like Custom Wheel Offset, helping it go from a modest garage setup to a thriving e-commerce powerhouse. 

Prior to Okkanti, Karen founded Birthways, a Doula Agency in Chicago that has now served over 10,000 families. She also founded WisdomWay Institute, which offers training, mentoring and support for caregivers. Okkanti was born from Karen’s desire to solve the problems she saw in the industry while running her practice at Birthways. Karen is also a Vital Voices Global Leadership Fellow.

Prior to Okkanti, Michael co-founded Factor, an AI Solution to Manage Supply Chains. Factor went through Stanford’s StartX Accelerator, raised 3 rounds of funding ($12M Total) from 2018-2023, and was acquired in 2024. Prior to Factor, Michael co-founded MAMM 3D which developed additively manufactured 8ft fixed-wing UAVs. While he learned a ton, the drones and the company eventually crashed and burned.

Anita is passionate about creating a trusting space where individuals and groups can gain clarity and tap into their individual and collective wisdom in service of their life’s purpose.

She coaches leaders, creators, and change agents — and their teams — to cultivate a growth mindset, unlock powerful perspectives, and bring their vision to life with authentic joy.

With over 15 years in senior leadership roles, Anita has trained thousands of professionals and has accumulated over 600 hours of coaching. Her expertise spans leadership development, human resources, learning and development, organizational development, strategic planning, and consensus building.

Anita also serves on the boards of the Waukesha County Technical College Foundation, the Waukesha County Community Foundation, and the Untitled Film Society. She is a proud member of Impact100 Greater Milwaukee.

Mr. Thorson is a Founder and Managing Director of Inventure Capital, a private investment firm specializing in multifamily development and early-stage technology investments. Inventure has led or co-developed over 1,000 luxury apartments and 40,000 sf of commercial and retail space in the Madison, WI metro area, and made seed investments in a portfolio of software, healthcare IT, and clean tech startups in the Midwest.

Mr. Thorson graduated from West Point in 1990 with a degree in Economics and a minor in Electrical Engineering and was an Academic All-American on the Army football team. He earned his master’s degree from Brasenose College, Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar in 1992, and then served as an infantry officer in the US Army. Following military service, Mr. Thorson spent 16 years in global finance, primarily in London & Tokyo.

Mr. Thorson is also a Co-Manager of Wisconsin Investment Partners and a member of Golden Angels Investors, two of the largest and oldest angel investment groups in Wisconsin. He serves on the Investment Committees of the Winnow Fund and Idea Fund II, is a Board Member for Jazz at Five, and an Advisory Committee member for the Wisconsin Housing Development Fund. Mike is a proud native of Onalaska, WI, and currently resides in Fitchburg, WI.