Governance
Mónica Pérez-Hurtado
Mónica Pérez-Hurtado is the Co-founder of Experience Ahead, an EdTech company that supports professional reinvention through mentoring and digital platforms. She is also a Business Angel at WA4STEAM and a PhD candidate researching the impact of Artificial Intelligence on career trajectories. With a background in HR strategy, executive roles in multinational firms, and teaching at institutions like MIT, CEU San Pablo, and UPM, Mónica brings deep expertise in talent development and innovation. She is a public speaker and author of “Talento e Inteligencia Artificial” (2024), and has been recognized by the Government of Spain as a “Woman Role Model in Innovative Entrepreneurship” and named one of the Top 100 Women Investors in Spain (2022–2023).
Tomás Navarro Echeverría
Tomás Navarro Echeverría is Managing Director at Scaphari Ventures and CEO at Miccrosei Biotech, with over 20 years of experience in investment analysis, business restructuring, and strategic development for both startups and large companies. He has worked closely with founders and innovation teams, supporting early-stage ventures through financial planning, business modeling, and growth strategies. He also serves as a professor at the EIT AMIR Master program and as an Advisory Board Member at BHV Partners. With an MBA from IESE Business School and additional executive education from Georgetown University, Tomás brings a unique blend of academic, financial, and entrepreneurial insight to the innovation ecosystem.
Maria Oliveira
With more than 15 years of practical experience in entrepreneurship, business and innovation management, Maria Oliveira is a reference in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Portugal. With her strategic vision and exceptional ability to mobilise, she has been a key player in consolidating UPTEC as a hub of excellence in promoting collaborative innovation among startups, research centres, and large companies. She’s an expert in building links between researchers and markets, initiatives aimed at building and supporting strong entrepreneurial ecosystems, business development, proof of concept and start-up support programs, technology transfer and open innovation. As a recognition of her work, Maria has been recently selected as a finalist in the Innovation Champion Trophy, a national award recognising exceptional contribution to the advancement of the Portuguese innovation ecosystem.
Jean-Christophe de Tauzia
Jean-Christophe de Tauzia is the CEO of Descartes Development and Innovation (DDI) and Vice-
President of French Tech Marne-la-Vallée. DDI is an association and technopole dedicated to
sustainable urban development, located in Cité Descartes within the Paris region. DDI also manages a
FabLab, an Incubator, and a loan fund.
In 2025, Jean-Christophe was elected to serve as a board member of the International Business
Incubation Association.
Specializing in coaching startups, particularly in the deeptech sector, Jean-Christophe excels in
launching and implementing services that foster entrepreneurship and business development on
both national and international scales. He is an active participant in several European networks and
holds dual degrees in business and engineering.
Prior to his current roles, Jean-Christophe served as a principal consultant for the engineering group
Assystem UK, SME coordinator for the European Space Agency, and as an expert in research
valorization and venture capital for projects funded by the European Commission. He has also held
positions as an innovation business manager at ANVAR (now Bpifrance) and as an export manager in
a startup.
Mart Toots
Mart Toots, PhD, is a seasoned expert in applied research and innovation management, currently serving as the Head of the Applied Research Programme Department at Enterprise Estonia. With a strong background in biomedical technology, and MBA from the Estonian Business School, he has led R&D initiatives both in Estonia and the United States, including in the private sector. Over the past few years, he has played a pivotal role in developing Estonia’s largest applied R&D funding initiative, the Applied Research Program (RUP), which has supported over 200 projects and nearly 1,000 companies with more than €100 million in funding. His work bridges multiple technological domains—such as ICT, materials science, and energy—and is marked by a strong emphasis on international collaboration and cross-sectoral innovation.
Paavo Pilv
Paavo Pilv is the CEO and Management Board Member of GeneCode, an exemplary Estonian deep-tech company known for its science-driven, high-value-added innovation. Together with Estonia’s leading scientists—including Professor Mart Saarma and Professor Tarmo Tamme, who also serves as GeneCode’s Chief Scientific Officer—Pilv is spearheading the development of a groundbreaking treatment for Parkinson’s disease. In 2023, GeneCode became the first Estonian company to secure a record-breaking €16 million funding package from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator, consisting of a €1.7 million grant and €14.3 million in equity investment, contingent on matching private capital. This achievement highlights Pilv’s strategic leadership in securing international funding and managing complex R&D initiatives. A graduate of Estonian Business School’s BA and EMBA programs, Paavo has over two decades of experience in leading biotech, environmental, and clean-tech ventures. He has served as a founder and board member of various startups, PPP projects, and foundations, and has consistently demonstrated a strong capacity for international collaboration and strategic planning in science-based innovation.
Christian Suojanen
Christian Suojanen is the Founder and CEO of Broadreach Global, a premier network and accelerator for CNS neuroscience, neurotech, and neuro digital health companies. With 25 years of experience, he is a seasoned entrepreneur and advisor in bio, pharma, healthcare, and technology sectors, focusing on startups and growth companies. His expertise spans business strategy, finance access, and development, advising VC funds, accelerators, health systems, and technology transfer offices. Christian has led Europe’s largest biotech association turnaround and played a key role in the European Commission’s “Innovation in Healthcare” initiative, influencing the launch of the EIC Accelerator. He coordinated Europe’s first biotech entrepreneur bootcamp and co-founded a global biotech technology transfer platform with over 340 leading offices, hosting summits worldwide. Fluent in English, French, and Spanish, Christian combines deep sector knowledge with a vast international network across industry, finance, startups, and research.
Bariscan Gungor
Bariscan Gungor is working as a Director at Visa Europe Tech Hub, Board Advisor at Originium, and Lecturer at Koç University. Helped 3k+ startups globally (pre-seed to expansion) as mentor and jury, founded/backed tech ventures from scratch to ~$1M ARR, partnered Fortune500 (Siemens, Ford, etc.) to utilize deep tech in their business. Experienced in FinTech, E-commerce, and Telecom. Studied PhD & Masters at Boğaziçi University MIS, Math & Computer Engineering at Cardiff University & YTU. IEEE peer reviewer for Blockchain research papers.
Ayşe Nisa Akgün
Ayşe Nisa Akgün is a seasoned innovation and entrepreneurship professional currently serving as a Senior Digital Business Development Specialist at Zorlu Holding. With over five years at Zorlu Holding and its subsidiary Vestel Ventures, she has held various roles including Entrepreneurship Program Specialist and Entrepreneur Representative, focusing on risk management, market research, open innovation, and venture capital.
She is also the Co-Founder of Future Innovation Leaders, a platform aimed at advancing innovation and program development, and has been an active Fund Team Member at Gelecek Etki Fonu, where she contributes to investment fund strategy and venture capital initiatives. Ayşenisa combines deep expertise in startup ecosystems with a strategic vision for fostering innovation in Turkey’s tech and investment landscape.
Anıl Atılgan
Anıl Atılgan, is a seasoned Turkish executive and entrepreneur with a strong background in mechanical engineering and leadership in the energy and technology sectors. Anıl also brings entrepreneurial expertise as the former Co-Founder, COO, and CEO of Sporzy, a London-based startup in the health and wellness tech space. After his exit in 2023, he has been active in the impact entrepreneurship & investment vertical as the CEO of StartMe, an accelerator program for early-stage impact startups. He holds a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering and an Executive MBA from Istanbul Technical University, and is a graduate of the prestigious Robert College. With over two decades of hands-on experience spanning engineering, project management, accelerator program and startup leadership, Anıl effectively bridges technical depth with strategic business insight.
Prof. Dr. Altan Çakır
Prof. Dr. Altan Çakır, is a distinguished physicist, educator, and entrepreneur based in Istanbul. After earning his M.Sc. in theoretical particle physics at Izmir Institute of Technology in 2006, he completed his Ph.D. at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in 2010, focusing on big data analytics and AI applications for CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. He then spent over five years as a postdoctoral researcher at DESY (Hamburg) and CERN, before joining Istanbul Technical University (ITU) in 2016 as a faculty member. At ITU, he leads the ITU‑CMS group working on CERN projects, teaches Big Data & Business Analytics, and serves as Dean of Research and on the board of the ITU Artificial Intelligence & Data Science Center. Prof. Çakır also holds leadership roles beyond academia: he’s co‑chair of the Turkish AI Platform, board member of the Turkish Informatics Foundation, and represents Turkey in ECFA/RECFA. As an entrepreneur, he co‑founded Parton Big Data Analytics & Consultancy (in ITU Technopark) and Adin.Ai, an AI-driven digital marketing startup later listed by Fast Company Turkey among the top 100 promising startups in 2023. Driven by his mission to bridge science, industry, and education, Prof. Çakır is devoted to nurturing the next generation of researchers and data scientists in Turkey.