Our BOLD VII Judges

Explore our BOLD VII jury board! Market leaders, innovators, and change-makers from all corners of the globe come together to take part in judging the boldest projects.

MAURIZIO ROSSI

Chairperson of BOLD Awards, curiosity driven dreamer and always a keen observer, Maurizio father of four likes to discover and understand differences of people's lifestyles and their cultures. He's fascinated how technologies impact our day life and about their influence in the society and cultures, thanks to his dynamic personality he has developed an important network of international connections.

CHAIRPERSON

EPI LUDVIK

Epi is the Founder & CEO of Crowdsourcing Week. In 2008, he created Ludvik + Partners - one of New York’s hottest boutique virtual ad agencies built on a 100% crowdsourcing model. Epi Ludvik is one of the pioneers in the crowdsourcing ad space, an industry expert and thought leader in entertainment advertising - including public relations, event production, experiential marketing, consumer advertising and digital marketing.

CO-CHAIRPERSON

VASILY PETRENKO

Vasily Petrenko is the CEO and Co-Founder of Another World VR, a global leader in free-roam virtual reality experiences with more than 400 partner arenas worldwide. An entrepreneur at the intersection of technology and entertainment, he has built companies that redefine how people interact with physical spaces through immersive, story-driven environments.Before Another World VR, Vasily co-founded Time Quest Lab, delivering over 600 escape rooms and interactive installations across the globe, and later launched Lava Jump Park, an experiential activity park franchise. His work combines strategic vision, scalable business models, and a passion for transforming entertainment into fully lived experiences.

eGaming / eSports

DR. MIHAELA ULIERU

Dr. Mihaela Ulieru is a global pioneer in distributed intelligence, blockchain, and technology governance. A former “Blockchain Champion” at the World Economic Forum, she helped position blockchain among the Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2016. Her early research shaped how blockchain is understood today—as an institutional technology capable of transforming manufacturing, logistics, and security systems.She has held two prestigious research chairs and authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications. Through her labs in Emergent Information Systems and Adaptive Risk Management, she has mentored innovators such as Garrett Camp, co-founder of Uber. Her expertise has led to influential roles on policy and science councils in Singapore, Canada, and the European Commission, along with advisory positions at IEEE, NSERC, and NSF.As President of the IMPACT Institute for the Digital Economy, Mihaela advises start-ups, non-profits, and governments on building equitable digital futures. A Romanian-born technologist and award-winning multilingual poet, she considers her greatest achievement raising her two sons as a single parent—both now impactful contributors to society.

Crowdsourcing

ASDRÚBAL PICHARDO

Asdrúbal is a senior technology executive with a broad and unique combination of experience in growing solutions, business units, markets and revenues. He’s currently the CEO of Squalify, a Munich based Start-Up, providing a Cyber Risk Quantification solution aimed at the C-Suite to make cyber risk measurable and manageable at the strategic level. Before joining Squalify he was the CEO of Vernaio, a SaaS AI company helping production companies to become more efficient and sustainable. Prior to Vernaio, he was the CEO of FactoryPal, a corporate Start-Up offering a SaaS solution to increase manufacturing efficiency by leveraging AI and IoT technology. Before joining FactoryPal, he was the EVP & GM Europe at Corporater, a global SaaS company providing Risk & Compliance Management (GRC) solutions. He also spent 12 years at SAP, Europe’s largest Software company, where he held several leadership positions. In addition to management and executive education at MIT and INSEAD, Asdrúbal holds a Computer Science and a M.Sc. degree in Advanced Computing from King’s College London.

Cybersecurity

ANNA ANISIN

Anna Anisin is an entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and business owner with deep roots in the tech world and a passion for creativity.Starting her entrepreneurial journey at 16, Anna has since achieved multiple successful exits and built a career around scaling brands, building communities, and pioneering new paths in marketing innovation.Today, Anna leads DataScience.Salon, one of the most trusted communities in AI and machine learning, and runs FormulatedBy, a boutique B2B marketing firm specializing in demand generation, experiential strategy, and AI-driven marketing. Under her leadership, FormulatedBy has served over 100 brands including AWS, IBM, Databricks, Oracle, and many of the most influential startups in AI/ML and deep tech.A recognized LinkedIn Top Voice and Forbes Business Council member, Anna also contributes regularly to Forbes, writing about how businesses can harness AI, machine learning, and agent marketing to drive scalable growth.Most recently, Anna launched the 𝐼 𝒲𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝐻𝑒𝓇 𝒮𝒽𝑜𝑒𝓈 𝒫𝑜𝒹𝒸𝒶𝓈𝓉, now a Top 5 podcast and also the fastest growing in Fashion/Beauty in the US, where she explores the intersection of career, lifestyle, leadership, and fashion—reflecting her belief that building a fulfilling life means bringing every side of yourself to the table.

AI

BRYAN KRAMER

Proud Father of Human-to-Human: H2H. Executive Coach, Keynote Speaker, Investor, Virtual & In-Person Global Keynote Speaker, CEO of 2 Companies, and TEDTalker. Bryan Kramer is a renowned business strategist, global keynote speaker, executive trainer and coach, investor, two-time bestselling author, and Forbes contributor. As President and co-owner of PureMatter, a Silicon Valley global marketing agency since 2001 and CEO of H2H Companies, he sparked the Human-to-Human “H2H” global movement that sets out to humanize business through simpler communication, empathy, and celebrating our imperfections. His TED Talk featured a TED “first” – allowing mobile devices during the event to illustrate his belief that even a small inspirational share holds the power to change the world for the better. Bryan has spoken all over the world, over 200 times at global companies including Mastercard, L‘oreal Paris, NASA, GoDaddy, Harvard University, Charles Schwab, SXSW, International Culinary Institute, Verizon, Dell, NFL, and Hawaii Lodging & Tourism, to name a few.

New Media / AdTech

YEVHENIIA BROSHEVAN

Yevheniia Broshevan is the CEO & Co-Founder of Hacken, a global blockchain security leader trusted by Binance, MetaMask, the Ethereum Foundation, and major financial institutions. An early adopter of crypto since 2014, she built Hacken into a 140+ expert organization providing end-to-end Web3 security, compliance, and AI-driven threat intelligence. A Certified Ethical Hacker, Stanford Executive Program alum, and Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, Yevheniia is also a judge on Apple TV’s Killer Whales and a prominent advocate for women in Web3 and STEM, driving security, innovation, and leadership across the decentralized future.

Crypto

EVA MANRIQUE

Eva is the Head of Open Innovation & Validations at Barcelona & Madrid Health Hub, where she selects innovative digital health solutions for clinical validation and connects health startups with the ecosystem. With over 15 years of experience in Innovation and Digital Transformation, she spent a decade at Telefónica, a global leader in telecom, and previously worked as an Innovation Consultant. Eva holds degrees in Psychology and Anthropology and founded a Social and Circular Economy business. Outside of her professional endeavors, she enjoys spending time with her child and caring for her cat.

Science

BEN BECKLEY

Ben is a CEO at RevHealth and passionate about health equity and driven to support underserved patients. He works side-by-side with caregivers, patients, and medical specialists whose stories shaped his commitment to making a real difference. Through RevHealth, he channels empathy into action helping turn care into impact and lifting up the next generation of leaders in healthcare.

HealthTech

RAGHU BALA

Raghu Bala is the CEO and Founder of Synergetics.ai, where he leads breakthroughs in autonomous agents powered by Generative AI and blockchain. With four successful startup exits including three to public companies and prior roles at Yahoo, Infospace, Automotive.com, and PwC, he brings deep industry experience to the frontier of intelligent systems.A Wharton MBA with advanced studies at Stanford, Princeton, and RPI, Raghu has taught AI and Blockchain at MIT Sloan, Columbia University, and VIT, and serves as a mentor for deep-tech ecosystems like IIT Madras. He is a published author on the Metaverse, Blockchain, and C++ and was ranked among the Top 100 Crypto Advisors by CoinMarketCap. His current work focuses on shaping the emerging Agent Economy, where AI-driven autonomous systems interact, transact, and make decisions across digital environments.

Blockchain

MANJUNATH VENKATRAM

Manjunath Venkatram is the Founder and CEO at ThoughtData. He has 25 years experience in IT. His experience encompasses R&D in areas of software development, quality assurance, product management as well as entrepreneurship, marketing and leadership. At ThoughtData he leads the team in delivering unified IT observability software solutions to large enterprise customers

SaaS

JOSE LUIS CORDEIRO

José Luis is a world citizen in our small planet in a big unknown universe. He was born in Latin America, from European parents, was educated in Europe and North America, and has worked extensively in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. He has studied, visited and worked in over 130 countries in 5 continents.

Robotics

WILL FORD

Will Ford is a crowdfunding expert, entrepreneur and board member who is passionate about bringing innovation to life. He is the President and Co-Founder of LaunchBoom, the world’s best solution for helping consumer product creators maximize their new product launches. The combination of LaunchBoom's proprietary software and expert support makes launching a new consumer product simple and affordable.Since 2015, Will has built LaunchBoom into one of the most respected and trusted brands in the crowdfunding industry. LaunchBoom is a certified expert on Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Gamefound, and BackerKit and has managed over a thousand successful crowdfunding campaigns raising more than $200+ million.Will also serves as a strategic advisor and board member for several businesses, a non-profit and is a proud member of The Century Club in San Diego.

Crowdfunding

MAX PINNAU

Max Pinnau is the heartbeat behind Marketplace Risk’s global events, bringing together the people and ideas shaping the future of digital trust, safety, and platform innovation. His journey started in Barcelona’s tech scene, where he discovered a passion for building communities and creating spaces where meaningful conversations can spark real change.Max leads Marketplace Risk’s worldwide operations from San Francisco to London to São Paulo focused on crafting experiences that help industry leaders connect, learn, and grow. He also created the Sponsor Intelligence Workshop, a practical framework that helps partners communicate clearly and make a bigger impact on stage and beyond.

Marketplace

RICKY TAY

Rick is Head, Centre for Global Education and Opportunities (GEO) at Singapore Management University (SMU). He overseas student mobility programs with more than 220 partner universities worldwide and works with colleagues across the university to ensure all undergraduate students have access to global exposure as part of their academic journey at SMU. Prior to that, Rick was operations director at Nanyang Technopreneurship Center (NTC), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, where he worked on undergraduate and graduate programs, executive education, a national start-up accelerator program, as well as collaborations and partnerships with various global centers of excellence in the entrepreneurship space. Before joining the education industry in 2010, Rick had spent 16 years in corporate administration and international business development roles in various industries, from aviation (IATA) and travel distribution (Abacus/Sabre and Travelport) to consumer electronics (Epson). Rick received his first degree in Banking and Finance (BBus) from NTU, Singapore and holds an MBA from Imperial College London, UK.

EdTech

EDDIE AVIL

Eddie Avil is an entrepreneur and metaverse strategist driving India's AR/VR and future technology sectors. He champions disruptive innovations and advocates for a decentralized, inclusive future.Key Contributions:Founder of IMMERSION, India's premier VR conference Founder of XROM (www.xrom.in), an XR hub combining news, consulting & marketplace Podcasting: Hosts two groundbreaking Indian podcasts:"The ONE'S Changing The WORLD" (www.youtube.com/@toctwpodcast) "XROM Podcast" (www.youtube.com/xrompodcast) Has interviewed over 450 industry leaders Professional Role:Metaverse strategist at Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd. Board member, Lifeboat Foundation Eddie's work bridges technology and societal benefit, positioning him as a key figure in India's evolving tech landscape.

AR VR

ALESSANDRO RIMASSA

An entrepreneur and investor with expertise in the future of work, education, and digital transformation. He founded RADICAL HR, which is now part of the Future of Work Group where he serves as CEO. Previously, he founded Talent Garden Innovation School.He is also a co-founder of HAPPY2C, an investment holding company with 16 startup investments and 4 successful exits, focused on the digital transformation, HRtech, and EDtech sectors. He serves on the board of directors for Save the Children Italia, ViviSalute and Laborability.He is the author of eight books, including the best-seller Generazione Mille Euro and his new release, Le 5 lenti dell’HR.

HR Tech

HARI SRINIVASAN

Hari Srinivasan is the Founder & CEO of iCover, a Missouri-based InsurTech, that has designed the "Best Life Insurance Buying Experience". Before iCover, Hari successfully launched and exited i3 Tech, specializing in digital marketing and mobile app tech. Driven by a passion for innovation and empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs, he actively advises Space Kidz, and mentors startups through the Nimoniks Foundation. Hari believes in leveraging technology to solve real-world problems, create value, and improve lives.

InsurTech

SAM TAIWO

Sam Taiwo is a finance and analytics leader who’s passionate about turning data into clear, practical decisions that move businesses forward. Over the years, he’s worked across global organizations such as UPS, Anheuser-Busch InBev, and Henkel, helping teams make sense of complexity, improve planning, and drive smarter growth.What sets Sam apart is his ability to bridge finance, analytics, and technology—combining strategic thinking with hands-on insight to deliver real business impact. Backed by dual master’s degrees in Financial Planning and Data Science from Texas Tech University, he brings both rigor and curiosity to everything he does, always focused on creating clarity, value, and momentum in fast-changing environments.

FinTech

KEITH KOO

Keith is the Founder and Managing Partner of Guardian Insight Group, a technology advisory services firm focused on identifying, assessing, controlling, and mitigating the risks associated with doing business with technology companies and vendors, such as financial, blockchain, pricing/cost, cyber, information security, business resiliency, disaster recovery, regulatory, and compliance. Keith also serves as a mentor and advisor to a number of innovative companies, breakthrough technology startups, and incubators.

Future of Work

MARTIN EYERER

Martin Eyerer is the co-founder and CEO of Green City Development, and an internationally successful DJ and music producer with over 30 years of industry experience. Martin’s role as a bridge-builder between the creative economy, the tech industry, and politics is based on the versatility of his professional experiences, his extensive network, and his strong socio-political engagement. Since 2017, he has focused on transforming unused commercial real estate into vibrant spaces for innovation and collaboration. With Green City Development, he is now driving the creation of NLND – Europe’s largest innovation ecosystem, spanning 150,000 square meters in Berlin-Neukölln. Martin has been featured in media (Tagesspiegel, Handelsblatt, Berliner Morgenpost, Business Punk), on stage at high-profile conferences (GITEX Europe, SXSW, Reeperbahn Festival), and is an active participant of the Berlin Partner Network.

Mobility

ROB VAN KRANENBURG

Rob Is the Founder of the Internet of Things Council and Bricolabs. He works as Ecosystem Manager for the EU project Next Generation Internet and now is the Chief Innovation Officer at Asvin.io. Rob wrote The Internet of Things: A critique of ambient technology and the all-seeing network of RFID, Institute of Network Cultures and co-edited Enabling Things to Talk published by Springer. He recently published Future Urban Smartness: Connectivity Zones with Disposable Identities also by Springer.

IoT

PAULA PARDO

Paula Pardo is the Technology Scout specialist for the Innovative & Emerging Activities (IEA) programme at EUROCONTROL. She began her career in innovation in Venture capital with Wayra, (CVC of Telefónica), and later, at the Travel & Hospitality arm of US VC Plug and Play. Before joining EUROCONTROL, she managed IATA's open innovation programme, Accelerate@IATA.