CES Unveiled Amsterdam Speakers


FOR MEDIA 

Thursday 12 October 2023

Taets Art & Event Park
Middenweg 62 Hembrugterrein
1505RK Zaandam, Netherlands


2023 Featured Speakers

View CES Unveiled Amsterdam 2023 Featured Speakers below.
 

Dr. John Bell
CEO, HighTechXL


Dr. John Bell is CEO of HighTechXL, which is the prime DeepTech Venture Builder in Europe. In close collaboration with the main DeepTech ecosystem in the Netherlands, HighTechXL creates new promising ventures that solve societal challenges. The ventures are built on strong protected IP from top tech institutes and companies. Before John joined HighTechXL, he was global Vice President External Innovation and New Business Models for Johnson & Johnson Consumer, based in New Jersey. In this role, he was responsible for driving the cooperation with entrepreneurs, strategic suppliers, partner companies and universities to co-create and onboard game-changing innovations. His team represented the J&J Consumer Business in the Johnson & Johnson Innovation Centers and JLABS.

Before he joined J&J, John was VP of Strategy and New Business Development at Philips Research. Prior to that, he was responsible for Strategic Alliances in Philips and he also worked as Strategy Consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers. John has a strong background in open innovation, new business creation, entrepreneurship, partnerships and strategy. John has a track record of creating new emerging businesses, setting up an internal Incubator, driving the cultural change towards Open Innovation and managing alliances.

John has a degree in business economics and a Ph.D. on Joint Ventures from Tilburg University.

Esther Bisschop
Ex Start-up Founder/Technical Program Manager, Snap Inc.


In 2017, Esther joined the founding team of the startup Th3rd, alongside Tristan Bethe and Rudo Bisschop (Esther’s brother). Th3rd specialized in creating high-quality digital twins of people and products to help brands and retailers digitize their product catalogs at scale. After being selected for Adidas’ Accelerator in Europe, the company worked with the retailer to digitize more than 2,500 shoes. Th3rd was acquired by Snap Inc. in 2022.

Before her time at Th3rd, Esther served as the Managing Partner and Director of Operations at the Dutch creative agency TinQwise, which specialized in bespoke Digital Corporate Learning Solutions. In this role, she worked closely with the company's largest corporate customers and managed daily operations.

With a strong passion for technology, creativity, and communications, Esther also worked as a freelance Advisor, Strategic Program Manager, and Project Manager for various (creative) agencies and corporations in The Netherlands.

Briehan Burke
General Partner, Keen Venture Partners


Briehan Burke is a General Partner at Keen Venture Partners, a radically-human venture capital firm based in Amsterdam and London. Keen backs exceptional teams across Europe at the early stages and aims to begin relationships by investing time first, money later.Previously, Briehan was a growth investor at Catalyst Investors; an early employee at Lola, a venture-backed femtech company; and an investment banker at Bank of America, all in NYC.

Brian Comiskey
Director of Thematic Programs, Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®
 

Brian Comiskey is the Director of Thematic Programs at the Consumer Technology Association. Brian is responsible for the thematic indexes developed and maintained by CTA and Nasdaq as a part of a more than decade long partnership. Covering a variety of sectors including artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, gaming, and robotics, Brian and his team manage a portfolio of 15 thematic indexes with 20 products and $10B in assets under management tracking these indexes across listings in more than a dozen countries. 

Prior to joining CTA, Brian consulted for the United States Coast Guard on digital transformation and cybersecurity policy. 

Brian holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the College of William & Mary. 

Boudewijn Docter
Chief Growth Officer, HighTechXL
 

Boudewijn Docter started working in the field of integrated photonics in 1998 at the pioneer start-up BBV Software. This was the first company in the world to make professional design software for photonic chips and was acquired by Alcatel in 2001. After finishing his Master Degree in Electrical Engineering at Twente University he did a PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology. After obtaining his PhD Boudewijn founded EFFECT Photonics, a company making components for fiber-optic networks, in 2010. Boudewijn served as CTO and President until February 2023. He is currently Chief Growth Officer at HighTechXL, a venture building organization in Eindhoven, where he coaches new startup entrepreneurs in their journey to solve grand societal challenges using deep tech.

İlknur Dönmez
Manager, Start-ups, Scale-ups and Better Regulations at the directorate Entrepreneurship at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy (Netherlands)
 

İlknur Dönmez is a manager startups and scale-ups and Better Regulations at the directorate Entrepreneurship at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy (Netherlands). She has more than 20 years of experience in leading projects and departments and combines a background in in business as well as in governmental affairs (at different kind of levels, national, regional and municipality). She has broad knowledge of and a passion for economic and social issues.

Kinsey Fabrizio
SVP, CES & Membership
 

Kinsey Fabrizio is Senior Vice President of Marketing, Sales and Membership at the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®, which represents over 1500 consumer technology companies and owns and produces CES® — The Global Stage for Innovation. In this role, Fabrizio drives strategy for CES and CTA member recruitment, engagement and growth, leading teams responsible for the majority of CTA’s revenue.

Since joining the association in 2008, Fabrizio has played a pivotal role in transforming CTA and CES®. Responsible for strategic growth in emerging tech categories, she led efforts to expand member and exhibitor recruitment beyond traditional hardware companies. A CTA pioneer in the digital health space, Fabrizio created CTA’s Health Division, a healthcare provider program for doctors launched at CES 2015, and the first Continuing Medical Education (CME)-accredited conference at CES 2019.

Recognizing opportunities in content and entertainment, Fabrizio led the Video Division Board's 4K and 8K TV initiatives and started the Content and Entertainment Council. In 2016, she also established CTA’s Disruptive Innovation Council to engage companies with unique and cutting-edge technologies and services.

Fabrizio was awarded the Women in CT Legacy Award in 2023, recognizing her longtime leadership and contributions to the consumer technology industry. She was also named to Dealerscope’s 40 under 40 in 2015.

Kaylee Hakkel
COO, MantiSpectra
 

Dr. Kaylee Hakkel is the COO of MantiSpectra, a spin-off of the Eindhoven University of Technology. During her PhD in Applied Physics at the TU/e, she worked on the design, fabrication and characterization of the spectral sensors that are now commercialized by MantiSpectra.

In addition to her research, she became the founding president of the Photonics Society Eindhoven in 2019. This organization provides activities for master's and PhD students active in the optics and photonics field.

 

MantiSpectra brings miniaturized spectral sensors to the market.  MantiSpectra squeezes a full near-infrared sensor onto a single chip. These sensors are employed directly where needed: on the field by farmers, in the process line on conveyor belts, along the full production chain, at the point-of-care and for recycling.

Melissa Harrison
VP, Communications and Marketing
 

Melissa Harrison is a Vice President at the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), leading marketing and communications for CTA and CES. Prior to joining CTA, she served as a Senior Vice President at Ogilvy, working with top-tier companies to develop and execute successful PR and marketing campaigns. Melissa's extensive experience includes time serving as the spokesperson for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as various senior communications roles for prominent industry associations and agencies, where she honed her skills in promoting technological innovation and navigating complex policy landscapes. Melissa studied communications and political science at Heidelberg University.

Anke Huiskes
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, NP-Hard Ventures
 

Anke Huiskes is the co-founder and Managing Partner of NP-Hard Ventures, an early stage VC fund investing in tech startups creating the building blocks of tomorrow. Anke is also the founding Partner of Planet Positive, a syndicate investing in (pre)seed-stage climate tech companies, and ANGELS.vc, a women-led community of accredited angel investors. Before becoming a full time investor, she led go to market and sales at various venture backed hardware and software companies in Silicon Valley, and was a commercial business leader at Procter & Gamble. Anke holds a cum laude Master of Science, and Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Twente.

John T. Kelley
VP, CES & Show Director
 

As Vice President and Show Director for CES, John oversees many elements of CES including Operations and Conferences. Prior to serving in this role, he served as the Senior Director of International Programs and oversaw many of international focused initiatives for CTA and CES. From 2014-2020, he served as the Show Director for CES Asia that convened in Shanghai, China from 2015-2019. In 2013, John was named Dealerscope’s 40 under 40 for the consumer electronics industry.

Lieke Lamb
CEO, Future Expertise Center & Director, Women in Tech Netherlands
 

Being an Innovation Ambassador and Trend-Strategist she has been closely following technological, social and economic developments for over 20 years.

As an advisor of companies, governmental organizations, Start-Ups and NGO’s she is a leading Trend-analyst and a renowned, international Keynote-speaker on topics as leadership, digital transformation, AI, technology, diversity & inclusion and the educational system. Appearing regularly on Dutch TV as expert, presenter and interviewer. Guest teacher at Nyenrode University, in the Strategic Leadership Program, and owner of the Dutch broadcast channel Trendwatcher.TV.

Jean David Malo
Director, EISMEA
 

Jean-David Malo became Head of Unit in charge of regional aspects in DG R&I (2006-2010) and of the unit (2011-2013) in charge of increasing private finance and closing market gaps by expanding existing EU innovative financial instruments (see RSFF) and by developing new ones in the fields of debt (including guarantees) and equity financing (InnovFin). Horizon 2020SMEs was also addressed by the unit (i.e. EUROSTARS II, SME Instrument and the Fast Track to Innovation). Director for Open Innovation and Open Science in 2017, he designed and expanded initiatives such as the VentureEU Initiative and the RDI dimension under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) among other things.

In 2019 following the European Council’s request to set up the European Innovation Council (EIC), he became Director of the EIC Task Force.

Since April 2021 he is the Director of the Executive Agency for EIC and SMEs (EISMEA).

Kate Mullord
Partner, 4impact
 

Kate joined 4impact venture capital as Partner in 2021, bringing over 20 years of experience in corporate strategy, tech scale-up and private equity, as well endless enthusiasm for understanding new business models and meeting entrepreneurs.

Prior to 4impact, Kate held senior roles at fintech scale-up Jumo World, which provides microloans to the unbanked in emerging markets. Other roles include senior positions at Woolworths Holdings Ltd (South Africa), London-based private equity firm Duke Street, Goldman Sachs and UBS. 

Kate holds a Bachelor's of Business Science (Hons) from University of Cape Town.

Rik Roeske, Mission Leader
Netherlands Enterprise Agency
 

As a mission leader at the RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency), he plays a pivotal role in helping startups take their first steps on the global stage. With a diverse background spanning civil engineering, mobility, startups, and international project management, Rik has emerged as a seasoned expert in guiding startups towards international success. Rik's expertise is not confined to a single industry but spans a wide range of sectors, enabling him to offer startups a holistic approach to their growth and development. Before working at the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, Rik worked at Hyperloop on the development of the first Cargo Hyperloop worldwide and engineering companies.

Ernst Rustenhoven
Principal, Slingshot Ventures
 

Ernst Rustenhoven is a Principal at Slingshot Ventures, a Dutch early-stage venture fund investing in companies building products and services for the future digital consumer. Slingshot Ventures invests in pre-seed to series A deals with entry tickets typically ranging between ?250k and ?3m. The fund invests in strong founding teams that are building scalable businesses with a strong brand, happy customers and healthy margins. Slingshot currently operates two funds, which are both solely backed by successful entrepreneurs.

 

Ernst joined Slingshot Ventures in 2017 and currently serves on multiple boards of the companies in which the fund invested, amongst which those of Dutch scale-ups Check (shared mobility provider) and Valyuu (consumer electronics re-commerce platform). Prior to joining Slingshot Ventures, Ernst started his career in technology M&A, lectured at a Dutch university and worked at a fast-growing e-commerce scale-up.

Michiel Scheffer
Board President of European Innovation Council
 

Michiel Scheffer, a Dutch national, has three decades of experience in business, academia and public policy. He is equipped with a wide network in the world of research and innovation and has a remarkable professional experience of more than 20 years in the field of innovation, including on breakthrough technologies, disruptive innovations, start-ups impact investment.

Since 2000, he is the Founder and CEO of Polisema BV, which worked as adviser and investor for start-ups (in ICT, technical textiles, medical textiles, medical devices, energy storage, biorefinery). From 2000 until 2015, he was the Founder and CEO of Noéton Policy in Innovation BV, which was providing consulting services to firms in a range of areas including innovation management, program management and public affairs. In this capacity, he designed and managed several EU Funded Projects. He was three times elected regional party leader. As regional Minister of Gelderland, he was nominated for best regional politician in the Netherlands in 2018. In that capacity he was responsible for an ERDF Program and for Interreg DE-NL and member of the Committee of the Regions.

He worked with over 20 universities, and more than 200 partners across the EU in large R&D Projects and he is the author of more than 100 publications: scientific articles, edited books, newspaper opinions. He authored a PHD dissertation at the Utrecht University on 'Trading Places, fashion, retailers and the changing geography of clothing production, a study on Netherlands, Belgium, France and UK'.

Thomas Serval
CEO & Co-Founder, Baracoda
 

Thomas Serval is the co-founder and CEO of Baracoda Group. A serial entrepreneur, visionary leader, and category creator, Thomas holds fifty patents in connected technologies and transforms large companies and the daily life of consumers through disruptive innovations. Having held executive managerial positions for Microsoft & Google, Thomas has steered Baracoda’s innovation toward daily healthtech, encouraging behaviors and habits for self-care and disease prevention.

For the last decade, Thomas has focused on developing innovative technology that helps address preventative health needs and promotes positive health behaviors. Baracoda’s user-centric product development philosophy centers on integrating new technologies into everyday objects. Thomas is building his vision of Daily Healthtech with data analysis, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, and through gamification. He wants to empower people with data that they can rely on for quality, personalized information and use in their interactions with medical professionals. Ultimately, Thomas’ goal is to help people take a proactive approach to preventive care.

From mapping people’s bathroom routines with AI to helping children form healthy habits in the bathroom, Thomas offers a forward-thinking approach earned through years of studying how people integrate data and adopt connected, intelligent tools into their personal practices. His products incorporate user-friendly interfaces that by design gather feedback to continually tailor experience and even anticipate demand for new solutions.

Thomas is a graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure and the Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l’Administration Economique (Ensae) and remains heavily involved with the schools’ interactions with startups and incubators. He is a regular lecturer at top French institutions such as ESCP, ESSEC, ENA and Corps des Mines. In 2017, he was a guest lecturer at Stanford University, and detailed how he created the connected oral care consumer product category. For his efforts across multiple decades delivering innovation in 2018, Thomas was knighted by the French President, presented the “Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur,” citing his innovative and entrepreneurial spirit.

Gary Shapiro
President and CEO, Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®
 

Gary Shapiro is an acclaimed author, lobbyist, and president and CEO of the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®, the trade association representing the $505 billion U.S. consumer technology industry, which supports more than 18 million U.S. jobs.

Taking the role of President and CEO, Shapiro evolved the idea of the workplace over his 40-year tenure leading the organization. Directing a staff of 150 employees alongside thousands of industry volunteers, he built a forward-thinking successful business focused on the further development and integration of technology in all industries of the world. Under his leadership, CTA has won numerous awards for its healthy workplace, family friendly employment practices, and environmentally friendly exhibition practices.

Shapiro is a New York Times bestselling author, whose books include “Ninja Future: Secrets to Success in the New World of Innovation” (HarperCollins, 2019), “Ninja Innovation: The Ten Killer Strategies of the World’s Most Successful Businesses” (HarperCollins, 2013) and “The Comeback: How Innovation will Restore the American Dream” (Beaufort, 2011). Through these books, numerous television appearances, and as a columnist whose more than 1200 opinion pieces have appeared in publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and The Washington Post, Shapiro has helped direct policymakers and business leaders on the importance of innovation and technology in the U.S. economy. 

Selma Turajlic
Entrepreneur/Angel Investor/Adviser
 

Selma Turajlic recently exited Little Dot Studios, an award-winning digital content agency and global media network which she co-founded in April 2013. Little Dot Studios works on over 700 digital channels with a combined total of 800 million subscribers and followers partnering with clients like Formula E, Porsche, Google and Mattel. Prior to Little Dot, Selma was Head of Interactive Media at ALL3MEDIA International and Director, Interactive Media at Celador International (now part of Sony Pictures Television) where she managed international digital licensing for formats such as Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and Dragons’ Den. Previous roles include Business Development Consultant at Shazam Entertainment working on technology licensing and devising distribution strategies both in the UK and USA and lastminute.com where she worked on establishing entertainment e-commerce offering.

Debbie Wosskow
Co-Founder, The Better Life Company
 

Debbie Wosskow is a multi exit entrepreneur, now focused on three pillars of diversity, health and wellness and economic empowerment.

She is the co-founder of WJV LLP, the boutique investment and strategic innovation firm, championing diversity, wellness and economic empowerment.

Investor and CoChair of The Better Menopause, empowering women's performance at midlife through science-backed products, inspired by our community's needs.

Board advisor, investor and Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Company.

Co-Founder of AllBright, the leading career network for women (exited 2022).

Co-Author of ‘Believe, Build, Become - How to Supercharge your Career’ (Penguin 2019).

Board Member of The Mayor of London’s Business Advisory Board, The Women’s Prize for Fiction, and The Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship.

Founder of Love Home Swap (sold to Wyndham 2017) and Mantra (sold to Loewy 2007).

Former Evening Standard 'Entrepreneur of the Year'.

Author of the 'Wosskow Review on the Sharing Economy' for the UK government and former Chair of Sharing Economy UK.

Debbie was awarded an OBE in June 2016 & received Freedom of the City of London 2019.

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