2026 Speakers
Featured Speakers
ROY SCHWARTZ, CO-FOUNDER OF AXIOS AND AXIOS HQ
VIKTORIA MODESTA, BIONIC ARTIST AND FOUNDER OF MODESTAR
CLIFF WEITZMAN, FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF SPEECHIFY
Roy Schwartz, Co-founder of Axios and Axios HQ. Axios, is the award-winning news organization known for Smart Brevity® its efficient format and writing style. Smart Brevity's emphasis on shorter, clearer, more scannable writing is not only more efficient for audiences, but also easier for people who have learning differences like Roy who is dyslexic. Roy was also the executive producer of Axios' Emmy Award-winning docu-news series "Axios on HBO." He is also the co-author of "Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More with Less," the secret to becoming a more effective communicator, and the forthcoming "Simplify: Do 50 Percent More with 50 Percent Less," the leader's guide to dramatically boosting productivity and happiness. Prior to Axios, Roy was Politico's Chief Revenue Officer.
Roy was born in Israel, grew up in England, and earned a bachelor's degree and MBA from the University of Maryland.
Viktoria Modesta is a bionic artist and founder of Modestar. From her historic performance at the Paralympics wearing a diamond-encrusted prosthetic to her viral music video Prototype, Modesta has spent her career reimagining beauty, the human body, and the technologies that serve it through the lens of imagination.
Now, she presents the body as the latest frontier of innovation. A creative director, futurist, and former MIT Media Lab Director's Fellow, Modesta shares her groundbreaking work, including zero-gravity research and her latest visual AI human design research project, Metabodies.Ai, showcasing how innovations emerging from disability solutions are converging with cutting-edge R&D to drive a new era of human augmentation.
Cliff Weitzman is an American entrepreneur, dyslexia advocate, and the founder and CEO of Speechify, a popular text-to-speech and Voice AI platform. Diagnosed with severe dyslexia as a child, he built the early software prototype in college to help himself read coursework and keep up with his peers.
Speechify is a Voice AI Assistant that helps people read, write, and understand information through voice. Trusted by over 50 million users worldwide, Speechify offers text to speech, voice typing dictation, and a conversational AI assistant across iOS, Android, Mac, web, and Chrome. In 2025, Speechify received the Apple Design Award for its impact on accessibility and productivity. Speechify is used in nearly 200 countries and features 1,000+ natural-sounding voices in over 60 languages, including voices from Snoop Dogg, MrBeast, and Gwyneth Paltrow.
panelists & Moderators
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Brandon Andrews
Casting, Shark Tank/ Chief Executive Officer, The Inexorable/ Co-founder, Gauge
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Tim Balz
Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Kalogon
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Cheri Blauwet, MD
Senior Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
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Nathan Bomey
National Business Reporter, Axios
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Sally Chalk
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Signapse
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Varun Chandak
Founder and Executive Director, Access to Success
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William Chernicoff
Senior Manager of Global Research and Innovation, Toyota Mobility Foundation
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Roberta “Bobbi” Cordano
President, Gallaudet University
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Dr. Bryan Duarte
Co-founder and Chief Technical Officer, HapWare
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Donovan Ervin
Investment Group Director, AlTi
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Mary Fernandez-Arias
Global Engagement Lead for Accessibility, Cisco
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Bill Gianoukos
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Goodpath
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Amelia Hay
Vice President, AgeTech Collaborative at AARP
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David Jones
Director, Office of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities at US Dept of Health and Human Services
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Amy Kenny
Founding Director, Disability Cultural Center, Georgetown University
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Ayan Kishore
Chief Executive Officer, Benetech
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Regina "Gina" Kline
Founder and Managing Partner of Enable Ventures & Founder and Chair of SmartJob
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Chemu Langat
Chief Technology & Operating Officer, Best Buy Health
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Lauren Lobrano
Principal Program Manager for Accessibility & Global Disability Inclusion Strategy, Amazon
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Christine Looney
Deputy Director of Mission Investments, Ford Foundation
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Fred Moltz
Chief Accessibility Officer, Verizon Communications
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Luke Mooney
Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Dephy
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Camilo Navarro
Co-Founder, Wheel the World
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Helene Nørlem
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Tiimo
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Leandro Palmieri
Chief Executive Office, ONOVOLAB
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Dhavel Patel
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Lotus
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Sofie Poirier
Senior Manager, Health Innovation and Impact, MaRS Discovery District
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Jeremiah Robison
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, CIONIC
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Marcie Roth
Executive Director, World Institute on Disability
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Najia Sabir
Principal Accessibility Specialist, Hyatt Hotels Corporation
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Dr. Gregory Sawicki
Woodruff Endowed Professor / Georgia Tech, Director of the Human Physiology of Wearable Robotics (PoWeR) Laboratory
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Sam Sepah
Senior Lead AI Accessibility Research Program Manager, Google
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Alan Schwarz
Assistant Managing Editor, Forbes Media
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Reid Jewett Smith
Carr-Ryan Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School & Vice President, Research & Policy, Disability:IN
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Colby Takeda
Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, Pear Suite
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Rebecca Vallas
Chief Executive Officer, National Academy of Social Insurance
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Stephen Vicinelli
Managing Director of Impact Investments, Social Finance
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Brandon Yates
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, DeepWalk
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Tom Dawson
Steering Committee Co-Chair , Disability Innovation Forum
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Ruby Moore
Steering Committee Co-Chair, Disability Innovation Forum