2026 Speakers
Featured Speakers
ROY SCHWARTZ, CO-FOUNDER OF AXIOS AND AXIOS HQ
VIKTORIA MODESTA, BIONIC ARTIST AND FOUNDER OF MODESTAR
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.
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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Cameron Carter
Founder and CEO, Rosarium Health
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Enzo Caruso
Chief Revenue Officer, Haptic
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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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Priyank Chodisetti
Co-Founder and CEO, Workback
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Roberta “Bobbi” Cordano
President, Gallaudet University
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Jacklyn Doig-Keys
Reality Labs Policy Manager, Meta
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Dr. Bryan Duarte
Co-founder and Chief Technical Officer, HapWare
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Ken Erskine
Co-Founder and CMO, Kara Technologies
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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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Isaac Goldstein
Founder and CEO, Waypoint Learning
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Amelia Hay
Vice President, AgeTech Collaborative at AARP
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Jesse Hester
Sales Strategist, Cboard
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Conner Herman
Founder, CEO, and Principal Investigator, Percy
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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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Sucheta Narang
Founder, AccessTrader
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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 Officer, ONOVOLAB
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Dhaval 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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John Ralston
CEO and Co-Founder, Neursantys
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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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Courtney Sanders
Founder and CEO, Trembo
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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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Alan Schwarz
Assistant Managing Editor, Forbes Media
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Sam Sepah
Senior Lead AI Accessibility Research Program Manager, Google
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Lauren Sercu
Founder, Sorenson Impact Advisory
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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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Shea Tanis
Associate Research Professor, Kansas University Center on Disabilities
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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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Delbert Whetter
Producer, Flash Before the Bang
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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