Meet the Team

Executive Board

Boris is a former attorney who followed his passion for entrepreneurship and technology. He attended Claremont McKenna College in California, majoring in literature and psychology, before moving on to Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City.

Fun fact: Boris emigrated from Moscow, Russia at the age of 10 and loves to travel and immerse in different cultures!

Ian grew up in Silicon Valley and received his MBA and JD from Santa Clara University specializing in Entrepreneurship and Intellectual Property. He launched his first startup at 19 and is passionate about coding and graphic design.

Fun fact: Ian has been living in five different countries over the past few years and learned different languages, instruments, and sports in each one!

Advisors

Entrepreneur and Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship, Drucker Graduate School of Management

Entrepreneur and Small Business Consultant, University of La Verne SBDC

Assistant Professor of Finance and Co-Director of Financial Engineering, Drucker Graduate School of Management

PhD Biosciences and Entrepreneur in Residence at the Alfred E. Mann Institute for Biomedical Engineering

Human Resources PhD, Organizational Leadership, Learning Transfer Institute CEO, and 20+ years in HR and C-Suite

Corporate Lawyer to Startups, Emerging Growth Companies, and Social Enterprise

Engineering and App Development

Alex is a fourth year student at the University of California, Irvine, where he studies computer science. He is passionate about algorithms and software engineering.

Fun fact: Alex can solve a Rubik’s cube in under 25 seconds!

Greg is from Los Angeles and currently attends UC Irvine, where he studies Computer Science with a specialization in Software Engineering.

Fun Fact: Greg is a skilled pianist with thirteen years of training!

Samiksha is an industrial engineering student from Doha currently attending the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She loves the startup work environment and culture.

Fun Fact: Samiksha has an MA in classical dance!

Dylan is a software developer from Los Angeles. He currently attends Occidental College, where he is pursuing a Bachelors in Computer Science.

Fun fact: Dylan likes to design 3D printable sculptures!

Finance and Research

Sahil moved to the US from India at age 18. Since then, he has graduated with a BS in Data Science and an MS in Financial Engineering from Claremont Graduate University.

Fun Fact: Sahil can read, write, and speak fluently in three different languages!

Nghi is pursuing an MS in Finance at the University of Texas at Dallas. She is experienced in Account Management and is interested in Biotech and Biopharmaceutical Finance.

Fun Fact: Nghi creates digital art. She’s also a huge fan of Animal Planet documentaries!

Andrew is from Berkeley, California and is entering his senior year at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he studies Financial Mathematics and Statistics.

Fun Fact: Andrew and his fraternity raised over $25,000 for cancer research last year!

Samantha is Texas born and raised. She is studying Economics with minors in Finance and Statistics at the University of Texas at Austin. When she’s not studying, she likes to play the drums.

Fun fact: Samantha is a former bartender!

Business Development

Giacomo is a doctoral candidate in Economics and International Relations at Claremont Graduate University, where he manages the Inequality and Poverty Research Center.

Fun Fact: Giacomo is fluent in five languages and used to play tennis professionally!

Najifa is an undergraduate student at Emory University. She is an avid reader and writer, and her dream is to work in international consulting or nonprofit management.

Fun Fact: Najifa has taught English to students of all ages from all around the world!

Michael is a second-year student attending Northwestern University. He is interested in entrepreneurship and loves watching football, hockey, and soccer.

Fun Fact: Michael used to have a collection of quarters from all fifty states!

Michael is pursuing his BBA at the University of Michigan. He is the founder and host of a podcast for students to get career advice from successful business executives.

Fun Fact: Michael is part of a pro-bono consulting group for Latin American companies!

Matthew lives in Aurora, Canada and currently attends Ivey Business School, where he recently founded an initiative for students to make virtual communities.

Fun Fact: Matthew created an iOS app when he was 12 years old!

Michelle is a third-year student at Rice University majoring in Managerial Studies and Asian Studies with a minor in Business. She hopes to pursue management consulting.

Fun Fact: Michelle is in her second year of Japanese language study and hopes to study abroad!

Max is a second-year undergrad student at UCLA majoring in Business Economics. He hopes to sharpen his interpersonal and networking skills as a business developer.

Fun Fact: Max was named after his grandmother Maxine!

Austin attends the University of Michigan, where he studies Sports Management and Entrepreneurship. He is interested in creating a strong brand image to make a positive relationship between communities and brands.

Fun Fact: Austin has been working on his startup this past summer!

Jaren is currently studying International Business at San Francisco State University. In her free time, she loves to travel, try new food spots, and play piano.

Fun Fact: Jaren is a vice president of her school’s international business society!

Design, Usability, and User Experience

Donghee is a visual designer and video editor in San Francisco. He studied advertising at Academy of Art University and is now pursuing an MA in Web Design and New Media.

Fun Fact: Donghee loves reading books and taking pictures to get design inspiration!

Casey graduated from Binghamton University with a BA in Psychology. She is passionate about improving the human experience by analyzing perception and behavior.

Fun fact: Casey loves watching psychological thriller movies!

Allen is from Louisiana, where he graduated from Louisiana State University with a BA in Computer Science. He loves to build things from scratch.

Fun Fact: Allen is passionate about digital media and entertainment!

Hilda is from Hong Kong and a senior at Savannah College Art and Design, where she majors in Graphic Design. She is particularly interested in UX/UI and graphic related projects.

Fun Fact: Hilda is a big fan of Snorlax from Pokemon!

Pamela is an aspiring UX Researcher attending Johns Hopkins University. She is interested in exploring the creative intersection between Psychology and Computer Science.

Fun Fact: Pamela’s research explores cognitive implications of the internet!

Mike studies cognitive and computer science at Rutgers University. He is passionate about user experience and product design and is committed to multidisciplinary education.

Fun Fact: Mike loves learning new languages. He is currently learning Japanese!

Ashwini is a senior at the University of California, Irvine, where she majors in Cognitive Sciences and minors in Informatics. She is curious about human behavior and technology in modern society.

Fun Fact: Lately, Ashwini has been experimenting with vegan baking!

Yang currently studies Informatics at the University of California, Irvine, where he concentrates on Human-Computer Interaction. He hopes to become a professional UI/UX Designer.

Fun fact: Yang was part of a software design team for a lab at his university!

Sam holds a BS in Psychology from Eckerd College. He is passionate about utilizing empathetic and meaningful research in application, combining psychology and technology to improve user experiences.

Fun Fact: Sam used to be a party motivator for a mobile DJ company!

William is a recent graduate from Carnegie Mellon University with a BS in Design. His skills range from training machine learning models to designing logos and apparel.

Fun Fact: William Loves recurve target archery and was a Level 1 USA Archery certified coach!

Nicole is a graduate from The Art Institute of Michigan, where she received her Bachelor’s in Graphic Design. She loves to incorporate illustrations into web and promotional designs.

Fun Fact: Nicole enjoys designing games in her free time!

Data Analytics

Jamie is an Urban and Environmental Policy and Psychology student attending Occidental College. Her interest in data management and visualization led her to Seedstages.

Fun Fact: Jamie speaks 2.5 languages and is a PADI-Certified Open Water Diver!

Brinly was raised in Los Angeles and currently attends Chapman University, where she majors in Data Analysis. She has a particular interest in machine learning.

Fun Fact: Brinly’s most memorable moment was when she swam with sharks!

Fulvio is a third-year undergraduate student at Georgetown University. He is double majoring in Finance and Accounting and is interested in learning about startup world!

Fun Fact: Fulvio holds two professional certifications in data analysis!

Simran is from Delhi, India. She is an undergraduate student at Purdue University, where she is majoring in Information Technology. She is the Professional Development Head Chair for the CIT council at Purdue.

Fun Fact: Simran loves to binge watch mystery/thriller TV shows!

Yang received her Master’s in Data Science from the Illinois Institute of Technology. She is interested in statistical modeling and machine learning techniques to drive insights to solve business problems.

Fun Fact: Yang once fasted for seven consecutive days for a traditional health-preserving technique!

Srajan is a senior at Minnesota State University, Mankato, majoring in Management Information Systems. He is interested in data analytics and is looking forward to building his skills at Seedstages.

Fun Fact: Srajan loves to play soccer, sketch, and paint!

Keval studies Science Management and Data Science (with a concentration in Biotechnology) at Claremont McKenna College. He is interested in the intersection between healthcare and business development.

Fun Fact: Keval has traveled to over 20 countries!

Rucha is a graduate student at NJIT majoring in Data Science. She has experience with Python, R, and Excel for Data & Statistical Analysis. At Seedstages, she hopes to expand her skills to help build her career.

Fun Fact: Rucha loves baking, especially her own vegan recipes.

Kashyap is a graduate student at DePaul University majoring Computer Science with a concentration in Data Science. He is passionate about machine learning.

Fun Fact: Kashyap loves binge-watching interesting shows!

Legal

Claire is a postgraduate law student from France. She has studied antitrust law, business law, intellectual property law and personal data. She hopes to advise companies and startups all over the world.

Fun fact: Claire used to compete nationally in air rifle shooting!

Human Resources

Jennifer is a graduate of UC Irvine, where she studied Business and Digital Art. She shoots portraits, special events, and real estate for her own photography business.

Fun Fact: Jennifer is a certified drone pilot and is experimenting with aerial photography/videography!

Executive Board

Boris Gorshteyn, JD

Ian Hafkenschiel, JD, MBA

Advisors

Hovig Tchalian

Jeff Wolf

Michael B. Imerman

Molly Schmid

Barbara Sweet

Francesco Barbera

Engineering and App Development

Alex Abram

Greg Farhadian

Samiksha Arora

Dylan Edwards

Finance and Research

Sahil Jain

Nghi Truong

Andrew Ma

Samantha Uy Tesy

Business Development

Giacomo Di Pasquale

Najifa Hossain

Michael Chen

Michael Sikand

Matthew Olivan

Michelle Garcia-Guevara

Max Palmer

Austin Foley

Jaren Barnes

Design, Usability, and User Experience

Donghee Kim

Casey Schnoor

Allen Williams

Hilda Wong

Pamela Li

Mike Deng

Ashwini Athreya

Yang Ding

Sam Morrisson

William Su

Nicole Thomas

Data Analytics

Jamie Chung

Brinly Xavier

Fulvio Aliberti

Simran Bansal

Yang He

Srajan Jain

Keval Shah

Rucha Athavale

Kashyap Dobariya

Legal

Claire Auduc

Human Resources

Jennifer Ngo