The people behind the questions.

Guests, founders, operators, authors, and thinkers connected to Venture Step conversations.

People

Canonical profiles connect every appearance, article, company, and topic without repeating the same biography.

Andy Ellwood

Andy Ellwood is the founder and CEO of Stretch, a grocery-list and price-comparison company. His Venture Step conversation connects two parts of his experience: an earlier attempt to improve grocery price transparency through Basket and a decision to return to the problem after the market and data environment changed.

Chairman and Founder

Benjamin Gilliland

Ben Gilliland is the founder and chairman of Future Proof Property Intelligence PBC, a Delaware public-benefit corporation developing property-risk, inspection, and remediation-planning products. He also founded The Paulele Hale Association, a Hawaii nonprofit associated with the earlier climate-resilient housing and technology work from which Future Proof emerged.

Founder and Editor-in-Chief

Derek Hales

Derek Hales is the founder and editor-in-chief of NapLab, a mattress-review publication that develops and publishes product tests, scoring methods, comparisons, and buying guidance.

Chief Executive Officer

Hiten Sonpal

Hiten Sonpal is the chief executive officer of RISE Robotics, a Somerville, Massachusetts company developing belt-based electromechanical actuators for heavy machinery and industrial systems. His work connects robotics, product strategy, commercialization, customer selection, and the operating realities of physical technology.

Certified General Contractor

James F. Carpenter Jr.

James F. Carpenter Jr. is the founder associated with Rapid Removal in Venture Step's first episode and a Florida certified general contractor whose active license is connected to the demolition company.

founder and consumer-product operator

Josh Sprague

Josh Sprague is a founder and consumer-product operator in Round Rock, Texas. He founded Orange Mud, an endurance-gear company, and Seven Clay, a custom merchandise and production business. His work is useful to founders because it connects product design to the less visible work of repeated testing, manufacturing, finishing, and customer trust.

Chief Executive Officer

Joshua Gould

Joshua Gould is chief executive officer of thebigword, a language technology and services company. His work spans commercial growth, government services, language operations, workflow automation, and the development of technology-enabled delivery.

Co-Founder and CEO

Logan Yonavjak

Logan Yonavjak is the co-founder and chief executive of Readiness Engine, a developmental leadership assessment company. The organization previously operated as Founder Readiness Institute.

source-bound guest profile for the E81 commercial real estate and AI discussion

Luke Jamison Tatman

Luke Jamison Tatman is a commercial real estate professional whose work spans company strategy, technology, analysis, and business development. He is the recorded guest for [[E81 - Reimagining Tradition - AI's Influence on Real Estate and Insurance with Luke Tatman]].

Managing Partner

Matt Ober

Matt Ober is a managing partner at Social Leverage whose work connects venture investing with data, financial markets, and early-stage company building. His episode 101 conversation with Venture Step focuses on what founders still have to prove when AI makes a polished prototype easier to produce.

Founder and CEO

Michael Daugherty

Michael Daugherty is the founder and CEO of Quill, a local-first meeting intelligence product that the company now describes as an AI chief of staff.

Founder and CEO

Oscar Hedaya

Oscar Hedaya is the founder and chief executive of SPACE, the company developing The Space Safe. His public work centers on turning a conventional physical-security product into a connected system with cameras, sensors, software, an app, and over-the-air updates.

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Rei Vardi

Rei Vardi is the founder of Eon, a United States electric-vehicle rental platform built around phone-based access, connected vehicles, and a virtual fleet. His work sits at the intersection of mobility operations, marketplace design, identity and access, customer recovery, and company building.

unconfirmed

Risa Saylor

Risa Saylor is the recorded guest in Venture Step E022, a conversation about how service businesses use consistent promises, reliable delivery, customer experience, and founder visibility to differentiate themselves. This living record distinguishes her recorded perspective from present-day facts and intentionally omits private information exposed by public records.

Founder and CEO

R. J. Talyor

RJ Talyor is the founder and chief executive of Backstroke, an Indianapolis marketing technology company that builds AI agents for ecommerce email teams. His operating history connects three eras of marketing software: ExactTarget's cross-channel messaging platform, Pattern89's predictive creative analytics, and Backstroke's campaign generation and audience intelligence.

Founder and CEO

Robert LoCascio

Robert LoCascio is the founder and CEO of Uare.ai and KID Company. He previously founded LivePerson and led it as chief executive for 27 years.

Venture Step guest

Tom Mercer

Tom Mercer and the Systems Behind Wildfire Insurance

Co-founder and CEO

Valkyrie Holmes

Valkyrie Holmes is the co-founder and CEO identified by Faura's current company materials. She joined Venture Step for E059 to discuss property resilience, insurance, the path from wildfire suppression to mitigation, and the way an outsider can learn a regulated industry without pretending to have finished learning it.

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