Daniela is dedicated to empowering early-stage startups by providing strategic insights, funding guidance, and hands-on mentorship. With a deep understanding of business development and scaling operations, she helps founders navigate the complexities of growing their businesses in highly competitive markets. Passionate about identifying disruptive startups with high growth potential, she works closely with them to refine their business models, develop scalable strategies, and secure the necessary resources to thrive. Her mission is to bridge the gap between visionary founders and the capital and networks they need to succeed. She is a hard-working, dynamic, and determined person who strongly believes in transparency, clarity, loyalty, and competence, and she has based her professional career on these values.

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Doc Vu is the founder of DeviceLab and a hands-on leader in connected medical technology. With 25+ years of experience, he has completed over 400 medical devices and systems—many of which have successfully gone to market. These include diagnostic devices, wearables, and patient monitors, often featuring wireless platforms that close the loop between clinic and home. He has built and led engineering teams that move fast and deliver results across complex systems—firmware, electronics, wireless, and regulatory. Doc stays close to execution, focused on solving hard problems and getting high-impact products across the finish line.

Eric C. Ulchaker brings over a decade of entrepreneurial experience, including more than two years in venture capital, with a proven track record of successful ventures. He previously served as Fund Manager for the Pit Road Fund, a $23 million pre-seed and seed-stage venture fund affiliated with the University of Notre Dame, and played a key role in raising the 1842 Fund – a partnership between High Alpha Innovation and the University of Notre Dame – where he led diligence efforts following the fund’s initial $17.5 million close. Eric is currently a Managing Partner at Serial Stage Venture Partners (SSVP), a Cleveland-based, healthcare-focused investor network with over 150 members. He is also an active angel investor. Passionate about MedTech, BioTech, and HealthTech, Eric has supported startups such as Pulmonary Apps, Apportis, and Million Marker, a Y Combinator-backed company.

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Jeff works with companies and management teams that share a passion for growth and value creation. He helps new ventures develop differentiated products and services, accelerate digital workflows, and implement new operating models to disrupt markets and industries. Before Co-Founding Big Tree, Jeff was Managing Partner of Grant Thornton's National Healthcare, Life Sciences business. Prior to that was Vice President & Partner of IBM Healthcare Transformation & Strategy business.  He also held executive roles at PwC and Johnson & Johnson and was an Entrepreneur and Founder of a SaaS cloud platform that exited through M&A.

Education: B.S. Industrial Engineering, Northeastern University; M.B.A., D'Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University; Strategy & Transformation Certificate, Harvard Business School; Advanced Leadership Program Certificate, Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management

AbhayKumar is a retired corporate development executive with 30+ years of experiencein academia and biotech. Abhay’s focus has been on designing strategies, andbusiness growth by acquisition or licensing of technologies and strategicpartnerships. Abhay started his career at Hybritech Incorporated, the firstbiotech company in San Diego, where he identified novel biomarkers fordiagnosis of prostate cancer. Upon acquisition of Hybritech, he continued hiswork at Beckman Coulter, Inc. in the field of MHC Tetramers. Abhay was part of strategyand corporate development at Invitrogen / Life Tech /. Thermo Fisher for 14years, and at Beckman Coulter Life Sciences and Aldeveon LLC, both Danaheroperating companies for 4 years.

Utpal ‘Paul’ Parikh is a seasoned technology leader at Microsoft Health and Life Sciences, known for his strategic vision, integrity, and consistent delivery of high-impact results. With a career spanning corporate innovation and entrepreneurial ventures, Utpal brings a rare blend of technical expertise and business acumen to every challenge he tackles.

He holds an MBA in Global Innovation from California State University, East Bay, and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of Bridgeport. His academic foundation in entrepreneurship, sales and marketing, operations, and corporate strategy has fueled a career defined by innovation and sustainable growth.

Professor Matt Zimmer is a business educator, serial entrepreneur, and founder of CaseStudies.club, a decision performance consultancy that specializes in building teams’ confidence and conviction through business case studies.