Deb Shaw, a three-time Ischemic stroke survivor and the co-founder and president of Champion the Challenges, is a recognized leader in the stroke and heart community. In 2022, the American Stroke Association honored Deb with the Stroke Survivor Hero of the Year Award for her transformative impact on survivors, families, and caregivers.

Bob Shaw has spent most of his career as an owner-operator of private companies in Silicon Valley. Focused on the technology and healthcare sectors, he has served as Founder or CEO. Together with his wife, Deb, they founded Champion the Challenges, a mission-driven nonprofit dedicated to inspiring heart and stroke survivors to live their best lives now.

Tom Ryan is a 2016 Afib ischemic stroke survivor and advocate of heart and brain health. Tom has spent his career building companies based on disruptive technology, serving in executive and advisory roles for both public companies and venture capital-backed startups. For the last ten years, he has focused on data-driven applications and machine learning.

Joan Wrabetz is a seasoned executive in the technology sector, working with both public and private companies. Combining her legal background in privacy with her business expertise, she helps tech firms incorporate privacy into their products and operations, allowing them to navigate the constantly evolving US and global privacy laws.

Tom is a LAD heart attack and cardiac arrest survivor. Tom is an author, inventor, and tech advisor focused on paying it forward. Tom is advising numerous AI and GenAI companies on business strategy and product innovation. Tom started and lead the AWS Global Systems Integrator team, and created the AWS Private Equity Transformation Advisor program. Tom has advised hundreds of CTOs, CPOs, and CIOs. Tom established the Ma Pesch foundation which provides scholarships to aspiring technologists.

Courtney Salvey, Ph.D. — A thought leader in digital health using humanities-born critical thinking skills to challenge healthcare convention and advance a vision-driven digital revolution in healthcare. Passionate about questioning the status quo, creating industry and academic intelligence, and defining and implementing a vision for the future of digital health. She has 15+ years developing systems in service of human flourishing, especially health. Previously, Penumbra and UnitedHealth.

Jeff Bellinghause is an engineering leader with expertise in software systems, hardware integration, and large-scale deployment. At Valve, he led development of the Steam Controller and early VR prototypes, architected the Steam Input API used by millions, and contributed to the OpenXR standard, earning over a dozen patents across hardware and interaction technologies. At Amazon, he served as a Principal Engineer building machine vision platforms, combining advanced software algorithms with custom hardware systems to drive automation and improve large-scale operational efficiency. He has 20+ years of leading teams from concept through to delivering impactful products. Previously, Penumbra, Sixense, Valve, Amazon.

Brendon Hale, Ph.D. — Brandon’s professional experience includes tenures at corporations UnitedHealth Group, Penumbra, and multiple universities. He has utilized his academic training in Human Performance and Neuroscience to lead the science-based development of national and international health and wellness programs, the evaluation of digital therapeutic (DTx) and immersive healthcare solutions.