Speakers
Speakers you’ll meet at Impact
Every year we recruit an extraordinary group of innovation, transformation, digital and emerging technology executives from all sectors to share their experiences — and to lead interactive conversations with participants.
Impact 2026
2026 speakers
Mikell Taylor
Director of Robotics Strategy
General Motors
Caroline Sherman
Head of Growth Initiatives
Fidelity Investments
Laura Plunkett
VP Startup Engagement
Comcast
Jen Stave
Director
Harvard D^3 Institute
Sokwoo Rhee
Corporate EVP for Innovation
LG Electronics
Julia Travaglini
Head of Boston
Greentown Labs
Deborah DiSanzo
CEO
BestBuy Healthcare
Ross Richardson
Chief Design Officer
SharkNinja
Abbie Lundberg
Editor
MIT Sloan Management Review
Chris Hillock
Head of Portfolio Development
Dell Technologies Capital
Chris Townsend
VP Product Marketing
Wellspring
Katy O’Brien
Head of Sustainable Innovation
New Balance
Brent Segal
Rapid Action Team Director
Lockheed Martin
Jennifer Dunn
Global Head of Consulting
HYPE Innovation
Tim Berendt
Director of Business Development
NRG Energy
Sim Kahlon
Innovation Director
Blue Cross Blue Shield
Saadia Rashid
Managing Director
Technip Energies
Kofi Gyasi
Founder and CEO
NotedSource
Jaap de Vries
Principal Innovation Specialist
FM Global
David Wachtendonk
Sr. Dir. of Innovation
Rightworks
Julia Jackson
VP of Digital Products
Takeda
Sander Cohan
Innovation Lab Head
National Grid
Susan Lindner
CEO
Innovation Storytellers
Mohammed Dastigir
Head of Ecosystem Development
MassMutual
Meghan Gagne
Director of Product
Perkins School for the Blind
Andrew Morse
AVP of Innovation
The Andover Companies
Nat Arlander
Head of Emerging Capabilities
Sanofi
Brian Mullen
Head of Innovation and Product
The Clinic by Cleveland Clinic
Todd Reily
Founder
RightThing.io
Diana Joseph
Co-Author
Open Innovation Works
Keith Hopper
Founder
Danger Fort Labs
From past editions
A selection of past Impact speakers
Tye Brady
Chief Technologist
Amazon Robotics
Vicki Dobbs Beck
VP Immersive Content
Lucasfilm
Cordell Hardy
SVP of Global R&D Operations
3M
Helen Riley
CFO and COO
Google X
Tom Donaldson
SVP and Head of the Creative Play Lab
The LEGO Group
Rich Gotham
President
Boston Celtics
Vidya Spandana
GM Advanced Innovation
Nike
Bob Weis
Former President
Walt Disney Imagineering
Mark Barrocas
Chief Executive Officer
SharkNinja
Michelle Kydd
Chief Innovation Officer
Creative Artists Agency
John Murray
CEO
Sonesta Hotels
Omar Hatamleh
Chief AI Officer
NASA Goddard
Bob Maresca
Chairman
Bose Corp.
Adam L’Italien
Chief Innovation Officer
Liberty Mutual
Erin Robertson
Project Runway
Jit Kee Chin
Chief Technology Officer and EVP
Suffolk Construction
Gabriele Ricci
Chief Data and Technology Officer
Takeda Pharmaceuticals
Miku Jha
Director of AI/ML and Generative AI
Google Cloud
Ziad Sultan
VP Personalization
Spotify
Panos Panay
Recording Academy President
The Grammys
Mehmood Khan
Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer
Pepsico
Allison Goldberg
SVP and MD Comcast Ventures
Comcast
Rahul Deshpande
Global Head of R&D
Mastercard
Gil Moran
VP and Head of Direct to Consumer
NFL Media
Linda Jojo
EVP & Chief Customer Officer
United Airlines
Shamim Mohammad
Chief Information Officer
CarMax
Elizabeth Yenko
VP and Head of Innovation
New York Life Ventures
Prat Vemana
Chief Digital and Product Officer
Target
Caroline Sherman
SVP, Head of Market Intelligence
Fidelity Investments
Marc Raibert
Founder, Boston Dynamics; Executive Director, The AI Institute
Boston Dynamics
Jen Stave
Director, Digital, Data, Design Institute
Harvard
Chandhu Nair
SVP – Data, AI and Innovation
Lowe’s
John Halamka
President
Mayo Clinic Platform
Michael Israel
Kraft Group CIO
N.E. Patriots
Angus Walker
Head of External Innovation
Hasbro
Bruno Sardinha
Chief Innovation Officer
Travelers
