David Hefter leads BlackRock’s internal AI strategy and adoption for investments, working across public and private markets. He chairs the AI governance committee and produces a weekly internal AI Newsletter. With over two decades experience at BlackRock, David has been driving AI initiatives for the past 5 years, having studied computer science and AI at Columbia University.

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Andrew Brackin is a Partner at Gradient Ventures. Prior to Gradient, Andrew co-founded Vial, a tech-enabled clinical trial platform that raised over $100M in venture capital from top-tier firms. Prior to Vial, he was part of the founding team and the Head of Growth at Newfront (YC W18), an AI-powered commercial insurance brokerage valued at $2.2BN, insuring numerous Fortune 500 companies. His career began at Jobr, a mobile job search business that Monster.com acquired in 2016.

Andrew was a 2013 recipient of the Thiel Fellowship. Outside of work, he loves reading about global affairs, working out at Barry’s Bootcamp, and enjoying live music.

Keshia is one of BDev Ventures' Partners. Previously, she served as the VP of Investment, leading BDev Ventures in backing more than 50 startups globally, including high-growth Silicon Valley companies such as Pinata Rent, MGT Insurance, and Pipo Health. Under her leadership, 25% of the firm’s portfolio companies achieved markups. Her strategic vision and hands-on support have helped founders scale quickly and responsibly.

Keshia was recently named a 2025 Woman of Influence by the Silicon Valley Business Journal. This annual award honors women who demonstrate exceptional leadership, innovation, and community impact across Silicon Valley.

Based in Vienna, Lukas has been a part of Speedinvest since 2015. As the company’s deal flow manager, he is making sure that the thousands of leads which enter Speedinvest’s system every quarter are processed properly. His daily work with a host of data points also enables him to generate complex reports on our deal flow and beyond.

A Vienna native, Lukas also lived in Virginia Beach and London. He studied Economics and History and holds a Master’s degree in History with a special focus on global topics.

When not crunching numbers for Speedinvest, Lukas spends his time studying his favorite subject, the History of ideas and how the past shapes our understanding of the present and the future alike.