Having immigrated from Korea to the US when she was 12 years old, Claire is bilingual and bicultural, which has always given her the unique perspective of being both an insider and outsider able to bridge different perspectives.

Combining her passions for connecting people and helping them realize their dreams, Claire launched a global accelerator in 2014 which impacted over 200 Korean startups’ ability to expand to the US market.  In 2018, Claire launched SVBeautyTech, the first-ever independent beauty-tech accelerator, to provide a cohort of mostly female beauty-tech founders access to the Silicon Valley resources previously enjoyed almost exclusively by male, locally networked tech entrepreneurs.  Leveraging her global accelerator network and broad brand connections, Claire is excited to work with passionate innovators and disruptors working at the intersection of technology, beauty & wellness.

My favorite quote about beauty/wellness:
“Beauty is being the best possible version of yourself on the inside and out”  Anonymous

Favorite activity when not working?
Spending time with family and friends or competitive golf. Golf is such a humbling game and always teaches you something about life.  “Golf is about how well you accept, respond to, and score with your misses much more so than it is a game about making perfect shots.” by Bob Rotella

Who was your childhood superhero?
Wonder Woman!  She is strong and passionate about helping people.  I still have a Wonder Woman statue on top of my desk.

Luke began his career at a consultative investment bank where he advised early-stage companies on business development, capital issuance, and partnership formation matters. He then worked in finance and business development at a seed stage agtech company that provides tech-enabled solutions to the indoor farming market. Luke is passionate about mental and physical health and wellness, emerging technologies, and entrepreneurship. He is excited to support innovators and entrepreneurs at the earliest stages of their journey.

Something about you that most people don’t know about?
I started taking cold showers on June 3, 2015 and haven’t stopped since. Cold showering trains me to preserve my mental wellbeing in the face of challenging external conditions and embrace discomfort.

Favorite book, and why?
My favorite book is Watership Down. I’m drawn to the expeditionary nature of the novel and the collective perseverance of its outcast protagonists.

Favorite wellness related quote:
“When our mind is full of the warmth of humor, we are in touch with the best of ourselves.” – Pema Chodron

Lisa has over 20 years of banking experience. Most recently, she was the Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary of an urban community bank headquartered in San Francisco. In her role as Chief Financial Officer, Lisa oversaw the Bank’s finance and accounting functions and served on various Bank and Board Committees. Lisa was with the Bank since it’s organization and was part of the team that aided the Bank in profitably weathering through the banking crisis of 2008.

Favorite wellness related quote:
“Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.” – Confucius

What is the craziest thing you’ve done in your life?
Tandem skydiving in Hawaii. It was both liberating and scary at the same time.

Christine brings a wealth of experience to the AI, blockchain and technology space with a focus on creating new revenue opportunities. Currently she is partnered with various players in the blockchain space as a Metaverse Strategist for brands exploring the convergence of web3, virtual real estate and the metaverse. As a seasoned executive with marketing and operational savvy with deep domain experience in strategic partnership development, she is armed with a unique mix of executive management and thought leadership.

If you could invite anyone to dinner, who would you invite and why?
Mozart to see what snacks he likes to eat while composing.

Favorite activity when not working?
If I’m not hanging out with my 1.5 year old son, you’ll most likely find me experimenting with the latest new skincare routine or beauty tech while binging old seasons of Succession while waiting for the next season to release. Oh and of course, always searching for the meaning of life.

Favorite book(s)?
Pachinko (Min Jin Lee) and The Master (Don Miguel Ruiz)

Mitchell Weinstock is a Venture Partner with IgniteXL Ventures, where his years of sales and marketing experience help him identify promising, leading-edge technology startups and pursue strategic investments and partnerships to help those companies bring products to market and scale. He does this by understanding the needs of each of the parties who often are not aware of each other’s existence and bringing them together. Mitchell has worked with some of the biggest names, products, and architectures from Apple QuickTime to the first Razer gaming mouse. He has helped and survived through five early and later stage startups which gives him a unique view to enable and support early-stage startups as an advisor and independent board member.

Favorite activity when not working:
I’m a member of the California Rare Fruit Growers (CRFG) and like to propagate and graft all kinds of fruit trees to get to fruit-salad trees in my impossibly tiny yard. But I get enough to be able to feed the entire neighborhood!

Most challenging thing I have ever done:
Was trying to ship QuickTime on Windows when most of the Apple and Microsoft community was completely against the idea. At the time QuickTime was considered the family jewels for Apple employees, and Microsoft wasn’t thrilled about having an competitor on its own platform for media.

Favorite Book and Movie:
The Time Travelers Wife – I always enjoy a good love story and combined with space time continuum problems and weird biology made this one to read and eventually watch (over and over).