About the Speakers

Addison Merchut is Co-President and Co-Founder of Hatch Product Development & Contract Manufacturing, where he leads multidisciplinary engineering teams developing next-generation products across medical devices, robotics, automation, consumer products, industrial equipment, and AI-enabled technologies. Over the past decade, he has helped startups, growth-stage companies, and Fortune 500 organizations bring complex products from concept to mass production.

Throughout his career, Addison has worked on technologies including UV disinfection robots, electric vehicle charging systems, rapid diagnostic medical devices, and connected fitness equipment, giving him firsthand experience deploying intelligent systems in highly regulated, real-world environments. Prior to co-founding Hatch, he held engineering roles focused on manufacturing automation and robotics.

Under Addison's leadership, Hatch has grown into one of the fastest-growing product development and manufacturing firms in the United States, earning recognition as the Fourth Revolution Awards' Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturer of the Year and ranking #21 among manufacturing companies on the Inc. 5000 list.

Candice M. Smith led Boeing’s Design Practices and Processes system, steering critical engineering excellence initiatives impacting Boeing’s 50,000+ global engineers.  She is passionate about community service and youth empowerment through volunteer work and mentoring. Ms. Smith has received a Fellowship from the Eisenhower Foundation, and has been awarded some of the most prestigious honors for Women of Color in STEM.  

Nick Farina is co-founder and CEO of EeroQ, a Chicago-based company building a highly differentiated quantum computer (QC) using trapped electrons above the surface of liquid helium. Nick, who started the company in 2017, is a fixture on the QC scene. He has served as an advisor to multiple Fortune 500 companies, VC firms, and top-tier consultancies on the development of quantum computing for business. He is an Advisory Council Member of The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, a Quantum Computing Governance Member of the World Economic Forum, and a founding member of the U.S. Quantum Industry Coalition.

Jourdan Sorrell is a business and civic leader who has spent his career at the intersection of business, government, and community, building the fluency to know which question changes the conversation.

As Chief Executive Officer of Jourdan Sorrell Enterprises, Sorrell advises corporations, nonprofits, and civic institutions on strategy, governance, and community impact. His work spans supplier diversity, economic mobility, and public-private partnerships, giving him range across the sectors and perspectives most likely to be in the room.

Sorrell serves on the Board of Directors of Access Living, one of the nation's leading disability rights organizations, and is Chair of the Rotary Club of Chicago Cosmopolitan Foundation, helping advance philanthropic initiatives and community impact across the Chicago region. As past president of the South East Chicago Commission, he brings a practitioner's instinct to every conversation: less interested in polished answers than in the tensions worth naming out loud.

A Chicago native and Notre Dame graduate, Sorrell moderates with the belief that the best dialogues do not just inform an audience. They move something forward.

April Welch, Associate Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and directs both the Esports and Digital Arts Center and the Exelon Summer Institute at IIT.  She was also the founder at the Idea Shop, a collaborative learning space equipped with a rapid prototyping lab.  April’s talks have been featured on ABC 7 News, WVON, Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), The Academy of Esports, and more.

Jeff Cohn is a senior technology executive and entrepreneur with more than 25 years of experience driving enterprise transformation across industries including finance, media, telecom, and technology services. He is the Founder and CEO of C4 Technology Group, which provides executive-level IT strategy and implementation in areas such as cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, AI automation, and quantum technologies. Previously, Jeff served as CIO of Playboy Enterprises and SVP of Platform Engineering at Guaranteed Rate, where he led modernization initiatives delivering large-scale digital platforms serving millions of customers. His work today centers on connecting AI, cybersecurity, and quantum innovation to practical business outcomes, helping organizations scale securely and prepare for the future of technology.

Ahmed ‘Flex’ Omar is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of FlexTech.ai.  Flex has served as an advisor to hundreds of businesses via formal mentorship roles with NASDAQ, Loyola University’s Quinlan School of Business, Envestnet | Yodlee Launchpad, and others. He has worked in finance and consulting with Deloitte, UBS, and RSM, and in the nonprofit space with organizations such as Westside Health Authority, Muslim American Leadership Alliance, Midwest Fashion Week, and the Chicago Leadership Alliance.  

Simran Sakraney is a Strategic Advisor at Mandiant, where she leads projects on the Mandiant Strategic Consulting team predominantly for the U.S., but also internationally. Simran focuses on helping clients to prepare for incident response and disaster recovery activities through a variety of mechanisms, including tabletop exercises and incident response plan refinement, as well as reviewing and improving their information security and disaster recovery programs.

Prior to this, Simran led a cybersecurity practice at a boutique consulting firm and provided CISO advisory services to multiple CISO’s across the nation.

With several years of experience in a variety of industries, Ms. Sakraney has a strong background in a variety of security disciplines. She has worked in a Security Operations Center, has been appointed the Lead Cloud Advisor for the DoD CISO and CIO, and has consulted for both the Federal and Commercial sectors.

In addition to her responsibilities with Mandiant, Simran has become a thought leader within the industry and speaks at conferences around the world.

William Smith leads WSC Advisory and Genesys — an invite-only collective for Chicago's AI and technology leaders — while serving as CTO-in-Residence at 1871 and mHUB and an equity partner in Carbon Hospitality Group. Previously a Senior AI Solutions Strategist at Microsoft, William built the company's first national AI deployment program across 15+ cities, engaging every major Fortune 500 financial-services firm and generating $40M+ in enterprise revenue. He later drove $10M+ in cloud business at Deloitte, including a 95%-precision fraud-detection system. Author of *Future Tech* (2021), William speaks and advises on the convergence of AI, quantum computing, and capital across Chicago's innovation ecosystem.

Payal Patel is a strategic communications leader and crisis management expert with 15+ years of experience across various industries. Payal has been recognized by PRNEWS People of the Year (2024), Top Women in PR (2020), and 30 Under 30 Rising Stars (2016). She has also been appointed as a UN Global Goals Ambassador and U.S. delegate to the UNCSW.

Semhar Amdemichael manages Agency Partnerships at Google and is a seasoned digital media and AdTech leader at the intersection of advertising, technology, innovation, and strategic partnerships with previous roles at Yahoo, Assembly Media and Dentsu Media. Throughout her career, she has helped agencies, brands, and technology companies navigate major shifts in the digital advertising landscape—from the rise of programmatic media to the rapidly evolving era of AI.  Her experience spans both the agency and technology sides of the ad industry, giving her a unique perspective on how organizations can adapt their people, skills, and strategies as technology transforms the workforce.