The northernmost metropolis presents
C-Tribe x Tech
Conference 2022
Celebrating diversity and helping innovative and creative people
in the tech space achieve their dreams. | July 20 – 21
Conference 2022
Celebrating diversity and helping innovative and creative people
in the tech space achieve their dreams. | July 20 – 21
C-Tribe x Tech curates technology-focused programming and inspiring talks to help underestimated founders learn how to start, grow and scale their companies. Connect with global investors and top business leaders to collectively elevate the brightest mind in tech.
The future of tech lies at the intersection of commerce, creativity, collisions, and culture.
C-Tribe x Tech exists to explore the culture of technology and to help innovative and creative people achieve their dreams.
Be inspired and gain insights from prominent industry leaders sharing their experiences around important technology-focused trends and outcomes
Whether you are an entrepreneur or an investor, discover tactics and participate in masterclasses to help you build your career in the tech industry
Designed to inspire and empower product enthusiasts to pursue and develop their programming skills. Over the course of 36 hours, teams of 1 – 5 participants will work to develop a software project that encourages team spirit & helps to solve real-world problems.
Connect with local and global angel investors and venture capitalists using our curated matchmaking process to identify suitable investors fit for your industry. Startups are also eligible to take advantage of our Investors Zone.
The real networking happens outside of meeting rooms and conference stages. Connect with industry peers at the C-Tribe social gatherings specifically curated to help increase the collisions and connectivity between event attendees.
Launching a new product? Looking to get feedback on what you are building? Get connected to tech enthusiasts, industry vets, media publications, influencers and more all searching for the next industry-disrupting innovation. Is that you?
Founder & CEO, The Labz
Farah Allen is an accomplished media innovation leader with over 20 years of experience in technology. Allen is currently the CEO & founder of The Labz: a drag and drop, a no-code digital design platform that creates, communication-rich, interactive websites and live event experiences. Farah has the honour of being the AJC Women of the Year for technology and is featured in publications such as Forbes and The Washington Post.
Managing Partner, Celesta Capital
Nicholas Brathwaite has over 25 years developing technology and building technology-oriented businesses. Before Celesta, Nicholas was also co-founder and partner of private equity firm Riverwood Capital, and from 1996 to 2007, he served as the CTO at Flex, where he oversaw the launch and growth of several of Flex’s largest business units, including an innovative push into product development.
CEO, Black Pearl Investments
Dr. Shanté Williams is currently the CEO of Black Pearl Global Investments, a healthcare venture capital firm. She is a distinguished Venture Capitalist, business owner, Inventor, Intellectual Property Strategist, Author, and Private Investor. In her career years, she has used her wealth of scientific knowledge as well as her passion for innovation to solve multiple complex problems across the industries of health, finance, and real estate.
Dr. Williams continues to break barriers with Black Pearl’s fund focused on reducing health disparities across the globe. Black Pearl is an advocate for those that continue to experience inferior outcomes and reduced access. Black Pearl’s tag line “Be Well. Do Well.” captures the firm’s mission to invest in transformative companies around the world. Dr. Williams and her partners are seeking to change healthcare worldwide.
DAO Engineer & Web3 Futurist
METADREAMER (also known as Hammad Jutt) is a DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) engineer piecing together the web3 puzzle. He primarily focuses on development, design & strategy @ MetaFactory, Coordinape, and MetaCartel Ventures.
Founder, Ethically Aligned AI
Katrina Ingram is the Founder and CEO of Ethically Aligned AI, a company focused on helping organizations to drive better outcomes in the design, development and deployment of AI systems. A seasoned executive, Katrina has over two decades of experience running both not-for-profit and corporate organizations in the technology and media sectors.
She is a member of IEEE, and volunteers with several AI ethics organizations including Women in AI and Ethics (WAIE), For Humanity and All Tech is Human. Katrina holds an undergrad in business administration from Simon Fraser University and a master of arts in communications and technology from the University of Alberta. She combines her love of audio and interest in AI as the host of the podcast, AI4Society Dialogues. Katrina was recently named to the top 100 Women in AI Ethics list for 2022 and has launched a new AI ethics micro-credential with Athabasca University.
Co-Founder, CTO, & CPO at Artist Crowdfund Exchange
Omi is the Co-Founder and Chief Product and Technology Officer at Artist Crowdfund Exchange (ACE); a Web 3.0 and social network startup, looking to democratize funding and revenue in the sports and entertainment industry. He has worked in tech for close to 15 years and at some of the biggest companies like Google and Microsoft. ACE being the 3rd company he has founded, he knows a thing or two about what it’s like to take huge risks to try and make your dreams a reality.
As an Angel Investor and startup coach, he stays very plugged into the start-up and fundraising world and loves to help founders whenever he can to navigate that world and not make some of the mistakes he did in his earlier years. In his spare time, he mentors founders and high school kids from underprivileged communities.
His passion project right now is repurposing shipping containers for building computer schools in villages back home in Nigeria to teach coding to children aged 9 through 15.
Fund Manager
Accelerate III, Yaletown Ventures
Arden provides startup capital to Alberta-based companies through Accelerate Funds II and III, which Yaletown manages with the A100. An accomplished investment professional with more than 15 years of private and public sector experience, he works with portfolio company teams to support their performance and is highly active in the Alberta technology startup community.
Throughout his career, Arden has focused on discovering and managing value. As an investment analyst with AIMCo, he took part in the active oversight of environmental, social, and governance issues that impacted AIMCo’s then $70B portfolio of assets, as well as underwriting more than $1 billion in real estate transactions. He also worked in commercial leasing and sales with Barclay Street and Torode Realty.
Before joining the Accelerate Fund team, Arden oversaw entrepreneurship development as manager of the University of Alberta’s Venture Mentoring Service. He holds an MBA in finance from the University of Alberta and is a graduate of Royal Roads University’s Certified Executive Coaching program.
General Partner, Red Thread Ventures
Mark is an international finance and technology professional with experience across five countries and three continents, including four years in China.
Mark currently serves as a General Partner at Weave Capital, a seed-stage venture capital firm investing in Western Canadian founders.
In addition, Mark serves as the Alberta President for Valhalla Private Capital, Western Canada’s oldest and most established Angel Investment network with $71M+ invested into 250+ deals since 2008. In conjunction with these roles, Mark serves as a Director at Red Thread Ventures, a global angel syndicate, connecting the capital to high-growth ventures.
Since June 2020, Mark has played a Principal role in investing over $5M across 20 early-stage businesses within the Valhalla and Red Thread ecosystems. He has also directly assisted early-stage companies in raising more than $10M in private capital.
Mark has studied Mandarin for over ten years and speaks fluently.
Founder & President, Black Business Association of BC
Nerissa is the Co-Founder & President of Black Business Association of BC. BBABC supports black business and entrepreneurship through providing leadership development, collaboration, networking, and mentorship opportunities. This support elevates the basic and advanced skills of entrepreneurs which will enable them to run successful businesses and increase positive community representation.
As a Director of Chattelhouse Health and Beauty Inc, a Registered Massage Therapy clinic and global brand known for distinguished skin and hair care, Nerissa has garnered valuable experience from business start-up to expansion. She is excited to share this wealth of knowledge gained to mentor and support entrepreneurs and leave a legacy of professional excellence.
Nerissa’s deep passion for a healthy work life balance led her to embark on world travel which she credits for enhancing her global perspective. This has allowed her to tackle challenges including systemic racism with effective and inclusive solutions. Currently serving as a member of the Vancouver Economic Development Advisory Board, and on the Board of Directors of the Barbados Cultural Association of BC. allows her to stay engaged with the community from a cultural standpoint, allowing her to merge perspectives and drive change that is wholesome.
Founder, Clavis Studio
As Co-Founder of Clavis Studio, Abby is redefining the approach to interior design using immersive 3D technology that showcases the immeasurable possibilities of the metaverse in design and infrastructure planning. Her goal is to drive tech adoption in traditional or less predictable sectors and promote a tech-driven economy by creating jobs and expanding market access for Clavis-powered businesses. Her 15+ years of community work and business footprints trail across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and North America.
Founder C-Tribe Festival
Sahr Saffa, Founder and Chairperson of C-Tribe and 3x tech entrepreneur & advisor, has extensive experience building and scaling companies. He has also had a fair share of failures; a prerequisite for working in the startup space. He is also a former partner and former Director of Marketing at a Bay Area startup, AutonomIQ, which specializes in AI-enabled, low-code software testing. AutonomIQ was recently acquired by Sauce Labs where he currently holds the role of Product Marketing Manager.
His latest tech venture he’s consulted for, Ovenue, a blockchain-enabled marketplace that helps companies buy, sell, and trade their intellectual property, raised its pre-seed round and is helping companies realize the full potential of their financial statements.
Most proudly he’s a stay-at-home son to two incredible parents and a sister; a stay-at-home boyfriend to an amazing girlfriend, all of whom he loves very much.
Edmonton Chair Rainforest AB
James is responsible for managing the vision and growth of Levven Electronics, developing and executing long-term corporate strategies, and building relationships with partners, stakeholders and investors. Levven has a vision of making intelligent buildings available to everyone. Focused on delivering technology and products to advantage new construction, Levven’s promise is mobile device access and control of building infrastructure that lowers building costs, speeds construction and conserves building materials. He is a life-long entrepreneur with a commitment to innovation, excellence and enhancing people’s lives. Prior to founding Levven, James and his partners founded Blue Falls Manufacturing, makers of Arctic Spas and expanded it’s footprint to over 30 countries. James is an active member and contributor to several entrepreneur organizations including Entrepreneurs’ Organization, the A100, Edmonton Regional Innovation Network, and Rainforest Alberta. When he isn’t focused on the business, you can find him on Edmonton mountain bike trails or hanging out with his family.
UX Lead at Verily
Jennifer Pretti is an experienced UX designer and leader, with a career spanning over 20 years. She has worked with some of the world’s top technology companies, such as IBM, Nokia, Blackberry, and Google, to design new products, guide product strategy, and build user-centered design practices with organizational impact. She has a passionate for distilling highly ambiguous and complex problems into exceptional user experiences, from Nokia’s first music phone, to the world’s lightest and brightest 3DLP 4K projector, to North’s custom-built smart glasses. She is now at Verily, leading the Terra UX team, where she looks forward to helping biomedical researchers accelerate scientific discoveries. Keeping her equally busy are her two children and two cats, rock climbing, and spending time at the cottage, preferably with a good book and cup of chai in hand.
Founder and Product Manager, powerhouse.Research
Coming soon!
Analyst at Accenture
Hanna recently completed her Bachelor of Commerce in Business Economics & Law from the University of Alberta, along with a Certificate in Leadership. Over the past five years, she has dedicated her time to leadership and volunteer roles in community groups on and off campus including the Alberta Not-for-Profit Association, JDC West, UAlberta Ambassadors and the Elizabeth Fry Society. Passionate about uplifting black youth, Hanna co-founded the University’s first Black Students’ Association in 2018 and served as President for two y years. She currently continues to serve her community as the Youth Council Coordinator for the Federation of Black Canadians, a national not-for-profit organization focused on advancing the social, political, economic and cultural interests of black Canadians. Hanna has successfully competed and placed in multiple national and international business case competitions where she discovered her passion for critical problem-solving and global engagement- she plans to begin full-time work as Strategy Analyst at Accenture Calgary in the Fall, and eventually go back to school to pursue further studies in the form of an MBA/JD.
Account Executive Google
Juana has over 12 years of experience advising top brands on their digital marketing strategy across India, US & Canada. She currently is as an Account Executive working with Canadian counterparts of Global Auto companies helping them build their marketing strategy to build brand love and sell more cars while using Google’s entire suite of advertising products.
