About ekoVenture

TJ Sassani— Founder & CEO

Sassani is the Founder & CEO of ekoVenture. He also founded the Bay Area Start-up Executive Network (BASE Net), a networking forum for technology executives, and co-founded the CEO Council, a working group for start-up technology entrepreneurs in San Francisco. While his passion is and has always been adventure, Sassani's diverse background includes greater than a decade of experience in entrepreneurship, marketing, business development, and web-based technology. Prior to founding ekoVenture, Sassani was part of the founding team and held a Director role at Lux Research, an emerging technology intelligence and advisory firm, where he helped grow the business to profitability and 45 employees. He remains involved in the company as one of its largest investors. At Lux, Sassani was responsible for business development efforts across the U.S. and Asia, where he collaborated directly with CEO's of the world's largest multi-billion dollar global conglomerates. He and his team advised these renowned leaders on issues pertaining to cutting-edge emerging technologies - often influencing next generation product development efforts and partnership/acquisition strategy. His team at Lux was instrumental in President Bush's signing of the $4.6 billion 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D Act, and were present in the Oval Office for its signing into law. Few firms have come to be as trusted or have done as much to advance emerging technology research while simultaneously having such a profound influence on global technology policy. Prior to Lux, Sassani led west coast business development efforts for BrassRing Systems, a $100 million ASP software firm. There, Sassani focused on growing revenue while also overseeing technology implementation efforts for large multi-billion dollar global firms such as Mitsubishi, Universal Studios, and dozens more. Sassani personally led the firm's west coast business development team to greater than 150% of revenue targets. Sassani earned dual business degrees in Marketing and Management with a focus in international studies from Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania, where he attended on an academic/athletic scholarship. Sassani has spoken at influential technology conferences throughout his career and is often invited as a guest lecturer at the world's top universities, such as Berkeley Hass School of Business. On a personal front, Sassani is an avid adventurer having pursued his passion in over 30 countries, running the gamut from wreck diving in Australia to canyoning some of the most treacherous terrain in New Zealand to multi-day helicopter and backcountry skiing expeditions in remote mountain regions. He is a 2-time IronMan 70.3 triathlete and also endured an unassisted solo cycle expedition from Portugal to Italy, braving the Pyrenees in winter conditions, to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation and their tireless efforts in the battle against cancer.

Whether you believe you can or you cannot, either way— you are right.

Greg Woodward, Ph.D.— VP, Engineering

Dr. Woodward has over 15 years of commercial software development experience, and is considered one of the top agile software developers in the Silicon Valley— his focus is on Ruby, Java, as well as Newtonian mechanics, simulation, and control systems. Most recently he worked at Pivotal Labs where he specialized in agile software development. There, Dr. Woodward focused on solving highly complex engineering challenges for the world's largest and most respected internet giants. Prior to Pivotal Labs, Dr. Woodward led projects at Lockheed focused on developing a missile detection system, which utilized infrared signals together with a Kalman filter for nuclear warhead identification. He served as Chief Architect and Director of Engineering at several e-commerce startup companies from 1998 to 2003. Dr. Woodward is also a Co-Founder of ImagiWorks, a company that specializes in data acquisition products. He spent several years developing the computational engines for dynamics simulation, which were incorporated into several commercial CAD products. Dr. Woodward began his career as a research professor at the University of Washington in a virtual reality lab, where he developed a dynamics simulation engine for virtual environments. Dr. Woodward's Ph.D. research involved the numerical simulation of several complex space shuttle missions using tethered satellites. He graduated first out of a class of 1,936 at Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and received Master of Science and Ph.D. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. Dr. Woodward is a National Merit Scholar, Eagle Scout with Bronze Palm, President's Endowed Scholar, Gathright Scholar and received fellowships from the National Science Foundation, Stanford University, and the Tau Beta Pi honor society for his graduate studies.

Daniel Gruneberg— Director, Business Development

Gruneberg is the Director of Business Development and Co-Founding member of ekoVenture. In this position, he manages a team of three business development specialists and operates ekoVenture's New York office. Before joining ekoVenture, Gruneberg was part of the founding team at Lux Research, an emerging technology intelligence and advisory firm. While at Lux, he launched and managed a strategic initiative directed at the financial services community— predominantly hedge funds, private equity, and venture capital— to assist them in their investment strategy in alternative energy and derivative technologies. He was also responsible for establishing revenue generating relationships in Europe, Asia, South America, and the Middle East and acted as an advisor to an Australian-based diagnostics company in the formation of a business unit aimed at raising capital for spin-outs. Gruneberg was also part of the core team at Lux that worked with the U.S. Department of Energy to create and run an energy efficiency workshop that brought together thought leaders in material manufacturing, finance, energy, and government. Additionally, his team at Lux played a key role in President Bush's signing of the $4.6 billion 21st Century Nanotechnology R&D act. Gruneberg also has authored the Lux Research Solar Journal, a weekly intelligence report with analysis on global solar companies, which is published and delivered to clients. He earned a B.B.A from Fordham University, with a focus on International Finance, along with rigorous studies in economics and Chinese. While at Fordham, he was chosen to be one of ten people to venture to Belize to take part in a Global Outreach program that teaches English and mathematics, builds homes for qualified applicants, and partners with local NGOs on community service. Personally, Gruneberg lives for adventure travel and has been to over 20 countries, experiencing everything from summiting Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania to extended cultural tours in Turkey to diving in Belize.

Ryan Morris— Director, Content

Morris is the Director of Content and employee number one at ekoVenture. Morris's core focus is ensuring quality photo content on ekoVenture.com and managing the ekoVenture Guru program. Prior to his work at ekoVenture, he operated as a business development specialist focused on mergers and acquisitions for the San Francisco based firm VR Golden Gate. Morris and his partners provided privately owned and closely held mid-market companies with specialized intermediary business services and representation throughout the merger, acquisition, and divestiture process. Morris brings a perfect profile for ekoVenture's internal management of its Guru program. Following completion of his university degree in film in Sydney, Australia, he spent the next seven years exploring the world. He has hiked, motorcycled, trekked, climbed, sailed, worked, volunteered and lived in over 45 countries. While abroad he was instrumental in starting a volunteer soccer-coaching program for travelers to work with local youth in northern Colombia, helped to found and run a junior tennis school in Buenos Aires, and taught English to local residents in Mozambique. He counts among his most memorable moments swimming with whale sharks off the South African coast, diving off waterfalls in Brazil, watching lions stalk prey in Botswana and (foolishly) sailing into a category three hurricane off the coast of Panama.