Ingenuity

01
/ 04

Intelligence

02
/ 04

Wisdom

03
/ 04

Patience

04
/ 04

The Luminarian Fellowship

The Luminarian Fellowship inspires and connects visionary leaders who embrace innovation and innovation management as a strategic imperative within their businesses.

Founded as an exclusive collaboration featuring Innovera, the expertise of world-class Stanford University faculty, industry pioneers, and global leaders.

The invitation-only Fellowship prepares leaders with the resources and network necessary to transform ideas into action that will shape the future and drive the right outcomes for long term growth and sustainability.

Request an Invitation

A Purpose-Driven Mission

The Luminarian Fellowship is founded upon four key tenets we believe are necessary to support the dynamic nature of innovation leadership.
01 / 04

Ingenuity

The quality of being resourceful lies in making tools and intelligence accessible. We believe that fostering diverse, cross-industry collaboration sparks creative solutions and new perspectives, which are imperative for driving global growth.
02 / 04

Intelligence

"A rising tide lifts all boats.” Cultivating an esteemed, mission-driven community of global leaders, united by a shared vision for transformative impact, is crucial for uniting the best ideas, which in turn lead to impactful outcomes.
03 / 04

Wisdom

To become wise is to harness appropriate resources and acquire the knowledge to contribute to what matters most. At our core, we believe that innovation management is a disciplined and strategic approach essential for driving business success and creating a global impact.
04 / 04

Patience

Even with access to networks and resources, a wise individual must possess the knowledge to wait for the right moment to take action. Promoting ethical leadership that drives sustainable, meaningful, and lasting change in the world requires measured action.
012/ 04

Ingenuity

The quality of being resourceful lies in making tools and intelligence accessible. We believe that fostering diverse, cross-industry collaboration sparks creative solutions and new perspectives, which are imperative for driving global growth.
03 / 04

Intelligence

"A rising tide lifts all boats.” Cultivating an esteemed, mission-driven community of global leaders, united by a shared vision for transformative impact, is crucial for uniting the best ideas, which in turn lead to impactful outcomes.
01 / 04

Wisdom

To become wise is to harness appropriate resources and acquire the knowledge to contribute to what matters most. At our core, we believe that innovation management is a disciplined and strategic approach essential for driving business success and creating a global impact.
04 / 04

Patience

Even with access to networks and resources, a wise individual must possess the knowledge to wait for the right moment to take action. Promoting ethical leadership that drives sustainable, meaningful, and lasting change in the world requires measured action.

Meet Our
Thought Leaders

The Luminarian Fellowship is committed to fostering the most impactful global exchanges for Fellows each year in innovation centers rich with history and forward-thinking opportunities. Our 2025 locations are as follows

Request an Invitation

Co-founder, New Line Ventures & Ratio Academy. Former Principal at Mayfield Fund, managing $3.5B in assets. Expert in entrepreneurship & tech innovation.

Mastering innovation strategy and management
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Pedram Mokrian
CEO, Innovera.ai; Adjunct Professor, Stanford University
See more

Expert in AI-human interaction & ubiquitous computing. Positions at Stanford, Cornell Tech & UW. Former head of Intel Labs Seattle.

Innovating human-centered AI
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
James Landay
Stanford Professor & Executive Co-Director, AI & Human-Centered Computing
See more

Leads innovation strategy; experienced at JAFCO Ventures, JPMorgan, eBay & venture investing. Expert in driving growth through technology.

Scaling innovation globally
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Jeffrey Wong
Change Agent; Innovation Strategist; Former Global Chief Innovation Officer, EY
See more

Workforce innovator, founder of Hitch Works and co-authored The Inside Gig. Guides talent mobility and serves as board chair for the Silicon Valley Education Foundation.

Workforce Transformation
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Kelley Steven-Waiss
Chief Transformation Officer, ServiceNow
See more

Engineering expert, ex-VP at Exponent. Founder, Geothermal Solutions. Drives renewable energy & high-tech investments in Poland.

Bridging academia and industry excellence and execution
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Piotr Moncarz, Ph.D.
Consulting Professor, Stanford University School of Engineering
See more

Expert in launching market-ready products. Former Eightfold president, pioneered AI solutions. Specializes in software commercialization, competing with Salesforce, SAP, Workday, and Oracle.

Building high-growth global businesses
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Kamal Ahluwalia
President, Ikigai Labs; Board Member, USIBC
See more

Marketing leader with 25+ years in tech, adjunct lecturer at Stanford. Led strategies for Genesys and Jive Software across the US, Europe, and Asia, focusing on digital media impact.

Revolutionizing marketing strategies
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Lynda Kate Smith
SVP Marketing/CMO; Strategic Advisor for Developer Advocacy; Stanford University Lecturer
See more

Stanford Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering; Senior Fellow at Woods Institute. Leads Sustainable Development & Incheon Global Campus, focusing on AI & materials science.

Designing sustainable and IMPACT-oriented systems
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Michael Lepech, Ph.D.
Professor & Associate Chair, Professional Programs, Stanford University
See more

Kamran advises governments on transitioning to sustainable innovation economies. A serial entrepreneur, he co-founded ten companies, including 4 Unicorn IPOs with a total market cap over $12B.

Scaling innovation globally
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Kamran Elahian
Chairman & Co-Founder, Innovera.ai
See more

AI visionary, co-founder of Google Brain and Baidu AI leader. Democratized education via online platforms, making high-quality learning accessible to millions globally.

Making AI accessible and applicable to all
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Andrew Ng
Founder, DeepLearning.AI; CEO, Landing AI; Adjunct Professor, Stanford University
See more

Harvard instructor, and founder of Cactus International. Specializes in leadership, strategy, and training women entrepreneurs to scale businesses globally.

Entrepreneurship and leadership training
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Areen Shahbari
CEO, Shahbari Consultancy
See more

A leading researcher in technology entrepreneurship, focused on how university and institutional environments shape high-growth ventures globally, with work recognized by Schulze, Kauffman, and TUM Foundations.

Scaling innovation globally
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Chuck Eesley
Associate Professor, Stanford University
See more

Iconic VC and founder of Draper Associates, investing in Tesla, SpaceX, and Coinbase. Creator of Draper University, inspiring entrepreneurs and launching 350+ companies worldwide.

Empowering startup heroes
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Tim Draper
Founder, Draper Associates
See more

Draper Dragon Fund MD, connecting US and China innovation. Over 15 years of high-tech investment experience with a portfolio including Ledger, VeChain, and Telegram. Wharton MBA

Mastering early-stage tech growth
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Andy Tang
Managing Director, Draper Dragon Fund; Partner, Draper Associates
See more

Stanford professor specializing in organizational behavior. Co-author of Scaling Up Excellence, helping leaders build customer-centric cultures and drive large-scale transformation.

Building customer-focused cultures
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Hayagreeva (Huggy) Rao
Professor, Stanford University; Bestselling Author
See more

Innovation leader with 20+ years in startups and corporations. Founded Atlas Snowshoe, led Timbuk2 as CEO, and headed sales at Patagonia. Expert in brand turnarounds and design strategy.

Brand turnaround and innovation leadership
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Perry Klebahn
Adjunct Professor, Stanford University; Entrepreneur, Product Designer and Founding Member of Stanford's d.school
See more

AI researcher at Stockholm School of Economics and Stanford, studying its impact on strategy and work. Explores AI-driven digital transformation with a human-centered lens.

Making AI work for people
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Sebastian Krakowski, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Stockholm School of Economics
See more

Expert in human-centered design & systems thinking, blending engineering with creative empathy. Advisor to startups, combining innovation, engineering, and strategic creativity.

Human-centered product and design leader
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
William Burnett
Adjunct Professor & Executive Director, Stanford Design Program; Co-Founder, Evans-Burnett LLC
See more

Business leader with 30+ years in global education & innovation. Startup advisor aligning strategy, innovation & education to drive growth and impactful solutions.

Driving commercial innovation within business environments
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Paul Marca
Co-Director at Luminarian Fellowship; Strategist & Advisor Parallax Global Advisors, LLC Former Stanford University Associate Vice Provost
See more

Founder & pioneer in AI, robotics & education. Created startups like KittyHawk; led innovation at Google (X). Lecturer at Stanford, former founder of Udacity & Google’s self-driving car project.

Innovating the future of AI, robotics, and education
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Sebastian Thrun
Founder, KittyHawk & Udacity; Adjunct Professor, Stanford University
See more

Strategy consultant with 20+ years in education, foundations, and startups. Co-founder and investor in ed-tech and fintech, advising innovation in Europe and the Middle East.

Shaping next-gen startups
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Christiane Mueck, Ph.D.
Strategy Consultant, Advisor & Angel Investor in Edtech/Fintech
See more

Expert in business psychology, innovation & leadership. Co-founder of the Stanford Center for Work, STVP & d.school. 35+ years in organizational dynamics & tech-driven change.

Making businesses more productive and human-centered
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Robert Sutton
Professor Emeritus, Stanford University
See more

Professor and leadership expert, author of 16 books on power and management. Advises organizations on navigating career challenges and achieving success.

Career advancement guru
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Jeffrey Pfeffer, Ph.D.
Professor of Organizational Behavior, Stanford University
See more

Expert in executive learning & org design. Specializes in strategic leadership programs and organizational innovation. Led initiatives for top firms like Apple, IDEO, Boeing, and Visa.

Strategic learning and organizational design
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Tim Wasserman
CLO, Wasserman Learning Alliance; Board Member & Advisor, Tataj Innovation.
See more

Visionary founder of Khwarizmi Ventures. Former SIDF CEO and WEF Young Global Leader, holding leadership roles in Saudi Aramco and pioneering innovation initiatives globally.

Strategic visionary in venture and finance
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Ibrahim Almojel
Founding Partner, Khwarizmi Ventures
See more

MIT Professor, Director of the Statistics and Data Science Center. Co-founder of Celect, a predictive analytics startup acquired by Nike.

Innovating data-driven solutions
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Devavrat Shah
CEO, Ikigai Labs; Professor at MIT
See more

17+ yrs in innovation & digital HR. Leads HCM Cloud at Deloitte, optimizing strategy & systems for top clients.

Human capital management, HR Transformation, Cloud Technology
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Sergey Shchemelev
Managing Director, Deloitte
See more

Thai business leader, Chairman at B.Grimm, 30+ yrs driving industrial growth & innovation.

Management; Industrial Electrical Engineering
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Harald Link
Chairman, B.Grimm
See more

President, Royal Academy of Management, Oman. 30+ yrs expert in public sector transformation & leadership policy.

Public sector transformation; strategic visionary; national innovation policy
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Ali Qassim Jawad
President of the Royal Academy of Management
See more

Google VP Engineering, leading Gemini AI. Formerly at Meta. PhD from USC, MS from NUS, dual BS from Shanghai Jiao Tong.

ML/AI Engineering; Infrastructure Capacity Planning
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Bill Jia
VP Engineering, Google - Core ML/AI
See more

Founder of Aramex; President, Wamda Group. Serial entrepreneur driving innovation in logistics & regional startup ecosystems across MENA.

Entrepreneurship; Logistics; Venture investments
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Fadi Ghandour
Founder and CEO at Wamda Capital
See more

Professor of Private Equity & Finance, Stanford GSB. Expert in VC, private equity & finance. Leads Venture Capital research & education.

Innovation, Corporate finance, Venture Capital & Private Equity
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Ilya Strebulaev
Professor, Stanford University; Bestselling Author
See more

Co-founder & Managing Principal, GCP Japan. 30+ yrs in cross-border VC, bridging Silicon Valley & Asia. Expert in early-stage tech, BD, and scaling startups.

Early-stage startup investment and growth
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Dr. Koji Osawa
Co-Founder & Managing Principal, GCP Japan; Venture Investor
See more

Egyptian entrepreneur & VC. As founder of Flat6Labs, transformed Greek Campus into a tech hub. Co-founder, Sawari Ventures. Drives startup growth & innovation across MENA.

Innovation Hub builder
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Ahmed El Alfi
Founder, Flat6Labs
See more

Founder of Seminis, the largest fruit & vegetable seed company (sold to Monsanto). Led ventures in finance, real estate & tech. Former Chief of Staff to Mexico’s President, key in business & policy.

Innovation in Agriculture
SUPERPOWER
SEE
MORE
Alfonso Romo, Sr.
Founder of Seminis; Former Chief of Staff to President of Mexico
See more

Luminarian (noun)
/ˈluː.mɪˌnɛəri.ən/

A forward-thinking leader who embodies the principles of ingenuity, intelligence, wisdom and patience.

Luminarians are distinguished executives recognized for their unique combination of talent, insight, and charisma. They drive transformation and inspire others by bringing innovative ideas to life and creating a profound impact on industries and global communities.

Luminarians are distinguished executives recognized for their unique combination of talent, insight, and charisma. They drive transformation and inspire others by bringing innovative ideas to life and creating a profound impact on industries and global communities.

Request an Invitation

Learning

Unparalleled Knowledge & Insights

Connecting

A Global Network of Influence

Doing

Real-World Innovation & Execution

An Unmatched Transformative Experience  

01

Learning

Unparalleled Knowledge & Insights

READ MORE
02

Connecting

A Global Network of Influence

READ MORE
03

Doing

Real-World Innovation & Execution

READ MORE
Uniquely positioned to blend the power of world-class thought leadership, bespoke experiential summits across the globe, and an intimate network of influential peers.

Learning

Unparalleled Knowledge & Insights

READ MORE

Connecting

A Global Network of Influence

READ MORE

Doing

Real-World Innovation & Execution

READ MORE

Global Journey of Transformation

The Luminarian Fellowship is committed to fostering the most impactful global exchanges for Fellows each year in innovation centers rich with history and forward-thinking opportunities. Our 2025 locations are as follows

Pioneer. Influence. Evolve.

Visionary leaders may request an invitation to join The Luminarian Fellowship. Membership and dues are extended by invitation and confirmed upon acceptance into the Fellowship.
Request an Invitation

31ST  MAY

Early Confirmation Deadline

11TH  AUG

Final Invitation Deadline

11TH  SEPT

Fellowship Start Date