Once again this month, AI and Faith welcomes a diverse array of new experts who promise to be great additions to our mission to “identify, connect, encourage and equip” sophisticated faith perspectives on AI ethics. Here are short biographies of our new experts coming on board as Contributing Fellows and Members on our key Teams, as well as Advisors helping us fill missing areas of substantive expertise and continuing to diversify our faith traditions.
Joining us are:
Ben Christensen (Contributing Expert, Networking Team) who directs Global Purpose and Sustainability Partnerships strategy for SAP Marketing, including with the UN, to advance SAP’s Purpose and Sustainability strategy. As the son of a Danish immigrant raised in USA and Belgium, Ben has made purpose-led international tech-enabled sustainable development his specialty. Ben also is a co-founder of the SAP Interfaith Alliance ENG to advocate for policies that unlock whole employee capability in a company, and advance sustainable development across industry through the socio-economic capital of interfaith harmony.
Batool Hussain (Contributing Fellow – Programs Team), SAP’s Head of Americas Sustainability Services – Ventures, located in greater New York City. Batool has over 15 years of international work experience covering UK, Europe and the U.S delivering on strategic programs. She brings to our Program Team her skills in leading large cross-functional and geographically dispersed teams in development, integration and implementation efforts of transformation and innovative initiatives. Batool is also a co-founder of the SAP Interfaith Alliance ENG. She holds an Executive MBA from Baruch College and Masters in International Relations from Harvard University.
Sean Koh (Advisor – Finance and Entrepreneurship), an expert in cross-border transactions in finance, technology, infrastructure, media, and entertainment. Sean is chair of his family office, Koherent Incorporated and through it has structured various private equity and project financing deals with leading global institutions, while also co-chairing investment forums with other family offices and financial institutions at the United Nations, World Energy Forum, and other international communities. Sean is particularly skilled in expanding blockchain protocols and distributed ledger technologies and applying them in various use cases across a diverse array of industries.
Sean completed his undergraduate studies at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
Sean is also an award-winning recording artist, songwriter, and music producer known as ESKOH.com which stands for “Every Situation Kan Offer Hope.”
Maryyum Mehmood Ph.D (Advisor – AI Ethics and Intercultural Engagement), a ‘pracademic’ (practical academic) whose work sits at the interface between academia, grassroots and policy. Her professional pursuits transcend the ivory towers, with the aim to harness the power of positive social impact. Through her decade-long academic career, Maryyum has been at the forefront of providing training to international diplomats and NGO leaders, and her students have included some of the UK’s most eminent religious officials.
Maryyum is also the Founding Director of The SHIFT (Social Harmony, Intercultural & Faith Training) organization, where she facilitates pan-sector partnerships and provides consultancy, advisory, and ethical leadership training to enhance religious and cultural literacy and tackle spiritual abuse, gender-based violence and racism. She is a Trustee of the Women’s Interfaith Network in the UK.
Maryyum holds a PhD from King’s College London in International Relations as well as a masters degree in South Asia and Global Security.
Suzette Messa (Contributing Fellow-Programs Team) is a Business Innovation Consultant at SAP where she teaches and works with internal and external customers to grow their ideas and businesses. Prior to joining SAP, Suzette was instrumental in helping to build 3 startup companies from the ground up in the Silicon Valley and in Europe. Suzette is a leader in the SAP Interfaith Alliance ENG which began with her desire to embrace and evolve the different textures of faith and culture. Suzette holds a bachelor of science degree in Business Administration – Marketing from Cal State University, and associate degree in computer information systems from Cabrillo College
Emad Mostaque (Advisor – Finance and Entrepreneurship), the founder and chairman of Stability.AI, a UK-based collective of vibrant communities of experts, leaders and partners across the globe developing cutting-edge open AI models for Image, Language, Audio, Video, 3D and Biology. Emad has had a very successful career in hedge fund management with a particular focus on gaming, and for a number of years of bringing entrepreneurial skills to some of the world’s most intractable problems, Emad’s particular current vision is delivering open source technologies in a wide range of media to languages and cultures outside the current mainstream English and western orientation.
Ingrid Vanderveldt (Advisor – Finance and Entrepreneurship), the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Vanderveldt Global Investments, EBW (Empowering a Billion Women) Worldwide and Ingrid Vanderveldt LLC. Ingrid, known as “iV”, is an advisor, change agent and business innovation strategist to startup CEO’s and C-level executives at top global corporations, and a global speaker & media host on entrepreneurship, women’s leadership & innovation.
Ranked #28 fastest growing private company in America by Inc. Magazine in 2021, EBW’s mission is to educate, inspire, develop and work with visionary leaders seeking peak performance and winning in the $28T SHEconomy. EBW helps clients grow revenue, profit, market share & impact for generations to come by helping them connect, activate and do business with impact-focused, wealth-building women leaders & entrepreneurs. EBW uses money earned to grow the pipeline of scale-ready women by providing women access to the tools, tech and resources to empower their success. Previously, Ingrid was the first Entrepreneur in Residence for Dell Inc. (2011-2014). There she oversaw entrepreneurial initiatives worldwide helping to build a $250 million business segment and founded the $250M Dell Innovators Credit Fund, Dell Founders Club, and the Dell Center for Entrepreneurs during her 3-year term.
Ingrid participated on our panel on “Working Globally and at Scale” at the National Faith ERG Conference in May, personally embodies that mission, and brings those remarkable skills and experience to AI&F.
