TEAM
Paul Brown
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Paul has diverse experience as an entrepreneur and venture capital investor. He was most recently Vice President of Capital Markets at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), where he managed the bulk of the State’s $2 billion 21st Century Jobs Fund, including the $150 million 21st Century Commercialization Competition, which invests directly in early-stage companies, and the $109 million 21st Century Investment Fund, which invests in venture capital and private equity firms. Paul was also co-founder of Front Door Insights, a mobile technology company that was acquired in May 2013 by Mobivity. Paul began his career practicing law as a clerk in Federal District Court then in the Manhattan office of the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. He is a member of the Univerisity of Michigan Board of Regents, has a BA History and an MBA from the University of Michigan and received his law degree from Wayne State University.
Doug Neal
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Doug Neal has over 20 years of technology industry experience including founding, operating, board, investing, venture accelerator management and entrepreneurial education. After 15 years in California in a variety of leadership positions at Hewlett Packard and Symantec, he co-founded Mobile Automation, a mobile software security company which was venture backed by Greylock and acquired by iPass Inc. in 2005. As CEO of Mobile Automation, Doug was responsible for both operational leadership and the strategic direction of the company including key technology decisions, sales and fundraising. Under Doug’s leadership Mobile Automation grew at 75% CAGR for 5 consecutive years before being acquired.
After completing the successful integration of Mobile Automation into iPass Doug relocated to his home state of Michigan in 2005 to raise his family and help grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Ann Arbor. During the next several years Doug was a member of the review board for the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund, which evaluated numerous Michigan investment opportunities for matching funds from the State of Michigan. In 2009, Doug became Managing Director of the University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship, during which time he transformed the organization to include a world-class university startup accelerator (TechArb) which has since launched almost 100 student ventures, grew enrollment in entrepreneurial programs to more than 5,000 students per year and was instrumental in developing a process for teaching entrepreneurial programs to engineering and non-engineering students. Doug is a regular lecturer at the University in entrepreneurial studies as well as a frequent guest speaker and panelist in the Michigan entrepreneurial ecosystem. He has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Central Michigan University.
Bob Stefanski
Palo Alto, California
Bob is a technology entrepreneur with deep operational, board and investing experience. Since co-founding eLab Ventures in 2013, his primary focus has been on startups developing and using artificial intelligence to create market disruption. He currently serves on, or has served on, the boards of eLab portfolio companies Cobalt, Aperia, MobileForce, ObservIQ, XOSphere, MemryX, pulsESG, Refraction AI and Verge Aero.
Bob was on the founding management team of TIBCO Software, where he helped lead its growth from startup to one of the leading enterprise infrastructure software companies in the world. Prior to TIBCO, he served as the Director of Intellectual Property for Reuters, where he helped the company navigate its transition to the Internet from being the largest private network financial information provider in the world. Bob began his career as an attorney with Weil, Gotshal & Manges in New York City, where he represented technology, media and entertainment companies in a broad range of matters. Prior to co-founding eLab, Bob was a partner in the Silicon Valley office of international law firm Reed Smith, where he served as the chair of its Venture Capital and Emerging Company practice.
Bob has been involved with the University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship since its inception in 2007 and currently serves on its Board of Advisors. He is also the past board chair of the University of Michigan Alumni Association. Bob is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School and University of Michigan Graduate School of Engineering (MS in Computer, Information and Control Engineering). He has an undergraduate degree in computational mathematics and computer science from Northern Michigan University.
Matthew Johnson-Roberson
Matt is the Co-Founder of Refraction AI. He has worked in robotics since the first DARPA grand challenge in 2004. He is also Director of The Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute. He received a BS from Carnegie Mellon University and PhD from the University of Sydney. He has held prior postdoctoral appointments with the Centre for Autonomous Systems – CAS at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and the Australian Centre for Field Robotics.