STEM Speakers

Peter Diamandis, MD is the Chairman and CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, which leads the world in designing and launching large incentive prizes to drive radical breakthroughs for the benefit of humanity. Diamandis is also an international leader in the commercial space arena, having founded and run many of the leading entrepreneurial companies in this sector. In his keynote presentations, Diamandis focuses on the importance of innovation and he looks to the future in explaining how exponentially advancing technologies will transform our companies, our industries, our governments and our lives over the next 5 to 10 years. Dr. Diamandis is the co-Author of the NYTimes #1 best-seller LIFE FORCE.

Fee Range: $60,000–$95,000
Travels From: CA

Fee Range: $6,500–$10,500
Travels From: CO

A Silicon Valley icon and philanthropist, Steve Wozniak, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Wheels of Zeus (wOz), helped shape the computing industry with his design of Apple's first line of products the Apple I and II and influenced the popular Macintosh. For his achievements at Apple Computer, Steve was awarded the National Medal of Technology by the President of the United States in 1985, the highest honor bestowed America's leading innovators. In 2000 Steve was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame and was awarded the prestigious Heinz Award for Technology, The Economy & Employment for "designing the first personal computer and for then redirecting his lifelong passion for mathematics and electronics toward lighting the fires of excitement for education in grade school students and their teachers." Steve is currently Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer for Acquicor Technology, Inc., a 'blank check' company that acquires businesses in the technology, multimedia and networking sectors.

Fee Range: $55,000–$200,000
Travels From: CA

Chris Barton wanted a way to identify songs he was hearing everywhere around him. There wasn’t one – so he invented an app called Shazam. Chris’s creation is nothing short of pure magic. That was his goal. Chris seeks to delight people by using technology to make seemingly impossible ideas come to life. Shazam, which now has over two billion downloads, is just one of them. In addition to creating Shazam, which Apple acquired for $400 million, Chris holds 12 patents and played key roles in the early days of Google and Dropbox. Despite having dyslexia, incredibly, he didn’t let that get in his way. In fact, it gave him a different way of looking at problems. Chris’s newest venture, Guard, aims to use AI to detect drowning in swimming pools. In his speeches, Chris’s story and storytelling completely captivate audiences. He inspires people to make big things happen in their organizations – to create magic in defiance of the obstacles.

Fee Range: $25,500–$43,000
Travels From: CA

Jeffrey Ma was a member of the MIT Blackjack Team in the mid-1990s. He graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy. He attended MIT where he graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1994. He was the basis for the main character of the book Bringing Down the House and the film 21.

Fee Range: $15,000–$30,000
Travels From: CA

•Leland is the first person drafted into the National Football League to have also flown in space. •He was featured on National Geographic's One Strange Rock, hosted by Will Smith, where he explained how his brain repaired itself after an injury that left him deaf and almost stopped him from ever going to space. •Even after being medically disqualified to fly in space by NASA flight surgeons, •Leland completed two Space Shuttle missions to help build the International Space Station. •Leland served as the co-chair of the White House's Federal Coordination in STEM Education Task Force, developing the nation's 5-year plan for STEM education, and as NASA Associate Administrator for Education. •His memoir, Chasing Space, shares his personal journey from the gridiron to the stars. •Leland served as a consultant on National Geographic's second season of Mars..

Fee Range: $25,000–$44,000
Travels From: VA

Fee Range: $22,000–$37,000
Travels From: CA

Combat tests you. Being a beat cop tests you. Life tests you. Three brothers and being the only girl...tests you. Vernice “FlyGirl” Armour has been tested her whole life. A gutsy trailblazer, her resume is an impressive collection of “firsts” including America’s first Black woman combat pilot. She served two tours of duty in Iraq as a Marine. She was also a diversity liaison officer to the Pentagon for Headquarters Marine Corps. After her military service, FlyGirl revved up her career in the private sector as an entrepreneur, consultant to business, and author of Zero to Breakthrough, The 7-Step, Battle-Tested Method for Accomplishing Goals that Matter. As a speaker, FlyGirl unleashes hard-hitting advice and amazing anecdotes from her adventures on the battlefield and in business. She helps individuals and organizations Get Gutsy and build a sustainable inner force and conviction, that results in accomplishing significant goals.

Fee Range: $35,000–$50,000
Travels From: GA

Yassmin trained as a mechanical engineer and worked on oil and gas rigs around Australia for years before becoming a writer and broadcaster in 2016. She published her debut memoir, Yassmin's Story, with Penguin Random House at age 24, and followed up with her first fiction book for younger readers, You Must Be Layla, in 2019. Yassmin’s critically acclaimed essays have been published in numerous anthologies, including the Griffith Review, the best-selling It’s Not About The Burqa and The New Daughters of Africa. Yassmin founded her first organization, Youth Without Borders, at the age of 16, leading it for nine years. Since, Yassmin has co-founded two other organisations and now shares her learnings through keynotes and workshops. Yassmin has spoken in over 20 countries on unconscious bias and inclusive leadership. Her TED talk, What does my headscarf mean to you, has been viewed over two million times and was one of TED’s top 10 ideas of 2015.

Fee Range: $10,500–$20,000
Travels From: Intl

Jack Andraka (Stanford B.S/B.A in Electrical Engineering with Honors and Anthropology with Honors) is a National Geographic Emerging Explorer who speaks to audiences of youths and adults all across the globe about his personal story, research, and his ideas for STEM education reform and fostering innovation and creativity. His journey began at age fifteen when, after losing a close family friend to pancreatic cancer, he invented an inexpensive early detection method for pancreatic, ovarian, and lung cancer that costs 3 cents and takes 5 minutes to run. Now completing his MS in Electrical Engineering at Stanford, Andraka conducts research on nanorobots, inexpensive biosensors, disease diagnostics, and global health interventions while serving as faculty at the Stanford Anesthesiology Summer Institute. Outside of research, Jack has worked on combining anthropology, engineering, and big data to address pressing global health challenges, particularly in the monitoring of environmental contaminants and disease outbreaks.

Fee Range: $7,000–$19,000
Travels From: CA

Fee Range: $14,000–$25,000
Travels From: NY

Fee Range: $16,000–$35,000
Travels From: NY

Jill was a 37-year-old Harvard-trained and published brain scientist when a blood vessel exploded in her brain. Through the eyes of a curious neuroanatomist, she watched her mind deteriorate whereby she could not walk, talk, read, write, or recall any of her life. Because of her understanding of how the brain works, her respect for the cells composing her human form, and an amazing mother, Jill completely recovered her mind, brain and body. In My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey, Jill shares with us her recommendations for recovery and the insight she gained into the unique functions of the right and left halves of her brain. Based upon her academic training and personal experience, Jill helps others not only rebuild their brains from trauma, but helps those of us with normal brains better understand how we can maximize our quality of life. Jill pushes the envelope in our understanding about how we can consciously influence the neural circuitry underlying what we think, how we feel, and how we react to life’s circumstances. A film on her life is due to be released in last 2016.

Fee Range: $25,000–$70,000
Travels From: IN

Fee Range: $25,000–$35,000
Travels From: CA

Fee Range: $12,000–$20,000
Travels From: CA

Emily is wildly passionate about space exploration. Through her show, she wants to prove that the space industry is more exciting today than ever before in history. As the host, Emily works to explain science-related topics in an easily digestible, and entertaining, way. Increasing the level of scientific literacy among the general public is also something Emily cares deeply about. She believes that everyone, despite their educational background, can understand scientific topics. Emily hopes to convince more people of this and foster a higher level of scientific literacy in society through various projects and speaking engagements. Lastly, Emily wants to inspire more females to pursue STEM careers. Over the years, many factors have deterred women from pursuing certain careers in STEM. Through her work, Emily hopes to address those factors and help make STEM a more welcoming environment for everyone.

Fee Range: $18,000–$32,000
Travels From: VA

• Named a “Top Woman in Cybersecurity” by Cyberscoop news and voted DEF CON Hacker of the Year in 2020 • Has spent more than two decades in IT and cybersecurity fields • Protects clients against digital theft, hackers, and infections every day and regularly shares her insights with audiences around the world

Fee Range: $7,000–$15,000
Travels From: Intl

Fee Range: $10,000–$27,000
Travels From: AZ

Marita Cheng AM, inducted as the youngest Member of the Order of Australia in 2019, named by Forbes as one of the World's Top 50 Women In Tech 2018, Forbes 30 Under 30 2016, and 2012 Young Australian of the Year, is a technology entrepreneur and women in technology advocate. Marita Cheng is the founder and CEO of Aubot (formerly called 2Mar Robotics), which makes a telepresence robot, Teleport, for kids with cancer in hospital to attend school, people with a disability to attend work and to monitor and socialize with elderly people.

Fee Range: $10,000–$20,000
Travels From: CA

Fee Range: $7,000–$25,000
Travels From: NY

Fee Range: $25,000–$75,000
Travels From: CA

Fee Range: $8,000–$10,000
Travels From: NC

Fee Range: $20,000–$32,000
Travels From: MA

Nina Davuluri is an acclaimed host, speaker, advocate & entrepreneur. Nina first gained international recognition by becoming the first Indian American and South Asian to become Miss America 2014. Her most recent venture combines the network she has cultivated, her love for advocacy, and disrupting global beauty standards with the launch of her innovative skincare line, aavrani. Nina has proudly spoken at 40 different universities including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Duke, & University of Pennsylvania spreading her message of diversity & inclusion. In addition to her personal platform, Nina also partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Education promoting women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) related fields.

Fee Range: $14,000–$14,000
Travels From: NY