Founders Force

Gregory Labru is the CTO of S2N SmartSafetyNode, specializing in railway safety engineering and critical infrastructure design. Operating under the Athens-based firm Advanced Engineering Solutions, he spearheads the technical development of S2N's advanced rail signaling and command-and-control product line. Leveraging his deep expertise in high-reliability systems and traffic management, Labru engineers robust, mission-critical solutions designed specifically to power and secure modern central traffic control networks.

Jan Zajic is an e-commerce growth expert and the Co-Founder and former CEO of FAVI, a leading European furniture and home decor search engine. Recognizing the need to streamline online retail, he launched the platform in 2015 and drove its rapid expansion across nine international markets. Under his leadership, FAVI achieved a staggering 3,389% growth, ranking 4th on Deloitte’s 2020 Fast 50 Central Europe list. After scaling the company's catalog to millions of products and securing early backing from Pale Fire Capital, Zajic successfully guided FAVI through a strategic majority acquisition by EMMA Capital in 2022, continuing to helm the business until mid-2025.

Patrick Williamson is an expert in applying AI to business-process automation. He served as Chief Product Officer and later Chief Operating Officer of arago, a German AI company, through its 2021 acquisition by WISeKey, and now runs Aloma.io, an AI-powered workflow-automation tool for developers and operations teams. His earlier career included product and marketing roles at Yahoo!, Unity, and Symantec, and he holds an engineering degree from the University of Waterloo and an MBA from INSEAD.

Jozef Balaz is an HR-tech entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of JobMojito, a Bratislava-based AI conversational interviewing platform. Specializing in automated talent acquisition, he engineered a scalable system that leverages AI avatars and voice technology to screen candidates across dozens of languages. Highlighting his expertise in high-volume hiring solutions, Balaz has successfully driven the platform to execute over 12,000 automated interviews for enterprise clients.

Estelle Lloyd is an expert in building and exiting technology companies. She co-founded VB Research, acquired by Centaur Media, and Macademia, a children's edtech platform acquired in 2024. She now runs Lloyd Capital and serves as a non-executive director of FinalRentals.

David Seoane Vilariño is an expert in helping companies secure EU public funding, with over a decade of experience across programmes including Horizon 2020, INTERREG, and ERASMUS+, including a stint as an expert evaluator for the European Commission. He worked for several years at FundingBox, connecting startups with EU funding opportunities, and per public information appears to have since moved to Euro-Funding.

Juan López Ibáñez is an expert in building school-management technology for K-12 education. He co-founded and serves as COO of Nuela (formerly Nuela Edtech), a Spanish edtech providing an AI-native all-in-one platform now used by hundreds of schools across several countries. The company closed a €300,000 round in 2024 and a further €620,000 round in November 2025.

James Hart is an expert in marketing for hardware and connectivity brands. He was appointed Global Head of Marketing at signageOS in January 2026, having previously led brand transformation at Jabra and held senior marketing roles at BlackBerry and AVG Technologies, where he contributed to the company's NYSE listing.

Anna Nazarova is a San Francisco-based tech entrepreneur and the co-founder of Varg.ai, an AI video-generation startup that scales single creative briefs into bulk video content. Beyond her work in AI infrastructure, she is a co-founder of the Burning Heroes Founders Association, a non-profit bridging early-stage founders with investors. A dedicated community leader and deYC network member, Nazarova actively fosters tech innovation by organizing mentorship-driven ecosystem events, including San Francisco's "Burn Your Code" hackathon.

Jean Lebrument is an expert in building marketplaces for flexible, independent work. He co-founded Brigad, a Paris-based platform connecting independent professionals with businesses across hospitality, healthcare, retail, and agriculture, which raised a €33 million Series B led by Balderton Capital in 2023. He also co-founded Rosk, a Brigad spin-off focused on staffing for the restaurant and catering industry.