VENTURE
CAPITAL.
not vulture
capital.
THE TEAM
(listed in alphabetical order)
MICHAEL FREDERICK MARCOTTE
Chairman and General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Michael Marcotte has served as the CEO of numerous companies and corporate boards from startups and fast growth pre-IPO companies to publicly traded companies. He is a proven leader with extraordinary expertise combining polymathic breadth and depth.
He is the former Global Chief Information Officer, Chief Digital Officer, and President (Hughes Cloud Services) of the global EchoStar/EchoStar International/Dish Network/Hughes/SlingTV, etc. family of companies. He was one of the very first people ever, to serve as a Chief Digital Officer for a major global corporation.
He has served as a corporate officer with 7 major corporations. He has M&A experience in billions of dollars of revenue and valuation. He is a partner at New Republic Studios.
Marcotte is a co-founder of the public/private National Cyber Security Center (NCC) and was the founder and Chairman of the NCC’s Rapid Response Center (NCC/RRC) largely absorbed by CIA.
He is a former board member of the Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT). He has been a senior advisor for several state Governors and United State Senators, on both sides of the aisle.
He was a recipient of The Business Journals Forty Under 40 award. He is a two-time winner of the NASA award for engineering excellence and United States Air Force Award of Engineering Excellence. He has a keen interest in CPG and serves on the board of several CPG food companies and LSI nutraceuticals.
In his spare time, he enjoys health-related service work, flying aerobatic aircraft, and data driven longevity research. Michael also has formal legal and medical training.
SALMAN AL BAHRI
General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Salman Al Bahri is an accomplished professional with a diverse background spanning over a decade in both public service and the finance sector. He began his career as a First Lieutenant with the Ministry of Interior in Bahrain, where he dedicated many years to serving his country and honing his leadership skills.
Transitioning from public service to finance, Salman held senior positions at various prestigious financial and investment institutions. Notably, he contributed to Rain Management, a leading player in Bahrain's cryptocurrency landscape, where he navigated the complexities of digital finance.
Salman's expertise further expanded during his tenure as a consultant at American Express, where he was responsible for managing the prestigious Centurion Black Card members throughout the Middle East, leveraging Bahrain's strategic location as the headquarters.
His career took a significant leap when he became a Director at Blacksand, a prominent real estate investment company in the UK, where he played a crucial role in driving investment strategies and growth initiatives.
Currently, Salman is the founder of Elite Concept, a lifestyle and wealth management company dedicated to providing tailored services that enhance the lives of its clients. His extensive background in finance and investment, combined with his commitment to excellence, positions Elite Concept as a leader in the industry.
LT. GENERAL EDWARD CARDON (Ret.)
General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Lieutenant General Edward C. Cardon was born in Texas, raised in California and was commissioned as an Engineer Officer from the United States Military Academy in 1982.
LTG Cardon has commanded at every level from company through Army Service Component Command. Some of his assignments include Observer/Controller at the National Training Center; Strategist to the Army Chief of Staff; Commander, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3d Infantry Division; Deputy Commandant, US Army Command and General Staff College; Deputy Commanding General (Support), United States Forces -- Iraq; Commanding General, 2d Infantry Division, Republic of Korea; and Commanding General, US Army Cyber Command and 2d Army.
LTG Cardon has deployed in support of IFOR/SFOR Bosnia-Herzegovina and on four separate occasions in support of OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM.
His education includes a Bachelor of Science Degree from the United States Military Academy and two Masters Degrees - one from the National War College and the other from the United States Naval Command and Staff College, both in National Security and Strategic Studies.
Lieutenant General Cardon is married and has three children.
LT. GENERAL ROSS COFFMAN (Ret.)
General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Ross Coffman is the founder of Coffman and Associates LLC, a consulting and advisory firm. The firm specializes in strategic and operational planning to improve management skills, change culture, enhance business operations, and drive organizational productivity. The firm has proven success in the government, corporate, academic, and non-profit sectors.
Ross serves as the President of Forward Edge AI, a Board member of The Federal Savings Bank, and as a member of the Board of Advisors for multiple successful companies. He is also a member of the Washington Speaker Bureau and a Senior Advisor for Ernst and Young.
General Coffman retired from the United States Army with over 35 years of distinguished military service as an Armor officer. He commanded units in nearly every echelon and served in multiple deployments to Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Europe, Bosnia, and Haiti. General Coffman also served in the generating force training large units for combat. In his final assignment in the military, General Coffman served as the Deputy Commander of United States Army’s Futures Command in Austin, Texas.
General Coffman received numerous awards for his individual actions and as a member of heroic units. He is enshrined by Centre College as a Distinguished Alumnus. He is the recipient of the Harvey Leadership Award, MacArthur Leadership Award, Draper Leadership Award, Significant Sigma Chi Award, and is an Eagle Scout.
General Coffman holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Centre College, a Master’s Degree in business administration from Embry Riddle University, and a National Security Fellowship at Harvard’s Kennedy School.
General Coffman is from Fort Knox, Kentucky and is an enthusiastic, but terrible golfer.
HAGAY DANIEL RISKIN
General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Hagay is an experienced and motivated CEO, CTO, Cyber Security Expert and a consummate Business Development Strategist with a flair for technology and innovation in various fields (AI, ML, IT, OT, Cloud, cyber etc.), as well as a keen entrepreneurial streak that transcends conventional boundaries and enables him to take on bold business initiatives in the realms of information technologies and cyber security.
Hagay is an expert information technologies professional with a sharp eye for innovation combined with an extensive professional knowledge second to none specializing in areas including, cybersecurity and Defense-Tech domains, critical infrastructure protection, advanced technology systems (AI, OT, emerging compute), land arge-scale system design and integration. His background combines hands-on technical depth with strategic execution, enabling the development of next-generation platforms at the intersection of Cyber, AI, Quantum, Defense, and Space technologies. He has worked on complex systems and projects involving multi-million and billion-dollar budgets, spanning cybersecurity, infrastructure, and advanced technology domains.
He has a longstanding track record ranging from cyber, information security and communications solutions to information technologies, all of which cemented his position as a technology leader. By invoking the creative power of those technologies, he has been able to introduce evermore innovative information technology solutions to various industries and organizations ushering in a technological transformation process that far exceeds expectations and always delivers a significant strategic advantage.
Now serving as President of the Board of Directors at The Consortium Innovation Hub Ltd., he is able to further expand his vision to bring information technology solutions to a wider range of industries.
His accomplishments include establishing a successful cyber security and information technology company and currently serving as CEO and President of the Board of Directors at The Consortium Innovation Hub Ltd. He spearheaded large-scale and complex information technology projects, collaborated with various government entities as well as senior and high-level executives from various companies.
Hagay was born and raised in Tel Aviv, Israel and is a member of Fortune 500 and TED
PHILLIP SAROFIM
General Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Founder & CEO Trousdale Ventures
Phillip Sarofim, founder of Trousdale Ventures, is recognized for his forward-thinking approach and investments in mission-driven companies. The portfolio’s diverse composition reflects his dedication to the great innovators who, he believes, will change the world around us, improve our society, and enhance our health.
LARISSA RUSSELL
Venture Partner
Executive in Residence (XIR)
Larissa is the co-founder and CEO of Pod Foods. Larissa led the expansion of Pod Foods from a bootstrapped operation in the San Francisco Bay Area to a national alternative to the multi-billion-dollar incumbent wholesalers in the United States. Balancing the requirements of brands, retailers, and logistics providers, Larissa re-engineered the consumer goods distribution business model (BPR) from the ground up, including pricing strategy, logistics expansion strategy, and data applications. Larissa has raised over $ 24 million in funding for the company, securing investment from entities such as Microsoft Venture Fund (M12), Moment Ventures, XRC Labs, Gordon Food Service, Unshackled Ventures, and others.
She won the Relish Works pitch competition in 2019 and has spoken at events such as FoodBytes, Microsoft’s NRF Sideshow, and Food Tech Connect.
Before Pod, Larissa co-founded and ran Green Pea Cookie, a healthy food company, for 2.5 years. While scaling the business and entering retail stores, she oversaw logistics for the legacy wholesale business model. Pod is a new grocery supply chain that was data-driven, efficient, and delivers real consumer demand manufacturing. The company has attracted top talent from the technology, retail, and natural foods sectors, including Google, Amazon, Walmart Labs, KeHE Distributors, and Whole Foods Market.
She won the Relish Works pitch competition in 2019 and has spoken at events such as FoodBytes, Microsoft’s NRF Sideshow, and Food Tech Connect. She was recently featured on Bloomberg TV's "The Close" and was an honored member of EY's Winning Women class alongside her co-founder.
Larissa was awarded Forbes’ 30 under 30 in 2020, and Pod Foods was named one of the top ten most innovative companies by Fast Company in 2022. Pod has two pending patents for virtualized wholesaling and related data applications.
Larissa studied Government and Economics at Dartmouth College and graduated with high honors in Senior Fellowship studies. She is also a student at Texas A&M University School of Law.
