Meet Ascend Venture Capital's Leadership Team
Dan Conner, CFA - General Partner
Dan founded Ascend out of a relentless passion for innovation and entrepreneurship. As a c-level operator at disruptive startups, as a quantamental management consultant, and as an investor in big ideas, Dan has cultivated a career in enabling the future states of industries. He specializes in new marketplaces, programmatic decision-making processes, and science that pushes the boundaries between fiction and reality. Dan is an Olin Business School MBA graduate and holds an undergraduate degree from Yale in mechanical engineering; he also holds a master’s in advanced renewable technologies from Washington University in St. Louis. He’s started three businesses and thrived as a performance engineer in the field. In addition to being a startup geek, Dan also runs triathlons and sings karaoke…poorly.
Yinka Faleti, J.D. - Partner
Yinka joined Ascend out of a passion for ethical impact and social change. Since immigrating to the U.S. at age seven, Yinka’s unbridled entrepreneurial spirit was borne from an inspiring journey through poverty, service, and hard-won achievement. Yinka’s path at Ascend started after a captivating campaign as a former candidate for Missouri Secretary of State, ED of Forward Through Ferguson, SVP of United Way of Greater St. Louis, prosecutor at the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office, and litigation attorney at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. Prior, as an officer in the United States Army, he attained the rank of Captain after deploying in tank units on two tours to Kuwait. Yinka earned his undergraduate degree and officer commission from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He earned his law degree from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. In addition to being a steadfast community leader, Yinka is a devoted family man, a lover of all things basketball, an avid runner, and an enthusiast of breaking down barriers.
Bill Holt - Advisor
Bill brings global growth expertise and 30 years of telecom leadership experience to the Ascend team. Holt began his career at AT&T, eventually spending 29 years in various management positions there and becoming regional managing director for its Asia Pacific Business Services branch. He lived and worked for many years in Asia, where he is still active in board and advisory roles. Holt serves as chairman of PSI Pacific, Horizon Wireless, and Horizonte Telecom Chile, and he is also the honorary president of China's International Human Capital Digitalization Commission.
Guy Friedman - Advisor
A Wharton MBA and acquisition veteran, Guy fills out the M&A expertise of the Ascend team. Guy is the founder & CEO of SteadyMD, a technology company and healthcare provider that delivers high-quality telehealth experiences for consumers, employers, digital health companies, and clinicians. Previously, Guy founded HigherNext, an innovative testing platform (test administration, online proctoring, and certification) for K-12 and Higher Education that was acquired by ProctorU in 2014.