AI for Small Business Summit & Expo 2026

As President and CEO of Branches, Brent leads an organization that partners with families to help them build education and financial assets, and serving the small business community in Miami is a top priority. Branches is proud to walk alongside entrepreneurs every day, understanding the real challenges of building a business and providing the tools and guidance they need to grow.

As Dean of the Andreas School of Business and Vice Provost of Technology at Barry University, Dr. Daraban champions academic leadership that drives innovation in AI, entrepreneurship, and technology education to empower future leaders.

Steve has spent years empowering underserved entrepreneurs in Miami-Dade. As Program Director of the BE ONE business development platform within Branches Inc., he understands the unique challenges micro-businesses face and how to overcome them.

Christina leads digital transformation, data and analytics, and AI implementation at Embark, helping private equity-backed and mid-market companies replace fragmented, manual processes with integrated systems built on data and automation. Her background spans accounting and advisory, giving her fluency in both business strategy and technical implementation.

Nelson Santos, BSW, is a Master of Social Work candidate at Barry University with interests in emerging technology, social innovation, and global service. He builds AI applications that explore practical uses of emerging technology in social work and education. Nelson hopes to apply his education and experience within the international humanitarian sector.

Sarah Lewis, PhD, is a social work scholar advancing the integration of AI into higher education through principled, systems-level design. As Founding Director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and Associate Professor of Social Work at Barry University, she works at the intersection of pedagogy, ethics, and emerging technology. Her AI-informed assessment methods use AI not to replace human judgment but to deepen it, making student learning visible in real time.

Sam Shaqour is Co-Founder and CEO of Patterned, a Miami-based AI platform built on a simple belief: where you start should not determine where you end up. Patterned gives workforce and social service case managers one system to guide people through employment and social services, built on an unapologetically caring approach to technology. The platform is currently piloting with public sector workforce organizations across South Florida.

An entrepreneur and transformation leader, Marcin empowers businesses to scale with AI, innovation, and forward-thinking leadership.

Jens brings deep engineering expertise from the automotive industry, holding multiple patents and years of experience designing scalable, mission-critical systems. He is founder and CEO of TBench.Solutions, a gold-certified Preferred Design House of Infineon Technologies that provides consulting and system development for automotive and industrial applications and builds its own advanced boards for MCUs, APUs, and FPGAs.

Glenn Stansbury is Regional Vice President for Infobip, a global leader in omnichannel engagement powering the messaging channels, tools, and solutions behind advanced customer engagement, authentication, and security. A technology and communications executive focused on AI, intelligent customer engagement, and digital transformation, he helps organizations turn emerging AI capabilities into scalable business value and growth. His expertise sits at the intersection of AI strategy, customer experience, innovation, and commercial execution.

Lilia leads analytics and automation at Kaufman Rossin and helps clients navigate AI implementation, turning data into clear, actionable insight that drives smarter decisions and sustainable growth.

Andres helps small businesses cut through marketing noise to connect authentically with customers. His approach focuses on clarity, consistency, and maintaining trust, even while leveraging AI tools.

Alex Keeble is a Senior Account Executive at Xero with a background in accounting, financial management, and business technology. He works with accounting professionals and business leaders to help them adopt technology and build more efficient businesses. Passionate about the intersection of finance and technology, Alex is particularly interested in how AI can make financial information more accessible and actionable for small business owners.

Eduardo Frias is Director of Professional Services at Shopify, with over 30 years in the technology sector. He has served as head of Technology, CIO, and CTO across organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 50 companies, specializing in large-scale digital transformation and scaling technology teams to create new channels and revenue streams. He holds degrees in Computer Science and Software Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and the Universidad de Buenos Aires, and lives in Miami.

Dr. Selen Turner is an organizational psychologist and CEO of The Turner Connection, with more than 20 years helping organizations build stronger cultures, develop leaders, and drive innovation. She is a Partner at Advantage Performance Group, founder of Thrive Forward: Leaders' Forum, and author of the forthcoming book Unique Belonging: Shaping Human-Centered Cultures to Unlock Innovation. She teaches at Florida Atlantic University and Barry University and holds a PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

As Campus Registrar at The University of the West Indies, Five Islands Campus, Dr. Camille Samuel champions institutional transformation, digital innovation, and student success across the Caribbean. An experienced higher education administrator, she has led major organizational and digital transformation initiatives, with research focused on leadership, institutional resilience, and systems that help organizations thrive.

Adriana Madrinan is an industrial designer by training who designs how a business actually works and how its owner decides. She is the creator of The Madrinan Playground™, her independent practice under Alineata LLC, where small business owners redesign, scale, and multiply for the AI era. Across the U.S. and Latin America she has partnered with organizations that support small businesses, and her research into how owners think and decide with AI has been supported by Branches and Es Tiempo de Avanzar.

Katsiaryna Matusevich, PhD, is Professor of Human Resource Development and Program Director of the MS in HRD at Barry University's Andreas School of Business. Her research examines work-related flow and the effects of AI on employee flourishing. She coined the term Human Relevance Development, championing the shift from Human Resources to human relevance and helping organizations adopt AI while keeping human agency central.

Tarik Safouan is Senior Director of Innovation and Technology Education at Barry University, where he leads the AI Center and its work connecting AI education, applied research, and real-world business innovation. He brings more than two decades of experience across technology, digital transformation, and emerging technologies, with a focus on helping organizations turn AI into practical business value. He also teaches AI strategy and analytics in Barry University's MBA program.