An AI Interconnection Summit

Hunter Newby is an American entrepreneur, investor, conservationist and the owner of Newby Ventures. His primary field of interest has been network infrastructure. As Co-Founder, Chief Strategy Officer and a Director of Telx, he pioneered the carrier-neutral Meet-Me-Room and the development of carrier hotels and data centers in the United States leading to massive value creation and economic development throughout the Country. Since the sale of Telx he has been and continues to be a founder, developer and investor in the creation of multiple network-neutral infrastructure businesses all across North America.

Mr. Newby is a recognized authority in the network-neutral interconnection and data center industry. He has served on multiple company boards, is a published author, public speaker and has been quoted in several publications including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today. He has also been the recipient of numerous awards including being named to the Global Telecoms Business Top 40 Under 40 in 2010.

Mr. Newby earned a B.S. in Communications from Drexel University.

Tom Ferree provides vision and leadership, guiding Connected Nation’s industry-leading efforts to bridge the digital divide and bringing economic vitality to communities through technology. During his tenure, CN’s portfolio has expanded and received acclaim as the leader in broadband mapping, planning, and program implementation. Tom also served on the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) re-chartered Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC) from 2017 to 2020. The committee’s mission will be to make recommendations on how to accelerate the deployment of high-speed internet access.

Ivo Ivanov has been Chief Executive Officer at DE-CIX and Chair of the Board of the DE-CIX Group AG since 2022. Prior to this, Ivanov was Chief Operating Officer of DE-CIX and Chief Executive Officer of DE-CIX International, responsible for the global business activities of the leading Internet Exchange operator in the world. He has more than 20 years of experience in the regulatory, legal and commercial Internet environment. Ranked as one of the top 100 most influential professionals of the Telecom industry (Capacity Magazine’s Power 100 listing, 2021/2022/2023), Ivo is regularly invited to share his vision and thought leadership in various industry-leading conferences around the globe.

Having joined DE-CIX in 2007, he has been deeply involved in recent years in the establishment of DE-CIX sites in North and South America, Southern Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia, along with several DE-CIX consultancy projects in Africa, Asia and Europe. His strategic vision has led to the establishment of more than 50 DE-CIX locations globally, as well as the development of a range partnership models to sustain DE-CIX’s global expansion, bringing neutral, high-performance, low-latency interconnection services – including services for the enterprise sector – to as many regions of the globe as possible, helping to close the gaps in access to information and modern digital services.

Ivo has also been instrumental in the establishment of the DE-CIX/UPF Global Interconnection Academy in Barcelona, to be rolled out globally as a hybrid training program together with local educational partners in each region. The creation of the Interconnection Academy seeks to provide a global standard certificate of excellence for interconnection experts.

Ivo has an educational background focused on Law and Business. Fluent in German, English, Russian and Bulgarian, he attended a German business school and holds two Law degrees. After graduation, he worked as a lawyer, with a focus on e-commerce, IP, telecommunications, and data protection law.

Brent Legg has primary responsibility for leading Connected Nation’s government affairs and public policy team, working with federal, state, and local officials to advance legislation and/or executive actions that will improve access to, and the quality of, broadband service and related technologies.

Brent has more than ten years of experience working at the intersection of technology, politics, and public policy, and has provided expert testimony on broadband issues before the U.S. Congress and the legislatures of 12 states. Mr. Legg also has extensive experience working on education technology and school connectivity issues, and is a recognized expert on the federal E-rate program. Contact Brent at blegg@connectednation.org.

Tonya Witherspoon is the Founder and CEO of MindScapes, empowering organizational transformation through AI innovation, strategic development, and cultivating future-ready talent. With over 30 years of experience in technology, education, innovation, and entrepreneurship, she is a recognized innovator, strategist, and connector who bridges the gap between industry and academia.

Through MindScapes, Tonya provides comprehensive services including AI development, digital transformation, business and product strategy and market fit, workforce development, apprenticeships, training, and education. She leverages her extensive experience to help organizations navigate the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence while building the talent and strategies needed for sustainable success.

James Jun is a seasoned network architect and builder of internet infrastructure, focusing on neutral interconnections and exchange points with over 20 years of experience. 

As the Founder and CEO of TOWARDEX Technologies, James pioneered the nation’s first large-scale carrier-neutral Meet-Me Street underground conduit network in Boston, Massachusetts, leading to a digital ecosystem that empowers network operators and fosters market competition with no monthly recurring cross connect fees. 

James also founded MASS IX, the largest carrier- and data-center-neutral internet exchange in New England.

Bryan Lubin is a seasoned infrastructure and finance executive with over 20 years of experience in data center development, renewable power integration, and institutional lending. He has structured and delivered over 550MW of powered land and compute infrastructure for AI and Bitcoin mining projects, and has underwritten more than $3B in commercial, residential, and institutional loans.

As Chief Operating Officer of Moonshot Energy, Bryan leads modular AI data center deployments powered by renewable energy, including GPU cluster rollouts, stranded power conversions, and large-scale off-take agreements. His career spans high-stakes project finance, utility negotiations, real estate acquisitions, and power purchase agreements uniquely positioning him to bridge the gap between infrastructure operations and private equity capital deployment.

Click here to read an extended biography. 

Michael is a pioneer in the creation of innovative mission-critical facilities and multi-tenant technology centers. Telesource, another Roark company, created numerous telecom infrastructure projects, carrier hotels and data centers.  M K Roark, Inc, a design / build / development firm, created hundreds of significant projects over the past thirty-five years.  Michael also founded InterMetro Fiber and FiberMedia, a premier provider of colocation and IT services with a portfolio of data centers in the US, serving as CEO.

Allen Meyer is a 30 year veteran of the telecom industry with a background that includes experience in Wireless, ISP management, Engineering and Construction. 

Allen's networking and business development efforts have led him to work with some of the most recognizable telecom companies in the world including Google Fiber, Meta, Verizon, AT&T and others.

For more than a decade, Allen has been directly involved in building countless miles of fiber infrastructure and is a strong advocate for rural broadband expansion.