Meet our Speakers

Alessia Cappello
Municipality of Milan's Economic Development and Labor Policies Councilor

Alessia is the Economic Development and Labor Policies Councilor for the Municipality of Milan, where she oversees employment policies, commerce, productive activities, and municipal services, with a particular focus also on supporting local incubators and startups. She graduated from the Catholic University of Milan with a degree in business communication and later earned a master's degree from Publitalia. She is married and was a global brand manager in leading multinationals before becoming manager of e-commerce projects at Luxottica.

Corrado Passera
CEO & Founder of illimity

A degree in Business Administration from Bocconi University, an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and the beginning of his career at McKinsey. Inspired by innovation and challenge, his career path took him from Olivetti to Poste Italiane S.p.A., Intesa Sanpaolo and the Italian Government as Minister of Economic Development, Infrastructures and Transportation. In 2018 he launched illimity, a bank listed on the STAR segment of the Borsa Italiana from September 10th 2020 and specialized in SMEs credit, which aims to discover and exploit the many hidden potentials of our economy and society.

illimity is the banking group led by Corrado Passera, specialising in offering performing loans to SMEs, restructuring, turnarounds, and investment banking services. illimity covers the entire value chain in credit management, from financing activities to asset management and structuring through ARECneprix. illimity SGR also forms part of the Group, which establishes and manages alternative investment funds to support institutions and companies, both in the UTP space and in private capital.

Additional speakers to be announced soon, stay tuned!

Our Pitch Competition Judges

Manuel Casciano
Investment Associate @ Scientifica Venture Capital

Graduated in Economics from Pavia, he completed his education with a Master's degree at LUISS and a Master's degree at ZSEM, enriched by international experiences at Mannheim Business School and Luxembourg School of Business. After initial experiences at Algebris Investments and Alisea Corporate Finance, he joined the investment team of Equiter Infrastructure II, where he works in the Datacenters, Healthcare, and Energy sectors. Specialized in the analysis and structuring of illiquid investments, he has overseen strategic acquisitions by corporates, LBO operations, and the execution of Roll-ups, focusing on business modeling, financial due diligence, and strategic optimization of portfolio companies.

Scientifica Venture Capital is an Italian fund based which invests in technologies offering solutions to social and environmental challenges, while impacting positively on markets and revolutionizing current industrial models. Their focus is on supporting researchers and startups, providing facilities, equipment as well as pre-seed, seed and early stage fundings. With 4,000 square meters of dedicated laboratory space and currently in the process of raising a new 200 million of funds, Scientifica VC offers Italian startups a unique investment vehicle that combines financial resources, scientific expertise, and critical infrastructure to support innovative entrepreneurial ideas.

Ilaria Cavalleri
Primo Space - Investment Principal @ Primo Capital

Ilaria is Investment Principal at Primo Space fund, the first VC fund in continental Europe to focus solely on space tech. After a few years in corporate finance and investment banking, Ilaria started working with startups, gathering 10+ years of experience in early-stage investments. She is an Academic Fellow at Bocconi University where she taught courses in Entrepreneurship and Corporate Finance, and she also writes about the Italian innovation ecosystem on her blog: Scaleupitaly.com.

Primo Capital is the first Italian independent investment platform specializing in advanced technologies that drive economic growth. With a strong presence in both Venture Capital and Private Equity, the company manages over 500 million euros across multiple funds, focusing on key sectors such as digital innovation, healthcare, climate technology, and the space economy.

Giuseppe Donvito
Senior Partner @ P101 Venture

Giuseppe Donvito is a Partner at P101, a leading venture capital firm based in Milan, focused on early-stage investments in the digital and technology sectors. With a background in telecommunications engineering and over two decades of experience in private equity, venture capital, and investment banking, Giuseppe has worked in Rome, Milan, and London. He combines a strong technical foundation with deep financial expertise to support innovative startups across Europe.

P101 SGR is a Milan-based venture capital firm founded in 2013, specializing in early-stage investments in digital and technology-driven companies across Europe. With over €500 million in assets under management, P101 has backed more than 120 founders and achieved 18 successful exits, supporting visionary entrepreneurs committed to impactful innovation.

Lucrezia Lucotti
Partner @ 360 Capital

Lucrezia, a Bocconi University MSc graduate, began her career in strategy consulting before joining 360 Capital, where she is now a partner. She focuses on investment opportunities across Europe, with a particular emphasis on the Italian market through the recent 360 Digitaly fund.

360 Capital is a Venture Capital firm investing in early-stage, innovative deeptech and digital enterprises across Europe. With a 20-year track record, the firm has supported talented tech entrepreneurs in building ambitious, disruptive companies across various sectors. Led by a diverse and experienced team of professionals located in Paris and Milan, 360 Capital has more than €500M of assets under management and an active portfolio of over 50 companies.

Irene Mingozzi
Principal @ Italian Founders Fund

Irene brings extensive experience in the start-up space, having been a founder, running an accelerator, serving as the Director of an innovation hub in San Francisco, and working with startups, corporations, and universities. She is now an Investment Principal at Italian Founders Fund and a Venture Partner at E12 Ventures.

Italian Founders Fund is Italy’s first venture capital fund, founded by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. They have united over 100 experienced entrepreneurs to build the premier founder-backed VC community, actively supporting Italy’s next generation of exceptional talent and digital innovation. IFF leads or follows in pre-seed and seed rounds, facilitating access to international capital. It also invests in later-stage companies looking to expand into Italy.