​About Session 

​Join us for a fireside chat with David Kestenbaum, a remarkable investor and entrepreneur whose journey has taken him from building a $1 billion e-commerce business for AB InBev to co-founding a groundbreaking precision agriculture startup that just raised a $7M Seed Round led by Main Sequence and Horizons Ventures. Investing & company building is at the core of David's expertise, and he'll shed light his corporate venture experience, on how he’s building his angel investing portfolio, and advice to new angel investors. This conversation will be moderated by Ileana Gonzalez, CEO of Tech Bloc.

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​About David 

​David Kestenbaum is a founding member of ZX Ventures, the global innovation and corporate venture arm of AB InBev. Most recently, David led ZX’s venture capital fund as the General Partner, focusing on new and frontier market opportunities where AB InBev could add value as a strategic investor. In that role, David managed a ~$350 million portfolio that delivered top quartile returns and deployed capital towards new thesis areas like biotech and alternative protein. David sits on the board of 4 companies and is passionate about sustainability and the future of food. Previously, David led ZX Ventures innovation practice, developing their venture studio model and was part of the team within ZX that built a +$1 billion e-commerce business for AB InBev. Prior to ZX Ventures, David held various roles in AB InBev’s sales and marketing organizations, both in the U.S. and at their global headquarters. David’s formal education is in business and finance, and he spent several years before joining AB InBev in more traditional finance roles. 

​About Ileana

​​Ileana is a force multiplier. Whether it is operations, automations, integrations or processes, Ileana operates like no other entrepreneur. Ileana is a growth hacker. With 7 years of operational experience in the startup and venture capital industry, she has a proven track record of scaling startups and increasing brand awareness through creative campaigns and innovative technology. Her expertise in community building, social media marketing and operational scalability has helped Ileana to build and lead high-performing teams and achieve measurable results.

As CEO of Tech Bloc, she is the sole tech community builder in San Antonio. Her role revolves around steering the organization towards its strategic goals and fostering a dynamic tech ecosystem in the region. She leads initiatives to promote collaboration among technology companies, startups, and other stakeholders, driving innovation and growth. Her responsibilities include overseeing the implementation of key programs, advocating for favorable policies that support the tech community, and building strong partnerships with local businesses and educational institutions. Additionally, she works to enhance the visibility of San Antonio as a tech hub, both nationally and internationally. In essence, her focus is on creating a thriving and interconnected tech environment that contributes significantly to the city's economic development and establishes San Antonio as a prominent player in the technology industry.

Previously, Ileana was Venture Associate at Techstars where she would find and screen pre-seed startups in preparation for admission into the Techstars Anywhere accelerator and pitched her startups to the Partners. Once startups were accepted to Techstars Anywhere, Ileana presented the portfolio companies as an investment opportunity to other venture capital funds, angels and institutional investors. Ileana managed Techstars' most important relationships throughout the nation with venture capital funds, venture studios and other ecosystem partners. Ileana received her BBA in Entrepreneurship from The University of Texas at San Antonio where she served as Student Body President and Ms. UTSA. Outside of the startup ecosystem, Ileana has two Vizslas (@Canoli.Vizslas) and enjoys traveling around the world!