about us
Founder and
key team members
Jean-Paul O’Brien
CEO
O’Brien, Founder and CEO, is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and community builder. O'Brien is on a mission to inspire, activate, and hyper-enable Thinker Doers (scientists, entrepreneurs, investors, elite athletes, and creatives) to propel humanity forward. Black Lab builds and invests in HumanTech ventures and human potential nodes, with themes centered around Longevity, Consciousness, Community, and Environment.
Aaron Beach
COO
Beach, Co-Founder and Head of Operations, brings his passion, experience, and expertise in human resources and operations. Beach’s strengths include creating native work cultures specifically centered on the people who lead to its success, as well as fostering inspiring and empowering work environments for business growth.
Chris Ishii
BLX Capital
Ishii, Head of Black Lab Capital, is an inventive senior executive with 15+ years experience, who specializes in innovative solutions across business operations. Ishii brings deep experience in investment, organizational formation, and leadership. Ishii is a former multi-decade Managing Director at two Wall Street Firms, Principal of his own firm, and Media entrepreneur.
Desmond Croan
CMO
Croan, Advisor, is a visionary digital marketer, storyteller and strategist. A Stanford alum, Croan has fueled the growth of global brands, Silicon Valley startups, and Fortune 500 companies through innovative digital marketing and storytelling. At desmond garcia, his international digital marketing agency, he empowered diverse clients from superstars to tech giants, enhancing their creative, strategic and international growth—expanding the agency from San Francisco to Miami, Medellin and São Paulo.
Dominic Bönisch
AI + LONGEVITY
Bönisch, Head of Black Lab Germany, is on a mission to make entrepreneurs last longer in business and life: Unleashing Greatness. He is a hands-on entrepreneur with strong abilities to make things happen, especially building online business and optimizing corporate processes to squeeze out more efficiency and productivity.
Gunther Weil
Advisor
Weil, Advisor, is the Co-Founder & CEO of Value Mentors - an internationally recognized consultant, executive coach, and educator who advises leaders and their organizations on values based leadership, innovation, team building, strategic planning, and executive wellness. His clients have included numerous public and private sectors institutions in such as MIT Media Lab, CAA, Chase Manhattan Bank, Credit Suisse, AT&T, McCann Erickson, the FAA, the Peace Corps and many others.