Experience Milwaukee

Who’s in this interview and what’s it about?

Sri Kantamneni [LinkedIn]: CIDO of Schreiber Foods.

Stephen Pounds [LinkedIn]: CEO of Vadar Alpha.

Summary: In this episode, I talk with Sri and Stephen about what happens when a food manufacturing giant teams up with a scrappy two-year-old startup. They break down (in lemonade-stand terms) how Vadar Alpha helps Schreiber manage pricing, risk, and the “spread” between what it buys and sells, and why the best partnerships pair deep data and expertise with the agility to actually use it. It’s a real-world look at cutting through AI hype to solve actual business problems. This is a preview of their fireside chat at Summerfest TechAI 2026 (more info and register here).

-----------------

This special edition was sponsored by Cream City Cyber, Milwaukee’s global cybersecurity consultancy helping companies of all sizes navigate digital risk. From AI governance to cybersecurity, they’ve got you covered. Learn more at creamcitycyber.com.

Steve talks with Chris about his recipe behind one of the world's most-used apps, the company he's building with his 17-year-old son, how he's looking forward to his first trip to Milwaukee, and more.

You can catch him in Milwaukee as a keynote speaker at Summerfest TechAI 2026.

This special edition episode was sponsored by Cream City Cyber, Milwaukee's global cybersecurity consultancy helping companies of all sizes navigate digital risk. From AI governance to cybersecurity, they've got you covered. Learn more at creamcitycyber.com.

Robert Cordova and Derek Hyde talk AI in sports ahead of their unique panel discussion with Tim Dickson on June 24.

This special edition episode was sponsored by Cream City Cyber, Milwaukee's global cybersecurity consultancy helping companies of all sizes navigate digital risk. From AI governance to cybersecurity, they've got you covered. Learn more at creamcitycyber.com.

In this episode, Steve sits down with the following for a fun and insightful conversation about the sports tech panel at Summerfest TechAI on June 24:

Tim Dickson: [LinkedIn] The maestro. The connector. The guy who is always celebrating tech in Milwaukee and who brings all of us together. Also, he’s the Chief Digital & Information Officer at Regal Rexnord. He’ll be moderating the panel with Robert and Derek at Summerfest TechAI on Wednesday, June 24 at 2:00PM CST. Register for Summerfest TechAI here.

Robert Cordova: [LinkedIn] Always keeping it real. Also, the guy who promised to give me a private tech tour at the Fiserv Forum. Oh, and he’s Chief Technology & Strategy Officer for our Milwaukee Bucks.

Derek Hyde: [LinkedIn] One of my faves to grab a beer with. He always brings the passion for sports tech and Milwaukee to any discussion. He also works as SVP of Information Technology at our Milwaukee Brewers.

Lena DeLaet: [LinkedIn] How the hell does she make Summerfest TechAI happen every year? Because she’s incredible and loves the work she does for our city. Which reminds me, Lena is Director, Sales & Summerfest TechAI.

From AI agents to facial recognition technology, if you love the Bucks and/or Brewers, you'll love this episode.

This episode is part of our 2026 Summerfest TechAI series, sponsored by Cream City Cyber.

Steve's guests on this one include:

• Celeste Cuffie, Chief People Officer and Co-founder, Cream City Cyber
• Sheldon Cuffie, CEO & Co-founder, Cream City Cyber
• Lena DeLaet, Director of Sales & Summerfest TechAI

What you'll get:

• Sheldon and Celeste share how they bootstrapped Cream City Cyber from scratch into a nearly 40-person, multimillion-dollar cybersecurity firm in the last 18 months.

• They also announced they’re now launching a second Milwaukee venture,

• They make the case that AI is moving at “light speed,” but the real risk isn’t the technology

• On the cybersecurity front, Sheldon warns that AI is becoming “a firecracker on top of a rocket ship”
• The conversation then turns to Milwaukee’s biggest challenge

Thanks to Concurrency and Secure Compliance Solutions, sponsors of Experience Milwaukee!

In this episode, Steve talks with Mandela on his take on innovation, startups, AI accountability, and why Wisconsin has everything it needs to compete if we're willing to invest in it.

NOTE: This article is not an endorsement for Mandela Barnes. The purpose was to have a conversation about his vision for technology and innovation for the state. I have asked all eight Wisconsin gubernatorial candidates to join me on this platform for the same conversation and coverage.

Mandela’s Quick Bio:

• Former Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin and U.S. Senate candidate.

• A Milwaukee native and vocal advocate for economic equity, he’s championed policies that expand access to tech, education, and opportunity for communities too often left behind by innovation.

• Now running for governor, Barnes is making the case that Wisconsin’s best days are ahead, if the state invests in its schools, retains its homegrown talent, and holds corporations accountable as AI reshapes the workforce.

Guests Brooke Casazza and Michael Dairyko give an honest and interesting take on AI, data, and tech in sports.

Brooke Casazza’s quick bio:

• LinkedIn Profile.
• Leads the Bucks’ revenue-generating tech stack, everything that drives ticket sales, marketing, and fan engagement, plus shapes the organization’s enterprise AI strategy from governance to real-world application.
• Came up through AT&T and Samsung with a gift for making tech easily understandable, which landed her in the Bucks’ IT team as the bridge between business problems and technology solutions.

Michael Dairyko’s quick bio:

• LinkedIn profile.

In this one, Steve sits down with Kelda Roys for an informative discussion on Kelda's case that Wisconsin's economic future depends on.

About Kelda:

• Kelda is a Wisconsin-born attorney, state senator, and tech founder running for governor.
• She has over two decades of bipartisan legislative wins and a track record of turning big ideas into law.
• She’s a tech entrepreneur who founded a business to make home-buying more affordable, and a champion for Wisconsin’s startup ecosystem advocating for the capital access and policy reforms that help homegrown companies scale without leaving the state.
• She’s also a mom and stepmom of five.

About the episode:

• Kelda makes her case for why she’s the most experienced candidate in the Wisconsin governor’s race and what that experience actually means for the state’s tech and business future.

• She also talks about why Wisconsin keeps losing startups and talent to neighboring states, and the concrete policy fixes she’d push as governor, including a bigger state fund-of-funds for growth-stage companies.

• Her take on building a statewide culture that embraces risk and failure, and why that mindset shift matters as much as any tax credit.

• A candid conversation about healthcare, small business, and what other candidates are getting wrong about economic development.

  Follow us on Substack: www.experiencemilwaukee.com

  Sponsored by SCS and Concurrencty.

Jay’s bio:

Jay Kolbe, a Milwaukee area resident, is a 20-year communications pro and co-founder / managing partner of Impact Partners, a New York-based strategic communications and growth advisory firm.

He works closely with high-net-worth individuals, family offices, investors, and emerging technology companies.

Jay also advises a wide range of technology and media-related brands and is known for helping founders, firms, and leaders create sharper, more ownable narratives around who they are and why they matter.

In this episode, Jay offers a sharp outside-insider perspective on Milwaukee and Wisconsin: a place with real substance, pride, and values, but one that too often under-owns its wins, hesitates to tell its story, and leaves too much room for bigger coastal markets to define the conversation instead.

Steve and Jay also get into one of the most uncomfortable but important tensions in the region’s tech ecosystem.

Sponsored by Concurrency and Secure Compliance Solutions.

This episode explains the evolution of Experience Milwaukee from a culture-focused podcast into a platform centered on business, tech, innovation, and the people shaping Milwaukee’s future, without losing sight of the city’s cultural fabric.

Steve shares more of his own story than he usually does, including how growing up with limited access to professional networks shaped his long-term mission: build connections and shorten the curve for others trying to grow their careers or companies in Milwaukee.

The conversation gets into why Milwaukee is both well-positioned and behind in tech: strong enterprise talent, strong big-company DNA, but not enough alignment, coordination, or shared direction to fully capitalize on that advantage.

Steve also lays out a more specific vision for where this could go next: an enterprise-led, Midwest-wide innovation movement that connects big companies, founders, and outside startups around real problems worth solving here.

Most of all, the episode sets up what you should expect from the refreshed Experience Milwaukee: more point of view, more honesty, more access to the leaders behind Milwaukee’s tech evolution, and more clarity on who ambitious people should know and why.

"In this episode, Steve sits down with Mark Fairbanks, Cofounder & Executive Director of Islands of Brilliance

Talking points include: Neurodiversity, Special Interest Focusing, Program Growth, and Trains!

Special thank you to local Milwaukee band Paper Valley for their track "Breakaway" - check them out at https://open.spotify.com/artist/4lsijeS7nxgLPGdqnsmmz4?si=f25NjrndTsO62Q-SuRYqnA

Episode edited by Stevie Salinas, Social Media & Content Director at Experience Milwaukee"