Omowunmi Akinnifesi introduces her talk “Winning Against All Odds” by challenging the common idea that success is purely about talent or luck. Instead, she emphasizes that true success comes from intentional strategy. She sets the stage to share three key pillars that empowered her to overcome challenges and become a catalyst for change, offering a reframed and practical perspective on what it means to truly win. Omowunmi Akinnifesi is an internationally recognized brand strategy consultant, renowned keynote speaker, and accomplished expert in personal branding and leadership transformation. She is the Founder and Principal Consultant at Build Valley Consulting, a management consulting and training firm specializing in corporate brand strategy, leadership development, executive presence, mentoring and personal transformation. Omowunmi brings a rich blend of academic excellence and practical expertise to the global stage. She has designed and delivered transformational programs for high-impact organizations across Africa and beyond, including Ecobank Africa, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Chivita Nigeria,Lasaco Assurance PLC, Tetracore Energy, Lagos State Government, Ondo State Government, Jordan Tourism Board, and several multinational tourism and real estate brands. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

halil Halilu envisions an Africa where homegrown innovation drives global change. He emphasizes that the continent is no longer just consuming innovation but becoming a source of transformative ideas in fintech, agritech, and renewable energy. Highlighting examples like M-Pesa and solar startups, he illustrates how technology and sustainability are improving lives and fueling growth. Through his work at NASENI, he underscores the importance of investing in research and building ecosystems that support local entrepreneurs. For him, Africa’s future is not distant—it’s already unfolding through innovation, opportunity, and impact Khalil Suleiman Halilu, the Executive Vice Chairman of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), is driving innovation in Nigeria’s industrial and technological sectors. Under his leadership, NASENI has become a hub for advancing industrialization through science, engineering, and technology transfer. His approach is centered on creation, collaboration, and commercialization, ensuring that technological advancements contribute to economic growth.Before joining NASENI, Khalil was a successful entrepreneur and technology advocate. He founded ShapShap Technologies, OyaOya, and the CANs Technology Hub, West Africa’s first eco-friendly tech hub. His work spans logistics, agriculture, and e-commerce, where he has harnessed technology to solve practical problems and generate employment. His ability to integrate business with technology has solidified his role as a key figure in Nigeria’s innovation landscape. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Drawing from his entrepreneurial journey, he shares insights on balancing profitability with ethical leadership, building innovation-driven enterprises, and creating solutions that are inclusive, sustainable, and socially impactful. His talk offers a roadmap for entrepreneurs seeking to grow responsibly while making a lasting difference for people and the planet. Mr. Puneet Modani, Founder & MD of KSP Hydro, is an Electronics Engineer and first-generation entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience. From early challenges to building impactful ventures, his mantra “Me First” emphasizes leading by example to inspire responsible entrepreneurship.At KSP Hydro, he has championed water and wastewater management solutions that align business growth with environmental stewardship. His vision has helped industries adopt sustainable practices that benefit both communities and ecosystems. Expanding his mission, he also co-founded Qwiktrace, a tech venture focused on IT and AI-based data security, showcasing his belief in sustainable innovation across sectors.At TEDxBistupur 2025, in his talk "Inclusive Sustainable Growth as an Entrepreneur," Mr. Modani will share insights on balancing profitability with purpose, promoting ethical leadership, and fostering innovation that drives inclusive, planet-friendly growth. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

The quantum world is full of new and unexpected things, because the rules of the quantum world are different than the ones we are used to from everyday experience. Harnessing the quantum world can lead to novel and powerful technologies that can redefine the boundary between what we think is possible and impossible. The journey towards a quantum enabled future has already started and the community of quantum creators and innovators is growing.Computers, Future, Physics, Science, Technology, Quantum "Alex is a scientist, innovator and entrepreneur.He immigrated into the US from Mexico to become a physicist at MIT and Harvard. During his time at Harvard, together with collaborators, he developed a new quantum computing platform using individually controlled atoms as quantum bits. This technology was adopted by QuEra Computing, a leading quantum computing company in Boston, which Alex led as CEO for three years, overseeing the translation of the technology into a product available to the general public on the cloud, and growing the company to become a leader in the space. He now serves as Chief Scientific Officer, leading the long term technology development towards widely impactful quantum computing for the world.Alex is passionate about science and technology, reducing barriers to wide adoption of new capabilities to boost their positive impact and engaging people to work together towards a better future." This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Trilingual educator and wellness advocate Tsveti Fuentes transforms harrowing stories of Berlin Wall escapes into profound lessons about how fear can become our most powerful teacher rather than our master. Drawing from her expertise in social-emotional learning and cultural inclusivity, Fuentes reveals how embracing our deepest anxieties can unlock unexpected wisdom that aligns heart, gut intuition, mind, and soul. Through this moving narrative of courage and transformation, she demonstrates how the very emotion we often try to avoid can become the catalyst for our greatest growth and most authentic expression, inspiring audience members to reconsider their relationship with fear in their own lives. "Fluent in English, Spanish and Bulgarian, Tsveti has tremendous love and appreciation for all cultures and languages. She is an advocate for inclusion as an adult participant in the ECSD Youth Equity Stewardship initiative. She is passionate about elevating wellness, fulfillment and achievement through optimal alignment of the heart, gut intuition, mind and soul. Tsveti has presented on multiple occasions regarding social emotional topics in Spanish for Aprendiendo Juntos, a community learning platform. She also co-created the Pausa Semanal, a Social Emotional Learning resource for schools and communities by crafting videos in Spanish on topics like self awareness, self-management,social awareness, relationship skills and responsible decision-making. Tsveti is a Spanish teacher, wellness advocate, consultant and career coach. Things that bring her joy include nature, family time, hiking, yoga, meditation, and exploring the world! " This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

Christopher’s conviction has always been that the main inherent challenges in building successful businesses from scratch are internal and takes place inside the company builder’s own mind. This conviction runs opposite to the widely held view that the primary challenges are tangible, external and hence can be clearly identified (and blamed) in the physical world. “Building businesses in emerging markets from scratch - a reflection and battle of the mind” puts us inside the mind of a serial emerging market entrepreneur; helps us to reflect and ask ourselves the right concise questions that matters as we set off on the daunting journey of building something out of nothing. Christopher B. Beselin is a Swedish company builder & investor that has been living in Vietnam since early 2012. He came to Vietnam in order to start the country’s largest ecommerce marketplace, Lazada.vn. He was the CEO & Co-founder of the business for the first three years, in parallel to being CEO for Lazada Malaysia. The group was later sold to the global ecommerce group, Ali Baba. Subsequently, Christopher B. Beselin moved on to build up a range of additional businesses from scratch within tech, ecommerce and investments, all in Southeast Asia. Apart from Lazada, he has founded and sold/IPO:d four companies – Intrepid, Fram PLC, Fram IT Development and Pangara. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx