Engineering Leaders Play Chess. Summer Edition
Chess Networking Event for Engineering Leaders ♟️
The only place where ChatGPT can’t make your move for you!
We’re bringing together Bay Area engineering and product leaders for an evening of chess, strategy, and thoughtful conversations.
No sales agenda. No forced networking. No panels about "the future of AI".
Just engineering leaders, chess, good conversations, and a little healthy competition.
What to expect:
• Curated group of engineering and product leaders.
• Games with Chess Masters: from simuls to casual one-on-one games.
• Beginner-friendly masterclass for people who have always wanted to learn chess “one day.”
• Conversations around chess, engineering, and life beyond work.
• Special guests from the worlds of chess, technology, and our broader community.
Come to play. Come to connect. Come to have fun.
All skill levels are welcome: from people who are simply curious and want to watch, to casual players and experienced competitors.
Bring a colleague or a friend in engineering leadership, but please don’t forget to register.
Special guests:
Yousuf Khan is a Venture Partner at Ridge Ventures and a seasoned technology executive with more than 20 years of experience as a CIO, operator, advisor, and investor. Before joining Ridge, Yousuf served as the first CIO of Automation Anywhere, CIO and VP of Customer Success at Moveworks, and CIO at Pure Storage and Qualys. He has also advised leading technology companies, including Zoom, Productiv, and Material Security. At Ridge Ventures, Yousuf focuses on early-stage B2B software investments and works closely with founders to help scale products, teams, and go-to-market organizations. He currently serves on the boards of several Ridge portfolio companies, including Cerby, Lightyear, Archera, Rafay, Chisel Labs, and Rewind. Known for his unique perspective as both an operator and investor, Yousuf brings deep insights on leadership, scaling technology organizations, and building high-growth companies.
Venkatagiri Acharya, Director of Engineering at Oracle Corporation and the Founding President of Silicon Valley Chess Academy. He has more than 15 years of experience building AI, cloud, and enterprise software platforms, leading global engineering teams, and delivering large-scale systems used by millions. A USCF/FIDE-rated player, Acharya is a former University Chess Champion, winner of the WAC Chess Championship in the Indian Air Force, and a member of the U1900 National Team Championship-winning team. Through Silicon Valley Chess Academy, which has more than 1,000 alumni, he has helped students build confidence, strategic thinking, and a lifelong love for chess. Acharya also started SVC, a nonprofit organization that hosts regular USCF and non-USCF tournaments for both parents and kids, creating a strong positive impact in the community. He also leads the official Silicon Valley Chess Club on Chess.com, which has nearly 800 players and hosts free weekly tournaments. Acharya enjoys exploring the connections between chess, leadership, and engineering and sharing those lessons with students, families, and technology professionals alike.
Rahul Suresh, FIDE Master. Rahul achieved the FIDE Master title at 16, balancing competitive chess with academics while growing up in Shanghai. He trained at the same chess academy as World Champion Gukesh and siblings Praggnanandhaa and Vaishali, and the families remain close friends to this day! When COVID brought tournament chess to a halt, it was also the moment his competitive career came to a halt. But what chess had given him, in how he thinks and who he is, never left. He went on to complete his EEE degree at the University of Manchester and a Master's in Engineering Management at Duke University, carrying that same mindset into his career. Today, Rahul leads GTM and Partnerships at Abaka AI, helping frontier AI labs with training data and evaluation solutions. Chess still remains close to his heart, and he's excited to connect with others who are equally as passionate.
Rishabh Gokhale, National Master. Rishabh is a junior at the University of California, Los Angeles, majoring in Data Theory and a National Master in chess. His journey with chess began in childhood and led him to compete internationally after qualifying for the World Under-7 Championship. Since then, he’s been fortunate to win several international tournaments and state titles across India. Outside of chess, he enjoys mathematics, data science, and learning how analytical thinking can be applied to real-world problems. He’s worked on research projects, gained industry experience through internships, and enjoys networking. In his free time, he enjoys photography, running, and pool. He is always excited to keep learning, connect with new people, and explore opportunities in AI and mathematics.
Jathin Shettigar, World Chess Champion. He recently graduated with a Master’s in Computer Science from San Jose State University and has around two years of industry experience, including work at Atlassian and Akamai, and most recently interned at an on-device AI startup in the Bay Area. Jathin has been passionate about chess since the age of five and has competed at the international and national levels. He won the World Amateur Chess Championship U-1700 in Greece in 2016 and has also earned prizes at national-level championships in India, including a bronze medal in the National Schools U-15 in India. A fun fact about him is that he once managed to draw a game against Praggnanandhaa in Nationals Championship. Outside of chess, he is deeply interested in AI, enjoys learning how analytical thinking applies across domains, and is always curious about improving both his game and his technical craft.
Organizers:
Orion Innovation is a leading digital transformation and product development services firm. We help companies and startups across various sectors with solving SW technology challenges by scaling the engineering capacity and co-innovating to design high-quality solutions across many industries including industrial IoT, telecom and media, professional services, financial services, healthcare and life sciences, sports and entertainment, and education.
Ridge Ventures is a San Francisco-based early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2007. Ridge Ventures specializes in Seed and Series A funding, focusing on experienced founders transforming software interaction in technology, enterprise, and consumer markets.
The Silicon Valley AI (SVAI) Hub is a dedicated community for the AI ecosystem to learn, collaborate, and push the boundaries of what’s possible. From hands-on workshops to expert fireside chats, we bring together startups, developers, and executives for high-signal programming in the heart of Silicon Valley. Our mission is simple: no pitches, no pretense, just AI builders focused on technical depth and a thriving community.