Jay Walker is the Co-Founder and Director of The TEDMED Foundation, which wholly owns TEDMED. Jay is also a longtime TED supporter. Beyond his role at TEDMED, he also chairs Walker Digital, a private invention lab, and is Executive Chairman and Lead Inventor for Patent Properties, both based in Stamford, Connecticut. Founder of three companies that each serve more than 50 million customers, Jay is the world’s 11th most patented living inventor, with his name on 700 U.S. patents across a dozen different industries. Best known as the founder of Priceline, Jay is also the founder and curator of the world’s only Library of the History of Human Imagination.
TEDMED Team
Jay Walker
Co-Founder & Director, TEDMED Foundation
Zac Smith
Director, Website Operations
Zac Smith is part of TEDMED’s marketing team, managing many of TEDMED’s digital projects including website development, mobile app development and marketing email delivery. Prior to joining TEDMED, Zac spent the previous five years working for Walker Digital Management and a variety of WDM’s start-up companies. As such, he is a named inventor on numerous existing and pending patents for ideas that have come out of the Walker Digital lab. In May of 2006, Zac received a BA degree from the University of Mary Washington. When not working, Zac may be found playing a variety of sports. He is president of the Newtown Sandy Hooks Vintage Base Ball Team and likes to snowboard when he finds the time.
Shirley Bergin
Chief Operating Officer
Shirley Bergin is the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer of TEDMED. She leads all aspects of the TEDMED organization, from chairing the Editorial Advisory Board to supporting the curation of TEDMED’s annual stage program and startup showcase (aka “The Hive”), to building long-term strategic relationships with industry and academic leaders, the venture community, and startup organizations. And when it comes to TEDMED’s annual event, she serves as its Executive Producer. Shirley is fiercely passionate about putting TEDMED’s brand, platform, and community to work in shaping a healthier world.
Jamie Olen
Project Manager
Jamie's work supports the TEDMED Live and Hive communities throughout the year. Prior to joining TEDMED, Jamie produced programs dedicated to improving the livability of cities at both the Municipal Art Society and Van Alen Institute. She is passionate about community health empowerment and food as medicine. Always looking for opportunities to be active, Jamie enjoys hiking, biking, and lifting heavy things. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting from Syracuse University and a Master of Science in Urban Policy from Hunter College.
Marcus Webb
Chief Storytelling Officer
Marcus Webb is Chief Storytelling Officer for TEDMED, LLC and Walker Digital, LLC. Marcus works closely with TEDMED chairman Jay Walker on his speeches and other presentations. He also assists TEDMED speakers in developing and refining their talks, and serves as liaison between presenters and the TEDMED Speakers Coaching Network. His responsibilities range from speechwriting to creation of marketing collateral including brochures, booklets, decks, video scripts, website copy, press releases, research documents, white papers, correspondence, etc. As an integral member of the TEDMED and Walker Digital management teams, Marcus participates in business management and invention sessions, contributing ideas and tactics for strategy and execution of a wide variety of projects and ventures.
Melanie Howley
Manager, Community Development & Event Registration
Melanie Howley is TEDMED’s Manager of Community Development and Event Registration. Melanie oversees the application vetting and review process to ensure a multidisciplinary TEDMED audience, year after year. She is fully committed to making TEDMED a positive and rewarding experience for Delegates and Scholars alike. In addition to Community Development, Melanie supports the TEDMED event as the Operations Director for event registration and is the lead for volunteer recruitment. As an original staff member of Jay Walker’s initial startup (NewSub Services), she helped with its transition into Synapse Group, Inc., a direct marketing subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. In her personal life she is a dedicated runner with a passion for a healthful lifestyle.
Jing Xie
Budget Analyst
Jing Xie is the Budget Analyst for TEDMED, LLC. Her major responsibilities include preparing, maintaining and examining account books and monthly financial statements; tracking actual costs to ensure conformance with budgets; monitoring risk and fraud; and reporting to the CEO. Jing earned her MBA degree with a specialization in Accounting and Finance and a second master’s degree in Technology Management from the University of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Additionally, she received a Bachelor of Food Science & Engineering from Jinan University, China.
Lucy Crawford
Senior Program Manager
Lucy manages TEDMED's social media presence and supports TEDMED's partnerships. Her experience promoting the right to health in developing countries sparked her passion for public health and development. Lucy has spent much of her career designing ways to support and lift the voices of individuals poised to create significant social change - from members of ministries of health around the globe to visionaries implementing innovative ways of tackling community health challenges in the hardest to serve populations. Lucy earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Hobart and William Smith Colleges and a Master of Public Health from Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health.