TEAM

Vedant’s parents immigrated from India and in college he became passionate about ancient Indian mindfulness practices honed to care for the mind (ex. meditation). These strategies supported him in healing from the obstacles and mental health challenges he faced growing up. He also found that extensive scientific research supports these mindfulness techniques, and discovered writing his master’s thesis that mindfulness has the power to increase self-esteem in classrooms of disadvantage.

Vedant taught sixth-grade ELA in a Title I school for five years, and his idea for combining virtual reality and mindfulness came about when he saw firsthand students struggling with symptoms of trauma, and heard from the community a need for radical change. He also was a part of Teach For America’s Social Innovation Cohort and Sage and Systems Fellowship. Finally, he is an alum of gener8tor’s Prosper Health Tech investment accelerator, and has stood honored to receive funding from the Yass Prize foundation. 

Vedant graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with Bachelor’s degrees in Journalism and Anthropology and Dean’s List honors. He also graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction. Vedant grew up in Dallas, Texas and currently resides in Las Vegas.

Angelo is an immersive experience designer and developer of 10+ years who loves building technology that feels human. He holds a B.A. in Film and a Master’s in UX Design, and has created multiple XR projects exploring how design, psychology, and technology can support emotional growth. Before joining aloeVR, he developed and shipped Third Seat, a multiplayer VR app focused on helping couples foster empathy, understanding and compassion through AI guided communication. Angelo strives to bring together design, code, and thoughtfulness to craft intuitive, emotionally intelligent experiences that help people connect and live happier. ”

Jacob is the founder of pilotED, a charter school network that seeks to provide equitable curriculum and environments to students of underserved communities. He also served as an educator in an underserved community for many years. He is now the CEO of Reportwell, which provides an easy-to-use compliance & reporting platform for school districts.

Sharon is a licensed child therapist and head of “Stillwater Counseling.” She had counseling experience with adolescents and adults in an outpatient, inpatient, in-home, and prison settings. Most recently she has worked with children, adolescents, and adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses and trauma related issues.

Sam is a Business Development Manager at OKX, and his expertise is in financial models, sales and fundraising for early stage companies. He also has experience in international business partnerships. Sam has also produced music for the aloeVR game program.