Our New Champions to Guide World-Positive Founders
Values-driven leaders partner with Obvious to mentor and uplift the next wave of entrepreneurs tackling challenges in Planetary, Human, and Economic Health.
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Champion. As a noun, the word means someone who shows marked superiority. As a verb, it’s someone who protects or fights for a cause.
At Obvious, our Champions program unites extraordinary individuals who truly embody both meanings of the word “champion.” Launched in 2022, this initiative continues to thrive, bringing together inspiring leaders committed to making an impact. Across our three core pillars—Planetary Health, Human Health, and Economic Health—our Champions, both new and returning, serve as mentors, motivators, and catalysts for the next generation of changemakers.
Today, we are excited to announce eight new Champions joining Obvious:
- Amy Abernethy, MD, is the co-founder of Highlander Health, a clinical trial startup, and the former president and Chief Medical Officer of Verily Life Sciences.
- Julie Blunden is the former COO of Plus Power, a company that builds battery energy storage systems that enhance the electrical grid.
- Phil Edmundson is the founder and former CEO of Corvus, the cyber insurance company. After many years in InsurTech, he is now Managing Partner of Edmus Ventures.
- Shereef Elnahal was U.S. Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health in the Biden Administration, and formerly the president and CEO of University Hospital.
- Brian Hamilton is the president of Coastal Community Bank, and the co-founder and former CEO of the online banking app One Finance.
- René Lacerte is a fintech entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of BILL, one of the nation’s leading digital business payments companies.
- Vivek Murthy was the U.S. Surgeon General from 2015 to 2017 and from 2021 to 2025. He co-chaired President Biden’s Covid-19 Advisory Board and the inaugural World Health Organization Commission on Social Connection.
- Richelle Parham is the President of Global eCommerce and Business Development for Universal Music Group and eBay’s former Chief Marketing Officer.
These new additions join our current roster of Champions, which include:
- Joanne Bradford, is the Chief Money Officer for Domain Money, having previously served as President of Honey and COO/CMO of SoFi.
- Rodney Brooks, the CTO and co-founder of Robust.AI, and co-founder of five previous companies including iRobot and Rethink Robotics.
- Dr. Yet-Ming Chiang, a Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at MIT, and co-founder of Desktop Metal and more.
- Aneesh Chopra, the President of CareJourney, an open data and analytics platform, and previously the U.S.’s first CTO in the Obama Administration.
- Sachin Jain, President and CEO of SCAN Group and Health Plan, having previously served in C-level roles at CareMore, Merck, and in the Obama Administration.
- Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin, a technology-powered real estate brokerage.
- Eric Ryan, the co-founder of multiple consumer businesses including Method, Olly, and Welly.
- Sue Siegel, currently serving on the boards of Illumina, Align Technologies, and Nevro.
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