Meet The Team at Valkyrie

We are dedicated to the intrepid scientists who selflessly advance humanity in the face of adversity.

Meet Our Scientists

The Valkyrie team is comprised of scientists and industry leaders from a variety of fields and backgrounds, brought together under one mission and two wings. We are a team that constantly strives for progress, from our client work to serving our community.

Austin Hilberg
Data Science Engineer

Austin Hilberg is a data science engineer at Valkyrie with a background in medical imaging and neuroscience. He earned a Bachelors of Science from the University of Houston as well as an MS and PhD from UCLA, all in biomedical engineering. Austin has experience deploying data pipelines and developing data products for applications including academic research, private industries, and government services. Before working in data science he developed experimental techniques for neuroimaging research, and optimized signal processing systems for cardiac ultrasound platforms.

Bailey Steinhauser
Director of Account Management

Bailey Steinhauser is an account manager with experience in public relations, customer success and operations. She graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos with a Bachelor's in Mass Communication. In addition to her work at Valkyrie, Bailey serves as a board member with Regarding Cancer, a nonprofit organization that provides free peer-to-peer psychosocial support and resources to cancer patients and caregivers.

Betsy Hiliard
Chief Science Officer

Betsy Hilliard is a Chief Science Officer with experience in several verticals including defense, consumer hardware products, financial services, and online ad auction markets. She specializes in graph-based machine learning, Reinforcement Learning, and recommendation systems. Previously, Betsy worked as a Data Scientist at USAA Bank and has interned at Google, Yahoo!, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Betsy has a Master’s in Computer Science from Brown University where she was a research assistant and published work on Multi-agent learning in economic markets and Reinforcement Learning for human-agent collaboration.

Bradyn Athey
Data Scientist

Bradyn is a mathematician turned Data Scientist from Florida. He earned his undergraduate degree in Applied Mathematics from Florida State University and received his Masters in Applied Mathematics from Texas State University. Bradyn has experience with building analytic dashboards and Numerical Linear Algebra techniques.

Cameron Faxon
Data Science Engineer

Cameron is a data science engineer focused on the development of data infrastructure and code bases to support our science efforts on both internal and external projects. He earned a BS in Biological Engineering and PhD in Chemical Engineering from Louisiana State University and The University of Texas at Austin, respectively.

Charlie Burgoyne
Founder & CEO

Charlie Burgoyne is the founder & CEO of Valkyrie, an Austin-based company that works to solve industrial challenges with bespoke services, invests in asset classes using AI-informed theses, provides philanthropic scientific services, and optimizes car performance in world-class autosport. Prior to founding Valkyrie, Burgoyne held a variety of roles including principal director of data science at Frog Design, director of data science at Rosetta Stone, and a research astrophysicist for NASA in conjunction with George Washington University. He holds a master’s degree in Theoretical Physics from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s in Nuclear Physics from George Washington University.

Cory Mullen
Product Engineer

Cory is a Product Engineer at Valkyrie working on systems integrations to accelerate Data Science capabilities for clients. He is a customer-focused technologist seeking to enable others through his experience in IT/IS, procurement, and finance/operations. Cory has 10+ years of experience in software and hardware systems administration, design, and integration projects for both infrastructure and end-user applications. Prior to Valkyrie, Cory has done data systems projects with various non-profits and financial/insurance brokers. He studied Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Management at the University of Missouri-Rolla.

Craig Corcoran
Data Scientist

Craig Corcoran is a Data Scientist who is passionate about using computational tools to inform critical decision-making around important social issues, including emergency medical services, housing policy, and online disinformation campaigns. He holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and Cognitive Science from Rice University and studied Machine Learning in a Computer Science Ph.D. program at the University of Texas at Austin (ABD) where he focused on Reinforcement Learning and Hypothesis Testing. As an undergraduate researcher in robotics, he helped develop touch perception for NASA's Robonaut 2.

Evan Bleiweiss
Account Manager

Evan is an experienced technologist and account manager at Valkyrie. He has over 15 years of specialization in Data Science and Machine Learning, and is a veteran of multiple startups. Evan holds degrees from American University, including one in Economics. He is passionate about distributed networks and peer-to-peer technologies, data visualization, mass transit, civics, and information security. He has been a Valkyrie since 2020.

Felipe Parages
Principal Data Scientist | Head of Research

Felipe Parages is a Principal Data Scientist and Head of Research at Valkyrie. He currently leads a team of scientists and engineers building forecasting models and data visualization tools for the largest ambulance company in the US. He is also involved in researching evidence of chronic pain in clinical brain scans using deep learning techniques. In the past, Felipe worked in the field of Industrial IoT and predictive maintenance, building machine learning solutions to prevent critical failures in industrial machinery. He received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Illinois Tech, with a dissertation about modeling the ability of physicians at detecting lesions in medical images.

Grant Mordecai
Chief Client Officer

Grant serves as Valkyrie’s Chief Client Officer, focusing on Client & Account management as well as overall project delivery. He has worked across multiple industries and delivered results for companies including AT&T, Best Buy, Capital One, Comcast, Cleveland Clinic, Disney, Johnson & Johnson, Motorola, and SiriusXM. Grant has over 20 years of experience leading teams through the requirements definition, design, development, and testing of large-scale transaction processing focused, web-based applications. Grant has a BBA in Management Information Systems from the University of Texas.

Isaac Chasse
Data Scientist

Isaac is a physicist and nuclear engineering researcher who moved to data science after graduating from college and the University of Texas at Austin. He has a deep focus on translating the scientific rigor and curiosity Valkyrie provides its clients to a variety of business cases through supporting data science efforts.

Jason Paull
Chief Strategy Officer

Jason is the Chief Strategy Officer at Valkyrie. He began his career in the Downstream Petroleum industry with Pricewaterhouse before being recruited by Continental Airlines to create the first flight profitability system in the world. It was the early career stops that honed his skills in finance, technology, and operations. From there, he launched his first startup Zippity in 2000 before moving into the private equity space acquiring, running, and selling companies. He has both an undergraduate degree in QBA (Quantitative Business Analysis - Statistics) and Economics from Baylor University and an MBA from the University of Texas.

Javier Tamborrel
Growth Associate

Javier serves as Valkyrie’s Growth Associate with experience in business development, leveraged finance, and management consulting. Prior to joining Valkyrie, he was on the Mergers & Acquisitions team at General Electric HQ. He studied Finance at Boston University and is a passionate supporter of art, mindfulness, and emotional education.

Jeff Kwarsick
Data Scientist

Jeff is a data scientist at Valkyrie. He graduated from Michigan State University in 2013 with a BS in Chemistry and in 2019 from the University of California, Berkeley obtaining a Ph.D. in Chemistry.

Jessie Sackett
Controller

Jessie serves as Valkyrie's controller in the accounting department.

Kea Goins
PR/Marketing Specialist

Kea serves as Valkyrie's PR & Marketing Specialist. She studied Marketing and Japanese at the University of Hawaii Manoa before moving to Austin, TX to pursue a full-time digital marketing career.

Keatra Nesbitt
Data Scientist

Keatra earned her BS in Applied Mathematics from the University of Northern Colorado and studied Data Science at Galvanize. She has 3 years of experience analyzing financial data for universities and colleges, and 5 years as a teacher. Keatra taught high school algebra for 4 years, an introduction to Python class, and acted as the resident in the Data Science course at Galvanize.

Kristin Russell
Chief of Staff

Kristin serves as Valkyrie’s Chief of Staff. She graduated from Indiana University Bloomington with a Bachelor of Arts from the College of Arts and Sciences.

Liz Coufal
Senior Director of Growth & Social Impact

Liz is the Senior Director of Growth & Social Impact at Valkyrie. She attended the University of North Texas and from Texas State University-San Marcos where she graduated with a B.A. in International Development. Liz leads Valkyrie's social impact initiative, which provides high-impact nonprofits with cutting-edge machine learning services and invests in future scientists.

Toni Calderon
Chief Growth Officer

Toni is the Chief Growth Officer of Valkyrie. In his role, he leads business development, creates strategic partnerships, and oversees all marketing and brand-building efforts, driving the company’s growth. A seasoned entrepreneur, he brings 17 years of experience across management, advertising, sales, and marketing. Calderon holds degrees in Advertising, Business, and Marketing from The University of Texas at Austin and Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City.

Will Owen
Business Development Associate

Will is a Business Development Associate at Valkyrie, and formerly a race car driver who competed in international sports car championships such as IMSA and ELMS. He studied at Texas Christian University and Western Governors University, graduating from the latter with a degree in Accounting.

Press

Radio Show LT - Radio Le Mans

Valkyrie Announced As Official AI Partner to Radio Le Mans

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Betsy Hilliard - Canvas Rebel Magazine

Chief Science Officer Betsy Hilliard Featured in Canvas Rebel Magazine

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Valkyrie Becomes Official AI Partner to United Autosports

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