Leaders Shaping the Future of Semiconductors, Investment and Industrial Growth.

Poshun Chiu is Principal Analyst, Compound Semiconductors at Yole Group.
Poshun is engaged in developing technology and market products and is involved in custom projects.
Before joining Yole Group, Poshun had 9 years’ experience in R&D and product management at Epistar. He is the author or co-author of more than 10 patents in solid-state lighting. Poshun was also engaged in developing and evaluating novel applications of process technology and components based on relevant semiconductor material systems.
Poshun received an MSc in microelectronics from National Cheng Kung University (Taiwan) and an MBA from IESEG School of Management (France).

Prof. Asen Asenov is the James Watt Professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Glasgow and CEO of Semiwise Ltd. He has authored and co-authored more than 1,000 publications on semiconductor device modelling and simulation, including advanced CMOS and power electronics. He co-founded Gold Standard Simulations, later acquired by Synopsys, and currently serves as Executive Chairman of Green Silicon Carbide Manufacturing (GSCM) and Advanced Microelectronics Associates (AMA). He is also founder, director and Executive Chairman of the Semiconductor Advanced Packaging Investment Company (SAPIC).

Ekaterina Zaharieva is the European Commissioner for Startups, Research, and Innovation in the 2024–2029 term of the European Commission. In this role, she is tasked with placing research, innovation, science, and technology at the heart of the EU economy, promoting investments and collaboration, and creating favorable conditions for the successful development of researchers and innovators.
Zaharieva is a former Deputy Prime Minister for Judicial Reform and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria. She has served as a Member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria and held various senior government positions, including Minister of Justice and Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Public Works.
As Commissioner, Zaharieva focuses on reducing bureaucracy in the funding of research and innovation, creating a unified European startup ecosystem, and developing strategies to stimulate European research infrastructure and innovation.

Sean Redmond has nearly 40 years of experience in the semiconductor and software industries, spanning chip design, technology leadership, sales and investment. He has held senior roles at Verisity Design, Cadence and ARC, and played a key role in developing Verisity’s strategic partnership with ARM. He is the founder and CEO of Vertizan Ltd. and Chairman of semiconductor company Cascoda Ltd. Sean has also worked closely with the UK Government on industrial digital strategy, including as co-chair of the ElecTech Council and a member of the Secretary of State’s Industrial Digital Leadership Team.

Co-founder, owner and CEO of Milara International, a technology company specialising in automation, robotics and advanced manufacturing solutions for the semiconductor industry. Under his leadership, Milara has developed an international presence and expanded its activities across semiconductor manufacturing equipment, industrial automation and high-tech engineering. He is also actively working to strengthen cooperation between industry and technical education in Bulgaria, including Milara’s long-standing partnership with the Technical University of Sofia – Plovdiv Branch.

Prof. George Angelov is Professor of Microelectronics at the Technical University of Sofia and former Deputy Minister of Innovation and Growth of Bulgaria (2023–2025). He previously served as Head of MINOLab at Sofia Tech Park, Chairman of the Managing Board of the Cluster of Microelectronics and Industrial Electronics Systems, and Chair of the Department of Microelectronics at the Technical University of Sofia. His research spans semiconductor device modelling, IC design and testing, microelectronics reliability, advanced materials and energy systems. He holds a PhD in Microelectronics from the Technical University of Sofia and has authored more than 130 scientific publications.

Ahmet Solmaz is HIT-30 Program Director at the Ministry of Industry and Technology of Türkiye, leading the Ministry’s flagship high-technology investment incentive programme. Prior to joining the Ministry in 2025, he spent 12 years at PwC Türkiye, progressing from Consultant to Director and developing expertise across investment incentives, international trade and customs, corporate finance, tax and technology integration. He holds a B.A. in International Trade from Boğaziçi University.

Krassimir Kiriakov has a longstanding successful career in international economic development. He managed large development projects in cooperation with the World Bank, IFC, FAO, USAID, and EBRD. As a leading international expert in commodity-based financing, he implemented projects in Central and Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. For fifteen years, he was President of a very successful project management consultancy, based in Sofia. Krassimir served two times as a senior government official – Deputy Minister of Education and Science and Deputy Minister of Economy and Industry of the Republic of Bulgaria. Since 2022, he has started a promising diplomatic career as the Head of the Economic and Commercial Department at the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in London. In his current line of duty, he is providing assistance to Bulgarian companies that would like to expand into the UK market and facilitating FDI from the UK to Bulgaria.

Tim Buisseret is Country Director for Bulgaria at the UK Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, based at the British Embassy in Sofia. He has extensive experience in international trade, investment and business development, supporting UK-Bulgaria commercial relations and companies seeking to expand across both markets. Prior to joining the British Government, he held senior positions in the telecommunications sector, including serving as General Manager of Mobikom, Bulgaria’s first mobile operator. Having lived and worked in Bulgaria for many years, he brings extensive knowledge of the country’s business and investment environment.

With more than two decades of executive experience across finance, renewable energy and information technology, Dimitar Bojanski has built his career around turning complex opportunities into structured, scalable businesses.
As Executive Director of Trakia Silicon Valley (TSV), he is bringing this experience to one of Bulgaria’s most ambitious technology and industrial initiatives. His focus is on creating the environment in which semiconductor and advanced manufacturing investments can take root and scale - connecting industrial capacity with infrastructure, technology, talent, R&D and capital.
Dimitar works at the intersection of business, investment and industrial development, building partnerships across companies, institutions and international markets. Through TSV, his ambition is to translate Bulgaria’s existing industrial strengths into a new generation of high-value technology investment and a stronger role in Europe’s semiconductor ecosystem.

Ovanes Kasabyan is Chief Executive Officer of Green Silicon Carbide Manufacturing (GSCM), leading the development of an ambitious silicon carbide semiconductor manufacturing project in Bulgaria.
At GSCM, he is driving the transformation of the project from industrial vision into advanced manufacturing capacity, bringing together semiconductor technology, strategic partnerships, infrastructure and investment. The project aims to establish a new European base for green SiC power semiconductor manufacturing and position Bulgaria within one of the most strategically important segments of the semiconductor industry.
Ovanes brings extensive executive and project leadership experience across technology, energy, manufacturing and finance, with a strong track record in managing complex projects and organisational transformations. His focus at GSCM is on building the partnerships, capabilities and industrial foundations required to turn Bulgaria’s semiconductor ambitions into a globally competitive manufacturing operation.

Prof Matthew Maynard is Director of Strategic Projects at the University of Strathclyde, where he leads major strategic programmes that support innovation, industrial growth and economic impact across the UK semiconductor sector. He leads the development of advanced semiconductor manufacturing initiatives at the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), with a particular focus on advanced packaging, power electronics, photonics and next-generation semiconductor supply chains.
With over 25 years of international industrial experience, he has held senior research and technology leadership positions at Airbus, Rolls-Royce and the National Physical Laboratory. His expertise spans semiconductors, silicon carbide and wide-bandgap technologies, advanced manufacturing, power electronics, research commercialisation and the creation of large-scale industry, government and academic partnerships. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and advises on emerging technologies, including semiconductors, quantum technologies and AI.

Elif Tepeli is Business Development Director at Sabancı University’s Ankara Project Office, where she leads efforts to build and strengthen collaborations between academia, industry, and public institutions in research, innovation, and technology development. With an engineering background and international experience across technology, project management, and business development, she works at the intersection of technology and strategic partnerships. Her current work includes engaging with Türkiye’s semiconductor and microelectronics ecosystem and developing industry–academia collaborations in strategic and emerging technology areas.

Victor Alexov is a Principal Banker at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), based in Sofia, where he focuses on the Manufacturing & Services sector. He is a corporate finance professional with more than 10 years of experience supporting businesses through investment, financing and strategic growth. LinkedIn

At EBRD, his work includes financing industrial companies and projects, with a focus on sustainable growth, competitiveness and the green transition. He has been involved in transactions supporting major Bulgarian businesses, including sustainability-linked and risk-sharing financing structures. LinkedIn

Victor holds a Master’s degree from Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University.

Moshe Zalcberg is Managing Partner at Silicon Catalyst Israel, a startup incubator focused on semiconductor ventures, and Chairman of Veriest Solutions, an international chip design and verification services company with over 100 engineers. He is a frequent speaker at different industry events, writes Advanced Notes, a Substack newsletter covering technology strategy, AI, and semiconductors, and advises companies and investors across the semiconductor and deep-tech ecosystem. He holds a BEE from the Technion and both an MEE and an MBA from Tel Aviv University.