Draper Data Science
Business Plan Competition Judges
Dirk Elmendorff
Co-Founder, Rackspace
Dirk Elmendorf is a seasoned entrepreneur and technologist with deep roots in B2B SaaS and AI integration. A co-founder of Rackspace Technology, he helped shape the early cloud hosting landscape. In 2024, Dirk led a successful transition as President and CEO of the Witte Museum, reinforcing his long-standing commitment to cultural and educational innovation.
Now focused on advancing artificial intelligence and building the San Antonio AI Community, Dirk is exploring how AI can revolutionize software development and business strategy. He continues to share insights through writing, speaking, and hands-on projects that merge technical vision with practical impact.
Cristy Lime
Program Manager, Geekdom
Cristy Lime is a Program Manager at Geekdom, where she leads initiatives that empower entrepreneurs through hands-on programming such as Startup Bootcamp, the Women Founders Network, and Mentorship. Aligned with Geekdom’s mission to help build San Antonio one entrepreneur at a time, she has supported over 750 founders in their journeys - from ideation to execution and funding.
Additionally, as the co-founder of The Optimization Specialists, Cristy brings a unique lens of an entrepreneur actively scaling a business focused on operational efficiency and systems optimization. She is passionate about helping founders turn vision into execution and leverages her experience on both sides of the table to guide, challenge, and champion early-stage entrepreneurs.
Aaron McKee
COO/Senior Vice President , FEDITC LLC
Aaron McKee is the COO/Senior Vice President of FEDITC LLC, a San Antonio-based company with over 500 employees supporting military and intelligence clients around the world. Mr. McKee joined the company as employee number 5 and has been instrumental in its growth. As COO, he oversees programs critical to US national security including support to the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Special Operations, Department of Homeland Security, Defense Health Agency, and the President of the United States.
FEDITC services include Cybersecurity, Software Development, Network Engineering, Data Analytics/Management, Energy Efficiency, Environmental Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering in 25 states and 12 countries.
Daniel Wiegand
Managing Director,
Draper Startup House Accelerator + Fund
Daniel Wiegand is the Managing Director at Draper Startup House Accelerator + Fund, an early-stage venture capital fund that invests up to $100,000 in pre-seed and seed companies. Daniel has also launched Draper Hero Institute, a nonprofit providing research, inclusion/equity programs & mentorship/networking for future entrepreneurs globally in the New Economy.
Daniel attended Draper University in 2016, where he won 1st place during his class demo day against 30 other entrepreneurs from across the world. From there, Daniel took on a mentoring role at Draper University, where he has helped young entrepreneurs prepare for demo day and to eventually raise capital.
