October Dinner Meeting

James Goulka serves as President and CEO of AZ Venture Capital Inc., an $87 million

Phoenix-based venture capital fund that invests in pre-seed to Series B funding rounds

in Arizona startups and early growth companies that develop novel software, medical,

and hard technologies to address significant customer challenges.

Previously, for 12 years he served as Chairman of Arizona Tech Investors (ATI). During

that time, membership in ATI expanded to more than 100 individuals who invested their

own resources in over 90 companies, two-third which were based in Arizona. He has

personally invested in more than 50 angel-funded startups.

Goulka holds two degrees from Yale. He has taught cases at Harvard Business School,

Yale School of Management, Ohio State University, and Lake Forest College. For four

years he taught a class on angel and VC funding in the Executive MBA Program at ASU.

He also taught business case analysis at eight US Navy bases.

Kyle Kniepman joined the MJ team as an employee benefits consultant in our Benefits Consulting department. In his role, Kyle proactively drives sales and services to new and existing clients by understanding their unique business needs, identifying potential solutions, and developing innovative healthcare and benefit strategies.

Drew Taylor joined MJ as an employee benefits consultant in our Benefits Consulting department. In his role, Drew consults with both current and prospective clients to gain a clear understanding of their business objectives. He analyzes potential risk and crafts tailored strategies to optimize and enhance the effectiveness of their employee benefits programs.    

Gregg Scoresby is the Founder and Managing Partner of PHX Ventures, which has funded 20 high-growth software companies since 2020. Prior to PHX Ventures, Gregg founded CampusLogic, one of Arizona's fastest-growing software companies. CampusLogic was acquired by Blackstone and Vista Equity in 2021. Gregg also founded PHX Forward, a community helping software founders start, scale, and succeed in Arizona.

Jack Selby is a technology, finance and film entrepreneur. His primary role is as Managing Director at Peter Thiel’s family office, Thiel Capital, based in Los Angeles. Jack also founded and manages AZ-VC, the largest venture capital fund in Arizona. As a “PayPal Mafia” member, Jack joined as an original employee and later served as a Corporate Officer/Senior Vice President, overseeing the company’s international and corporate operations.

As an active technology investor and advisor, Jack’s involvements include notable companies such as SpaceX, Palantir, Affirm, Paradox, Myeloid Therapeutics, Kisbee Therapeutics and many more. Jack co-founded and manages High Frequency.