About Us
The students behind YBC
Our Team
Austin Cai
Co-President
Austin is a 2Y candidate at Yale School of Management with a strong focus on fostering innovation and empowering founders. He is also the Co-President of Yale SOM's PE/VC Club. His past experiences include internships at several firms including Harlem Capital, Yale Ventures and Alumni Ventures. Prior to Yale, he founded a real estate company that provided long-term housing for low-income families. He worked as a solutions engineer at Salesforce and Scandit, where he consulted and implemented technical solutions for F100 companies. He aims to grow the club through expanding its partnerships with leading innovators and investors within the space and creating initiatives to provide ample resources for student founders & enthusiasts.
Mateo Bastidas
Co-President
Mateo, is a senior at Yale College studying Computer Science and Cognitive Science. He works in various aspects of blockchain including decentralized/trustless GPU infrastructure, AI gaming on top of blockchain, and Crypto Market Sentiment Analysis. He wants to help transform Yale Blockchain Club into a hub of innovation by educating students on the foundations of Blockchain, providing hands-on opportunities to learn in different ecosystems, guiding project development, and connecting students directly with speakers from key ecosystems, established projects, developing projects, and investment firms. Mateo looks forward to seeing the potential of the Yale Blockchain Club begin to flourish over the coming year.
Tamara Gruslova
Vice President
Tamara is a Junior at Yale studying Computer Science and Economics. She passionate about the theoretical foundations of quantitative finance and the social implications of economics. Having done academic research in a variety of fields from blockchain tokenomics to biology, she enjoys learning about and analyzing different topics. Her various internship experiences in corporate operations have further inspired her to continue exploring the intersection of business management and technology.
Ivan Saric
Markets
Ivan is a senior majoring in Economics and Mathematics. He was attracted to blockchain through bitcoin as a permissionless financial instrument that enables people to interact with globally. He's also interested in the possibilities of smart contracts and blockchain's potential to reduce friction that exists in the current financial system. In YBC he wants to help organize events to bring people together to have a good time and learn more about the technology.
Nicola Yu
Public Relations
Nicola is a second-year MBA student at the Yale School of Management. With a background in technology and entrepreneurship, Nicola has worked at prominent organizations such as Capital One and the Irvin Medical School at Columbia University. During her first year at SOM, she also gained valuable experience in investing through her part-time role at Tsai CITY. She is currently working at her own startup company, Plate-X. Nicola is passionate about leveraging her diverse experiences to foster growth and build stronger connections within the Yale community, aiming to elevate the Yale Blockchain Club to new heights.
Sid Arun
Partnerships
Siddharth is a 2Y Candidate at Yale School of Management with a strong interest in entrepreneurship and investing in emerging technologies. At Yale SOM, Siddharth is also part of the leadership team for the PE / VC and Healthcare & Life Sciences club, and has also completed internships at Yale Ventures, Necessary Ventures, and DigitalDx Ventures during his first year. Prior to Yale, he worked as a consultant at Charles River Associates in their Life Sciences practice, managing and supporting commercial strategy engagements with clients in Biotech, Digital Health, and MedTech. With Yale Blockchain Club, Siddharth looks to continue expanding partnerships with founders and investors spearheading innovation in this space and build on the existing community to support students.