TEDxBerkshires

Thursday, October 8, 2026

@Berkshire Innovation Center

photo: Deval Patrick, past speaker

2026 TEDxBerkshires Speakers

Matt Onsum

Head of AI/ML at Calico

How Advances in ML/AI are Enabling an Unprecedented View of Aging and Aging Related Disease, and the Impact this Will have on Drug Discovery

Matt leads the development and application of advanced computing capabilities — including computational biology, data science, and machine learning — to accelerate Calico’s ability to make new scientific discoveries and translate them into novel therapeutics.

Dr. Catherine Sanderson

The Myth of the Happy Person

Dr. Catherine Sanderson, the Poler Family Professor of Psychology at Amherst College with degrees from Princeton and Stanford, is a sought-after keynote speaker and author whose talks translate cutting-edge psychological science into practical strategies for thriving at work and in life.

Author of The Positive Shift and Why We Act and creator of the popular Introduction to Psychology course for The Great Courses, Catherine delivers research-based keynotes on happiness, mindset, emotional intelligence, and moral courage — helping leaders, educators, and organizations create lasting change.

Professor of Psychology at Amherst College

Jean Hebert

Program Manager, Health Science Features, ARPA-H

Since childhood, Dr. Jean Hebert has been interested in understanding how our bodies work and how to repair them. Hebert joined ARPA-H in August 2024 from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine where he served as a professor of genetics and neuroscience. Hebert is the founder of BE Therapeutics, a company focused on reversing age-related damage to brain tissue. His laboratory research focuses on stem cell transplantation, plasticity, neurodegeneration, and cortical health. Hebert the author of the book Replacing Aging, and much more.

Leroy Hood

Stephanie Soetendal

Tech Founder and Ethical AI Strategist

The Soul of the Machine: Building AI Technology for the Highest Frequency of Who we are

Stephanie Soetendal is a 3X tech founder, C-level executive, and ethical AI strategist dedicated to pioneering systems that preserve human intellect and elevate human consciousness.

Currently leading an AI venture in stealth mode, she previously founded Matrix Holograms, a Boston-based EdTech startup- a MassChallenge-IBM spinoff and IBM partner. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post and CBS News, recognized by MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Labs (CSAIL) and the MIT-IBM AI Research Labs, and she was named a US Finalist for the UN AI for Good initiative in Geneva, Switzerland.

A global keynote speaker and interviewee (Davos 2023, SABF 2025, TEDx 2026) and Speaker and Entrepreneurship Mentor for Latinas in Tech, Stephanie is currently a Master’s candidate at the University of Buenos Aires, where her research bridges critical pedagogy and AI sovereignty. She will return to the World Economic Forum in January 2027.

Scientist and Inventor

Dr. Leroy Hood is a pioneering scientist and co-inventor of the automated DNA sequencer — technology that helped make the Human Genome Project possible. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and National Academy of Medicine (one of the few scientists elected to all three), Dr. Hood has spent his career championing "P4 Medicine" — predictive, preventive, personalized, and participatory healthcare. He co-founded the Institute for Systems Biology and has played a central role in shaping how modern medicine understands the human body at the molecular level.

Jake Auchincloss

Massachusetts Representative

Jake Auchincloss represents Massachusetts's 4th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. A former Marine Corps officer who served in Afghanistan and Panama, he later worked in local government in Newton, MA before being elected to Congress. Known for a pragmatic, policy-driven approach, Rep. Auchincloss focuses on issues ranging from economic competitiveness to national security.

Louise Hecker

Clinical Associate Professor at Baylor College of Medicine

Psilocybin can extend cellular lifespan and improve markers of aging.

Louise Hecker observed that psilocybin extended cellular lifespan and improved markers tied to aging. Treated cells maintained longer telomeres, reduced oxidative stress, and better DNA repair compared to untreated controls.

Toni Bergins

Toni Bergins is the creator of JourneyDance™, a free-form movement practice that blends dance, storytelling, ritual, and breath work to help people release emotional blocks and reconnect with their bodies. A pioneer in the conscious dance and movement therapy world, Toni has led workshops, retreats, and trainings internationally, guiding thousands through embodied healing and self-expression. Her work sits at the intersection of dance, psychology, and spirituality — inviting people to move through life's stuck places and dance their way home to themselves.