April 15, 2026
Meet our workshop hosts - Part 1
Here are some of our workshophosts of Upstream 2026
He is a business leader focused on delivering results through innovative and differentiated go-to-market initiatives, while empowering people and teams to do the best work of their lives. Currently he is passionate about making Embion EMS successful in his role as CCO and about RE-liON’s international expansion in his role as Chairman of the Board. On the side he does growth work, scale-up coaching and advisory work. Throughout his career he has held executive leadership roles in technology companies, led a publicly listed company and founded and scaled a Start-Up company to more than 500 employees operating in the US, Europe, Vietnam and China.
Based in Rotterdam, Nina Orlić is counsel at Windt Le Grand Leeuwenburgh, specializing in privacy/GDPR and cybersecurity law. Her clients include major tech companies, large multinationals, consortia, investors, private equity and start-ups in the tech, e-health, fintech and energy sectors. Her practice includes advisory work on (corporate) data governance and compliance, digital regulation, data-risk management, data sharing, and supports clients various in data breaches, regulatory investigations and civil liability. She is known and valued by clients for pragmatic, business-first guidance. Legal 500 recognizes her as a Leading Associate in this field the Netherlands (2023 and 2025).
He is a serial entrepreneur focused on building innovative products, scaling companies, and strong teams. His journey began in 2013 with Poopy Cat, which expanded to 18 countries and was acquired in 2017. He later founded BlueBottle Ventures, investing in early stage startups. In 2021 he became CEO of Tellow, transforming the Rabobank spin off into a fast growing fintech before its integration into Shine (formerly Ageras), where he served as Chief Revenue Officer responsible for commercial and operational activities. In 2024 he founded GoDutch, a fintech platform for SMEs that automates financial operations and reduces admin so entrepreneurs can focus on growth.
He is a team psychologist and founder of emaho. He works with founders, leadership teams, and investors (before they invest in a team) on understanding what really drives growth in startups and what holds it back. His focus is on team dynamics, decision-making, and collaboration. He combines psychological insight with hands-on experience, helping teams move faster with more clarity, ownership, and trust.
Maud is a VC investor at Golden Egg Check, investing in pre-seed and seed B2B software startups. She combines founder support with an active role in investment decision-making, working closely with founders on fundraising, positioning, and early go-to-market. Alongside investing, she actively connects founders and investors across the European VC ecosystem through Golden Egg Check, her board role at Women in VC NL, and her position on the Investment Committee of AtVenture Platform. Known for her transparent and approachable style, Maud enjoys bridging the gap between founders and investors.