/ Management & Board

Leadership & Governance

Operators and investors whose networks reach directly into the markets this SPAC intends to pursue: space, health & longevity, AI infrastructure and financial services.

Management

4 Executives

  • David Nikzad

    Chairman & CEO

    • Chairman & President, Orthogonal Thinker, Inc. (since 2016)
    • Head of Capital Markets, Block Street Corp. & World Mobile Token
    • Investor in Y Combinator companies since 2009, including early investments in Wefunder, and first investor in Betterment and others

    Market connection

    Portfolio spans digital assets, AI, clean energy & aerospace: Betterment, Block Street, World Mobile, Cloud3

  • Terence Papadacos

    CFO · Director

    • CEO, Aquifer CFO (since 2026); COO & accounting roles since 2023
    • Independent accounting consultant, Toronto CPA firms
    • Audit & cross-border taxation specialist

    Market connection

    Public-company finance across the target operating sectors

  • Jason A. Hobson

    CSO · Director

    • Officer & Director, Orthogonal Thinker, Inc. (since 2017)
    • Founding Partner, Hobson Bernardino + Davis LLP
    • Former senior attorney, Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman

    Market connection

    Deal structuring & governance across the OT venture portfolio

  • Mona Coyle

    COO · Director

    • COO, Quantum Vision Holdings (since 2025)
    • Exec Officer, Orthogonal Thinker & Director, Cloud3 Ventures
    • Co-founder & VP of Operations, private healthcare company

    Market connection

    Operating reach across health, longevity, AI & digital assets, plus public-company execution

Board of Directors · All Independent

5 Directors

  • Matthew Morgan

    Director

    • CEO & Director, Block Street Corp. (since 2025)
    • Global Head of Vision, AI Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: AIFC)
    • 16+ yrs founding & scaling companies

    Market connection

    Digital assets, AI fintech & energy (Block Street, AI Financial Corp.)

  • Derek Peterson

    Director

    • Chief Strategist, AI Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: AIFC)
    • Former CEO & Director, ROAM Agricultural (ag-tech)
    • Former Chairman/CEO, Terra Tech Corp.

    Market connection

    AI in the real economy; ag-tech & public markets (Terra Tech)

  • David Pinkowitz

    Director

    • COO, Pinz Capital; Interim CFO, Kovo+ Holdings
    • Former COO, AnPac Bio-Medical (2020 Nasdaq listing)
    • Earlier: JPMorgan Chase; B.A., Brown

    Market connection

    Biotech & capital markets (AnPac Bio-Medical Nasdaq listing)

  • Jack Rentz

    Director

    • Board-certified anesthesiologist & pain specialist
    • Owner & Operator, Denver Diagnostic Pain (since 2016)
    • Director, Cloud3 Ventures, Inc.

    Market connection

    Health, longevity & medicine (practicing clinical operator)

  • Jeffrey Volshteyn

    Director

    • Partner, Erda Capital Management (since 2017)
    • Venture Partner, Pheonix-5 (PE/VC); Advisor, JHD Technologies
    • B.S. Engineering, Missouri; MBA, Columbia

    Market connection

    Venture & private-equity reach across growth markets

Orthogonal Thinker Acquisition Corp. · NASDAQ: ORTHU · STRICTLY PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL