THE UNICORN TEAM
ERIN MOTE | CEO
Erin Mote is the CEO and Founder of InnovateEDU and co-founder of Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools (LAB). She leads InnovateEDU and its major projects including the development of Cortex, work on data interoperability, an urban education Fellowship to diversify the teacher pipeline, and supports for LAB's growth. Her work spans private sector collaborations and groundbreaking initiatives with Intel, Cisco, Google, and Mozilla, as well as work with leading US government technology partnerships. Erin served as the founding Chief of Party for the USAID Global Broadband and Innovations Alliance and has worked on numerous projects with the US Department of State and the White House. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband Eric, her son Robert, and her daughter Clare and bleeds maize and blue as a graduate of the University of Michigan.
HARSHVARDHAN UPADHYAYA| Project Associate
Harshvardhan Upadhyaya is a Project Associate for the Technology Portfolio at InnovateEDU. In this role, he will support cross-sector coalitions focused on education research, workforce readiness, and responsible AI in education. He is a recent graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he earned his Master's in Educational Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship.
Harshvardhan previously led product initiatives and has hands-on experience in developing AI-powered digital humans for Higher Ed applications. He also supports over 900 educators through the Mark Cuban Foundation in building AI agency and helping education leaders with systems thinking approaches to AI policy. Harshvardhan is passionate about creating meaningful impact at the intersection of education policy and technological innovation for learners everywhere.