Cherry Rose Tan

In a world where technology evolves at lightning speed and market pressures never stop, leaders are expected to navigate uncertainty, inspire teams, and innovate relentlessly… without burning out. The challenges are real: economic volatility, talent shortages, and constant disruption can leave even seasoned leaders feeling overwhelmed.

Fifth-generation entrepreneur and venture capitalist Cherry Rose Tan brings her experience coaching over 300 startups and executive teams to share the mindset, heartset, and skillset leaders need to not just survive (but thrive!) in the game of innovation. Using real-world examples and actionable strategies, she equips leaders with tools to future-proof their organizations while cultivating resilience across their teams.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams facing rapid technological and market change, leading AI, innovation, or digital transformation amid resistance or low morale, and struggling to recruit, retain, and inspire top talent, while building a culture of innovation and accountability that scales.

The audience will leave with a shared language to address stressors and challenges before they escalate or derail your team, a practical 3-part leadership model to navigate change and uncertainty, and the energy, confidence, and clarity to take bold action toward an innovative, future-ready culture.

AI is no longer coming. It’s here: making decisions, creating content, replacing workflows, and redefining what it means to lead and to compete. The question is no longer, “Should we use AI?” but “Who will we become because of it?” Organizations that embrace this moment are unlocking unprecedented speed, intelligence, and scale. Those that don’t risk becoming irrelevant faster than they ever thought possible.

In this electrifying keynote, serial tech founder Cherry Rose Tan pulls back the curtain on what’s actually happening in AI and what matters. From generative AI like Lovable to agentic AI like OpenClaw, many of these tools can execute entire workflows without human intervention. Cherry Rose Tan reveals the three ways AI can help you create, work, and lead, so you can accelerate your business and your leadership in these changing times.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams overwhelmed by AI and looking for an expert to show where the opportunities and distractions are, wanting to move beyond experimentation to create real competitive advantage, and experiencing massive industry or business disruption, and feeling the pressure to act now and to act decisively.

The audience will leave with a practical framework of the types of AI out there, plus the opportunities that each of them can unlock for your specific industry, the inspiration, energy, and clarity to tackle AI head-on as an organization, and real-life case studies to translate this conversation from theory to practice and empower immediate application.

In today’s world, standing out isn’t optional: it’s essential. 90% of opportunities go to 10% of people, so if people don’t know who you are, you’re not even in the running. In this tactical keynote, celebrated podcast host and movement builder Cherry Rose Tan shows how to move beyond being “good at what you do” to being visible, memorable, and the obvious choice when opportunities arise.

Through actionable strategies and behind-the-scenes content, explore the power of narrative, presence, and visibility to craft a personal brand that reflects your unique value. This keynote addresses questions like, “What makes your voice distinct? How do you consistently share in a way that aligns with your goals?” Learn to activate thought leadership and turn your personal brand into a tool for opportunity, influence, and sales.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams seeking to stand out, while having clarity on their unique value and expertise, guiding themselves and their teams in building authentic, memorable personal brands that drive business, and facing confusion on the platforms, formats, and content buckets to express their thought leadership.

The audience will leave with a personal branding blueprint they can start implementing immediately, including my tech stack for static, audio, and video content, precision on your narrative and value proposition, so you can communicate who you are and why it matters with any setting and any stakeholder, and confidence to own your story, be seen, and become the option everyone remembers.

How might we use AI as a vehicle for good? AI is reshaping every industry and every profession, where human-first (ethical) leadership has never mattered more. Many organizations face concerns around bias, transparency, privacy, and accountability, as AI adoption occurs faster than we can regulate it. In a world where data and decisions move quickly, the true differentiator is not AI itself, but the human being guiding it.

In this keynote, social entrepreneurship professor and tech founder Cherry Rose Tan invites audiences to rethink AI through a Human First lens: where our AI strategy and decisions are grounded in integrity, innovation, and impact. Rather than offering a single “right” answer, Tan will empower your people to become stewards of AI because after all, the real question isn’t what AI can do… it’s how we choose to use it.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams navigating uncertainty and apprehension around AI, as employees balance technological possibility with human responsibility, aiming to innovate without compromising ethics, trust, or long-term impact, and committed to empowering their people to use AI confidently, creatively, and responsibly.

The audience will leave with a clear Human First framework to guide ethical and strategic AI adoption, a renewed sense of agency, where each individual embraces their role as stewards (not just users) of AI, and inspiration and confidence to use AI as a vehicle for meaningful innovation and impact.

During a time where uncertainty, pressure, and change are constant, resilience isn’t a luxury: it’s a daily imperative. Cherry Rose Tan has spent the last 15 years answering this question, culminating in her company #REALTALK, the mental health movement for the tech industry. She has worked with over 45,000 leaders across 27 industries, helping teams build the mental and emotional strength to lead their organizations.

Drawing on personal experience and leadership insight, this keynote shares a practical, three-level approach to building resilience and mental health at scale: Me, You, and Us. Walk away with real practices that make resilience something you live and take action on each day. In today’s fast-paced, high-pressure world, knowing how to stand tall after every setback is what separates teams that survive from those that thrive.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams experiencing high levels of burnout, change rage, or quiet quitting, facing employee turnover or absenteeism, leading to costly talent and HR practices, and searching to increase psychological capacity and personal productivity, as employees deal with significant stress and change.

The audience will leave with a shared and approachable language for talking about Workplace Mental Health and emotional resilience, a safe space or first step, so that organizations can build on this momentum and trust, and resilience habits that drive measurable impact on engagement, collaboration, and business results.

What does it take to be in the top 1% of your field? Whether you are building a business, leading a team, or climbing the corporate ladder, all professionals aspire to reach their highest level of performance. As a Filipino-Chinese woman who carved her own path as a CEO, Cherry Rose Tan’s success represents less than 1% of tech founders. Her experience in male-dominated industries like tech and academia provides insight into what it takes to excel.

In this inspiring and interactive session, Cherry Rose Tan guides audiences through her signature Seasons of Success™ framework: a roadmap for navigating the cycles of career development that every professional experiences. Through real-world stories and stage-specific strategies, participants learn to identify where they are, what they need, and how to perform effectively within their current season, so that they can maximize their potential and results each day. Grounded in real-life stories, she brings two decades of entrepreneurial experience, along with lessons learned from 140 years of entrepreneurship in her family.

This keynote is perfect for leaders and teams aware of the need to cultivate their organization’s future leaders and successors, searching for clarity, confidence, and actionable strategies for career advancement, and seeking examples of leadership and success from diverse and decolonized perspectives, while welcoming both women and allies.

The audience will leave with a clear understanding of your current career season (surviving, thriving, or giving), and the strategies that work best at each stage, a real-life perspective on what it takes to be a powerhouse leader, plus the habits used by world-class founders and entrepreneurs to excel, and an exciting and welcoming way of investing into inclusive leadership or voices.

What happens when insight meets intimacy? Bring Cherry Rose Tan as your Fireside or Event MC, where she can move your audience from passive listening into meaningful, thought-provoking dialogue. Formerly the Top 14 podcast host of #REALTALK, she understands the importance of a great fireside chat or panel, which draws out the best moments, stories, and takeaways from the leader(s) being showcased.

Far too often, a fireside chat or panel can be seen as filler. With the rare combination of being a tech founder, venture capitalist, and keynote speaker, she challenges this notion by bringing depth and business acumen to these conversations. Having interviewed billionaire CEOs to TV personalities, she knows how to ask the questions that others do not. This is not fluff. This is substance, delivered with presence, care, and real-world credibility.

Note: The Fireside Experience is customized to your outcomes and is a great way to energize your event and your people. It can be used to spotlight a leader (e.g. VP, CEO) in your organization, by showcasing their vision, strategy, or expertise.

This fireside is perfect for leaders and teams looking to spice up their event experience, while driving tangible results, seeking to engage audiences through authentic conversations with top-tier leaders and thinkers, and wanting to extract real, actionable insights from featured speakers, not just surface-level storytelling.

The audience will leave with a deeper understanding of how top leaders think, decide, and execute, practical takeaways they can apply immediately in their day-to-day work, and moments that encourage people to lean in, renewing a sense of possibility, curiosity, and hope in their own potential and of their organization’s.

What does the rapid evolution of AI mean for your industry—and where are we headed next?

Cherry Rose Tan opens this dynamic session with a powerful 10–15 minute mini-keynote exploring the current state of AI, the shifts already underway, and what leaders need to consider as we move into the next era of work and business.

She then brings the conversation directly into your world, moderating a customized panel featuring leaders selected by your organization. Ahead of the event, Cherry Rose Tan gets to know the panelists, understands your organization’s goals, and strategically designs the questions to uncover meaningful insights—not just surface-level discussion.

The result is a highly relevant, engaging experience that combines big-picture AI expertise with the real-world perspectives, challenges and opportunities unique to your industry.

Part keynote. Part conversation. Completely customized to your audience.