As head of studio at Citi Ventures, Valla Vakili leads his team to leverage data, design, and partnerships to create new growth opportunities for people, businesses, and cities. Previously, Valla helped create the D10X accelerator program as the first entrepreneur in residence, mentoring Citi teams in entrepreneurial principles to help them reimagine consumer financial services.Valla began his career at Yahoo, where he created revenue-driving products and teams that anticipated shifting online customer behavior. His experience as a former digital startup founder gave him valuable insight into the peaks and valleys of entrepreneurship.A graduate of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, Valla has conducted doctoral research at the University of Oxford and holds patents for inventions in interactive television content delivery and commerce. He also is a fan of fine whisky, great fiction, and good movies.