Lunar Accel

Lunar Accel is thrilled to announce the appointment of Samantha Choi Cadley as the newest member of our Board of Directors! Sam is the founder and CEO of Manual Labor Studio, and brings over 25 years of marketing, strategy, and branding experience across consumer and business-to-business to Lunar Accel, having previously held leadership roles at brands like Classic Car Club and Ralph Lauren. Beyond her role at Manual Labor, Sam—an immigrant from Korea—is a vocal advocate for representation in advertising leadership. At the 2025 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the world’s most prestigious global event for advertising, marketing, and creative communications, she hosted an independent panel emphasizing the importance of inclusivity to accelerate creativity and innovation. In a recent Ad Age article, she explains: “[W]hen diverse creatives are empowered to lead, they build differently. They challenge assumptions. They identify blind spots.” We’re excited to welcome an accomplished creative leader to our Board of Directors and can’t wait to accelerate Lunar Accel’s growth and impact with Sam on board! Check out the full official press release on The Associated Press for more: https://lnkd.in/e24Zwziu -- Associate Board: Amanda Xu Jasper Huang Lydia Kim Grace Zhou Nicholas F. Donna Li Jessica Peng Carolyn Chen James Wang Meghan Chung Amy Jin Jessica Sun Kelly Han Board of Directors: Daniel Sheng Jason 🧠 Shen Jean Sonia Lee

The last several years have seen some incredible progress for the AAPI community - led by trailblazing groups like Gold House, The Asian American Foundation, and Ascend - and ecosystem builders like Dave Lu, Bing Chen, and Deborah Liu. Yet our founders Jasper Huang and Amanda Xu still felt that there was a gap in cohesive programming and guidance at the earliest career stages for East/Southeast Asian Americans. That's why we built our flagship 6-week career accelerator program, designed for early-career folks who want to have an outsized long-term impact, but make a bold career move NOW. Here's what our 2025 program looked like in pictures: 🎙️ Keynote with Katie Soo, COO of DICE ($200M raised, acq. by Fever), moderated by Soy K., Head of North America, Music & Podcasts Content Strategy at YouTube 🎓 Mentor panel on self-promotion, feat. Steven Chen (Head of Product at Rocketbook), Julie Chang (Chief of Staff at Iterative Health), Sonya Khan (Sr. Product Manager at Chime), and Alexander Sultan (Sr. Manager at West Monroe). 🥘 Intimate founder's fireside chat with Michelle Tew, Founder & CEO of Southeast Asian pantry brand Homiah, moderated by Frank Zheng 🤝 Fellow micro-retreat, speed networking, article workshops, and social pop-ups Our programs now boast 200+ alumni and 90%+ of fellows say joining has helped strengthen their conviction and clarity around their next promotion, pivot, and/or entrepreneurial ambitions. If this sounds like something you want to be a part of, we want to hear from you in our Associate Board application, or tag a friend who should. 🔗 Learn more and apply by Sunday, August 10th: https://lnkd.in/e-ZPW_YA Join us as we build the next-gen East/Southeast Asian American leadership network 🚀

Lunar Accel is seeking mission-driven individuals for our Associate Board (AB) in New York City! This is a high-visibility and impact role spanning corporate + grassroots initiatives to accelerate the path to AAPI leadership, all while planning and attending awesome events. Why join? 🤝 Join a highly motivated team on our mission to shatter the ceilings for East and Southeast Asian American leadership in corporate America 👑 Develop visibility amongst a high-profile network – including F500 execs (Gap, YouTube), Michelin Star restaurants (Cote Korean Steakhouse, Sixty Three Clinton), unicorn founders (Boxed), and rising AAPI brands (Lunar Hard Seltzer, Sanzo, M.M.LaFleur) 🚀 Help plan awesome, high-visibility events – e.g., keynote with Alex Chang, first/former CMO of the San Francisco 49ers, Gold House x Shopify x Lunar Accel panel, and casual Mahjong nights with Green Tile Social Club 🎓 Mentor pairing from within the Lunar Accel network (e.g., past speakers, mentors, advisors) 🔥 Top-tier swag collabs with premium (AAPI-founded) brands (think Dagne Dover, Lo & Sons) 🏠 Meet lifelong friends and mentors who are here to support you throughout your career! Roles we're looking for: ✅ Vice President, Head of Partnerships – Own sponsorship and partnership development across F500s, foundations, nonprofits, and other industry partners + shape our impact narrative ✅ Head of Programming – Own the end-to-end production of our highest-visibility keynote speaker events ✅ Head of Content (x2) – 10x our reach with a high-volume, "always-on" content strategy across our socials ✅ Social Chair (non-AB) – Plan social events as an alumni Interested or know someone who might be a good fit? 🔗 Learn more and apply by Sunday, August 10th: https://lnkd.in/e-ZPW_YA Join us as we build the next-gen AAPI leadership network 🚀 ---- Associate Board Jasper Huang Amanda Xu Lydia Kim Grace Zhou Jessica Peng James Wang Carolyn Chen Vivian Chiang Nicholas F. Donna Li Board of Directors Daniel Sheng Jason 🧠 Shen Jean Sonia Lee Samantha Choi Cadley

Lunar Accel is excited to kick off programming for AAPI Heritage Month with a fireside chat on Saturday, May 17th - please see below for details and RSVP if interested. 🚀 5/17 Afternoon Fireside Chat with Jeff Zhifan Chen | Exact Time & Location TBD We are hosting a fireside chat in the afternoon of Saturday, May 17th with Jeff Zhifan Chen - Founder and CTO of Pixlee (acquired), Leading engineering @ Traba (Series A). There will also be a social hour after the chat with drinks and light bites. If you are interested in attending, please fill out the non-binding interest form here: https://lnkd.in/eT95_6nn Quick preview on Jeff’s career: 👨💻 Jeff was the youngest production engineer ever hired at Facebook back in 2012, upon graduating MIT ⚙️ He quit 5 months later at the height of Facebook's success to build his own company 📈 He was co-founder and CTO of Pixlee (a16z backed), leading the company for 10 years to a successful acquisition in 2022 📍 Jeff is now leading engineering at Traba, a series-A supply chain startup backed by Founders Fund and Khosla Ventures Jeff is being interviewed by James Chen, who describes him as "brilliant and a force of nature" — but most importantly, incredibly humble and wonderful to work with. Highly recommended if you're interested in starting your own venture, joining a startup, or generally interested in hearing from someone who has taken a rather unconventional path. This event will be a more intimate fireside chat.

Join the Asian American professional community at Lunar Accel's Spring 2025 Accelerator Closing Keynote for a special conversation with Katie Soo, COO of DICE on Saturday April 26th from 3:30-6:30pm in NYC! Hear from Katie on how she: 🚀Started her career in tech, playing a pivotal role in transforming Dollar Shave Club into a trailblazing direct-to-consumer unicorn of its time  🎬Has built a successful career in the media & entertainment industry, and worked at iconic brands such as HBO Max, Hulu, Warner Bros. Digital Networks, and the DC Universe 🌟Champions AAPI leadership through serving as Chairman of the Asia Society Southern California's Board, as a founding member of Gold House Gold Women initiative, and as co-founder of the Asian Women Empowered initiative focused on advancing AAPI women in leadership 🎟Limited tickets are available here! https://lnkd.in/eCMw3snp The event will be moderated by Soy K., Head of North America of Music and Podcasts Content Strategy at YouTube. As a marketing executive, Soy has developed industry record-breaking, multi-platinum campaigns for artists including BTS, Chloe x Halle, Baby Keem, and John Legend through her past experiences at Spotify, Columbia Records, CJ ENM ENTERTAINMENT DIV. and independent hip hop labels in NYC and Seoul. Soy is passionate about giving back and serves as a mentor for the The Recording Academy’s GRAMMYU program, the national non-profit Asian American Collective, and YouTube’s Music & Premium product and engineering org. She also led global programming to drive inclusion and community for Spotify’s API ERG and also serves on the non-profit board for Street Soccer USA. - About Lunar Accel: Lunar Accel is the first-of-its-kind nonprofit career accelerator and community of ambitious, early-career East and Southeast Asian American professionals who want to have an outsized impact on the world by becoming the next generation of executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, community organizers, and change makers. Lunar Accel, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization incorporated in the state of New York. All contributions are tax-deductible for income, gift, and estate taxes. Leadership Team: Jasper Huang Amanda Xu Grace Zhou Lydia Kim Carolyn Chen Vivian Chiang Jessica Peng James Wang Donna Li Nicholas F. Meghan Chung Amy Jin Board: Jason 🧠 Shen Daniel Sheng Jean Sonia Lee #lunaraccel #professionaldevelopment #career #asianamerican #aapi #nycspeakerevents #nycevents #mediaandentertainment #marketing

🏈 One week left until we *kick off* our Spring 2025 Accelerator with an Opening Keynote ft. Alex Chang of the San Francisco 49ers! Limited tickets available here: https://lnkd.in/eaDYnNy6

📣 Get tickets today for our S'25 Opening Keynote ft. Alex Chang, Senior Advisor and former/first CMO of the San Francisco 49ers! Join us on Sunday March 23rd 2:30-5pm for this special in-person event in NYC as Alex shares with attendees how he: 💼 Started his career at EY before rising through the ranks at American Express, becoming vice president of sports and entertainment marketing 🏈 Became a trailblazer as the first-ever CMO of the San Francisco 49ers—and as one of the very few Asian American pro sports executives—where he led the “Faithful to the Bay” campaign among others 🙌 Gives back to the community as a board member at Pro Sports Assembly, a non-profit promoting diversity and inclusion across pro sports The event will be moderated by William Mao, SVP of Global Media Rights at Octagon. 🎟 Limited tickets are available at the link here: https://lnkd.in/eaDYnNy6 — Get to know our speaker and moderator in their bios below: Alex Chang is the Sr. Advisor to the President of the 49ers and previously served as the team’s first CMO. In addition to leading major marketing initiatives, including the "Faithful to The Bay" campaign and the return of the '94 red throwback jerseys, he also secured global marketing rights in Mexico and the UK and played a key role in bringing the 2026 FIFA World Cup and Super Bowl LX to the Bay Area. Alex previously has held leadership roles at Samsung Electronics, Wasserman, IMG, and American Express. He has been recognized with awards from ADWEEK, Gold House A100, Sports Business Journal, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. William Mao is the SVP of Octagon Global Media Rights Consulting, advising on over $26 billion in media rights deals for major sports organizations. With nearly two decades of experience, he has worked with global rightsholders, media platforms, and technology companies, including FIFA, French Ligue 1, and Italian Serie A, as well as major sports properties like the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, and the National Women’s Soccer League. Previously, Mao was VP of Digital at MP & Silva and Head of College Sports at YouTube. - About Lunar Accel: Lunar Accel is the first-of-its-kind nonprofit career accelerator and community of ambitious, early-career East and Southeast Asian American professionals who want to have an outsized impact on the world by becoming the next generation of executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, community organizers, and changemakers. Lunar Accel, Inc. is recognized as a tax-exempt public charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 92-1538184). Contributions to Lunar Accel, Inc. are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. Jasper Huang Amanda Xu Grace Zhou Lydia Kim Carolyn Chen Vivian Chiang Jessica Peng James Wang Donna Li Nicholas F. Meghan Chung Amy Jin Board: Jason 🧠 Shen Daniel Sheng Jean Sonia Lee #aapi #career #mentorship #nyc #leadership #asianamerican #careerdevelopment

Our career accelerators would not be possible without our incredible mentors, who have walked the walk and talked the talk on AAPI leadership in the workplace and beyond. Check out these testimonials from some of our past and current mentors, and what Lunar Accel means to them! 🤝 Jason Wang, Executive Director, Private Wealth Management @ Morgan Stanley 🤝 Jean Sonia Lee, Product & Strategy Leader @ Google / Google DeepMind & Member Board of Directors @ Lunar Accel 🤝 Andrew Lim, Co-Founder & Co-CEO @ Holden Jewelry 🤝 Katie Wei, Venture Partner @ Bay Street Hospitality Want to join us? Apps open for our Spring 2025 cohort NOW until Sunday, Feb 2nd midnight. Apply as a fellow (<6 YOE): https://lnkd.in/eHUUUvTt Apply as a mentor (10+ YOE): https://lnkd.in/eMWxYQYe ------- About Lunar Accel: Lunar Accel is the premier nonprofit leadership development program for the next generation of East & Southeast Asian American executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, community organizers, and changemakers. Our previous guests have included Patrick Lee (Rotten Tomatoes), Sandro Roco (Sanzo Sparkling Water), Sarah Miyazawa LaFleur (M.M.LaFleur), Chieh Huang (Boxed, NYSE: BOXD), Charles Huang (Guitar Hero), Sean Ro (Lunar Hard Seltzer), Amelie Kang (Mala Project), Daniel Chang (VP of M&A, AmEx Global Business Travel), and more. Lunar Accel, Inc. is recognized as a tax-exempt public charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 92-1538184). Contributions to Lunar Accel, Inc. are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

🗣️ SPRING ’25 CAREER ACCELERATOR APPS OPEN NOW 🗣️ In 2018, Harvard Business Review reported that Asian Americans remain the least likely demographic to be promoted to corporate leadership. That’s why we built the first-of-its-kind Career Accelerator, designed for highly motivated early-career East/Southeast Asian American professionals based in NYC. Apply today to join our Spring 2025 cohort from March 21 to April 26, featuring: 🏈 Keynote with Alex Chang, former and first ever CMO of the San Francisco 49ers 🎲 Keynote with Katie Soo, COO of DICE 🌶️  Fireside Chat with Michelle Tew, Founder & CEO of Homiah, America’s First Southeast Asian “Nonya” pantry 🤝 Personalized mentorship from mid-career mentors, ranging from directors at Fortune 500s to bootstrapped 8-figure founders ✏️ Career workshops and panels on topics like unblocking cultural barriers and entrepreneurship 🥂 Community-building events in the city! Apps open NOW for fellows and mentors until Sunday, February 2, 2025 at 11:59 pm ET. Learn more and apply today: https://lnkd.in/gRvmTfzC Reach out to hello@lunaraccel.org with any questions! ------- About Lunar Accel: Lunar Accel is the premier nonprofit leadership development program for the next generation of East & Southeast Asian American executives, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, community organizers, and changemakers. Our previous guests have included Patrick Lee (Rotten Tomatoes), Sandro Roco (Sanzo Sparkling Water), Sarah Miyazawa LaFleur (M.M.LaFleur), Chieh Huang (Boxed, NYSE: BOXD), Charles Huang (Guitar Hero), Sean Ro (Lunar Hard Seltzer), Amelie Kang (Mala Project), Daniel Chang (VP of M&A, AmEx Global Business Travel), and more. Lunar Accel, Inc. is recognized as a tax-exempt public charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 92-1538184). Contributions to Lunar Accel, Inc. are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. ------- THANK YOU to our team Amanda Xu Jasper Huang Meghan Chung Grace Zhou Lydia Kim James Wang Jessica Peng Amy Jin Nicholas F. Donna Li Carolyn Chen Vivian Chiang THANK YOU to our Board of Directors Jason 🧠 Shen Jean Sonia Lee Daniel Sheng

📣 BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: Lunar Accel is partnering with Dalglish Chew and Christie Lin to launch our inaugural Leadership Development Track - our first national program! Learn more at lunaraccel.org/coaching This is a 3 month program unlike anything we’ve seen offered elsewhere, designed to tailor the benefits of leadership coaching typically undergone by executives and founders for early- and mid- career AAPI professionals. Through our program, you will   📚 Gain clarity on your strengths, blindspots, and career aspirations 🧠 Develop emotional agility to effectively self-advocate and navigate difficult conversations 🚀 Understand how Asian cultural tendencies shape your ability to lead yourself and others 💛 Become part of a community of like-minded, ambitious individuals  🎟️ Gain priority access to Lunar Accel events, including exclusive fireside chats, small-group industry founder and executive dinners, happy hours, karaokes, potlucks, and more 📚 Program Highlights - Tailored for early- to mid-career East and Southeast Asian professionals - 3-month program consisting of 5 live 90-minute sessions from Jan 15 - Mar 12, 2025 - Every other Wednesday at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT  🌐 Eligibility Open to early- to mid- career East and Southeast Asian professionals nationwide 🔗 Register by Dec 6: https://lnkd.in/em2x5kPk There are limited spots available in order to make sure each participant receives personalized feedback and support in small group sessions from both coaches. Email coaching@lunaraccel.org for a 15 minute chat with our coaches to learn more about how this program could serve you personally.