Socati CEO and leadership

As CEO of Socati, Josh is the visionary behind the company’s innovation-based mission. His success in the venture capital and cannabis industries drives his desire to deliver safe, quality CBD products to the market. He was previously the president and COO of Nuvera, an international cannabis company which sold for $826 million in 2018. Prior to that, he was a partner with FastForward Innovations, an early stage venture capital firm investing globally in the healthcare, biotech, cannabis and gaming sectors. There he oversaw investments and divestitures of the firm’s portfolio companies in the U.S. and around the globe. He also previously practiced law with the international law firm Baker Botts, where he focused on venture capital, mergers and acquisitions and private and public securities offerings. Josh is an advocate for sensible regulation of the hemp industry to ensure the delivery of safe, quality cannabinoid products to market and to stimulate industry growth. He was recently invited to address an advisory panel at the U.S Food and Drug Administration’s first ever public hearing on cannabis and cannabis-derived products. Josh earned a J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law, where he graduated with honors as a member of the Texas Law Review. He also holds an MBA in entrepreneurship from the Acton School of Business, where he was class Valedictorian. He resides in Austin, TX.

Mr. Brian Goldberg was formerly Chief Financial Officer, Chief Strategy Officer & Executive Vice President of Corporate Development of Amplify Snack Brands, Inc. (TA Associates portfolio company) from company formation in 2014 through successful exit to The Hershey Company in 2018 for ~$1.7B+. Mr. Goldberg led an Initial Public Offering of Amplify in 2015 and completed multiple M&A transactions throughout tenure. Mr. Goldberg was previously Chief Financial Officer at Badlands Power Fuels, LLC through successful exit to Heckmann Corporation in 2012 and served as the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer at Sweet Leaf Tea Company (LCatterton portfolio company) through successful exit to Nestle in 2011. Earlier in his career, he worked at New Capital Partners, a private equity firm, and served in financial planning and strategy roles at Pfizer and international corporate tax planning roles at Ernst & Young. He has been a director, advisory board member and/or investor in many high growth CPG companies including Deep Eddy Vodka (sold to Heaven Hill in 2015), High Brew Coffee, Waterloo Sparkling Water, Epic Provisions (successful exit to General Mills), and Kettle & Fire. He is also Co-Founder and Managing Director of Capstream Group, an investment bank based in Austin. Mr. Goldberg holds a Bachelor of Science in Management with a major in accounting from Tulane University, a Master of Accountancy with an emphasis in taxation from the University of Georgia and a Master of Business Administration from The Darden School at The University of Virginia. He is on the board of Naturally Austin, the Austin chapter of JDRF, and the Dean’s Business Council at Tulane University, and is a major contributor to the Friends of Austin City Limits. Mr. Goldberg resides in Austin, TX with his wife and three sons.

As Chief Revenue Officer at Socati, Mark oversees the company’s sales and marketing functions, building on more than 20 years of experience leading rapidly growing companies in new emerging industries. Mark has previously served as chief revenue officer, president or CEO of five publicly traded companies, which combined raised financing in excess of $1 billion. He was most recently chief revenue officer at Sentient Technologies, which raised nearly $150 million, the largest sum at the time for an artificial intelligence (AI) company. Prior to that, Mark was president and CEO of Slyce Technologies, where he led the company’s effort to deploy a visual research technology that had tremendous success among Fortune 500 companies. Earlier in his career, Mark was a founder of Mood Media, the largest global provider of in-store sensory experiences, and co-founder and head of revenue for Fun Technologies, the largest online pay-to-play casual gaming business. His family founded the iconic Canadian global TV marketing company, K-tel International, a leading disruptor in the music and consumer products industry. Mark earned a B.B.A. degree from the University of Manitoba. He resides in the Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Experienced Executive with a demonstrated history of working in the chemicals industry. Skilled in Organic Materials, Inorganic Materials, Biofuels, Synthesis, Extraction, Separations, Biomass, Rare Earths, and Patent Law. Strong business development professional graduated from University of Washington.