2023 Groundbreaking Women

Jenny Just is a visionary, powerhouse, and one of the few self-made female billionaires in the United States. From the days of cutting her teeth on the trading floor in Chicago to running a fintech empire, she has started and turned around more than 15 companies and has made hundreds of private investments. This passion led her to launch Poker Power in 2020, a woman-led company that teaches poker to all who identify as female. By extension, it teaches women strategic thinking, capital allocation, and decisionmaking skills to help them in the boardroom and beyond. She believes that the fundamentals of poker are the same in business. Poker can be a gateway for all women to be more confident with risk-taking and money—the game allows you to practice taking risks with imperfect information. Every hand is a negotiation just like in a boardroom. Claiming a seat at the poker table helps women grow their careers and move into higher positions where they can create more room for their female peers, which contributes to closing gender-based financial gaps and more. Poker Power is across 30 countries, working with more than 150 corporate partners and educational institutions, and has seen the transformational effect it can have on everyone from teenagers to CEOs.

Ada Limón is the 24th Poet laureate of the United States and is one of those rare individuals who makes a living from her poetry. Her work is known for its vivid imagery, emotional intensity, and themes of identity, nature, and the human experience. She often draws inspiration from her rural upbringing in Sonoma and her experiences as a Mexican-American woman. Her work is praised for its accessibility and ability to connect with a range of readers. She has said that she often reads her poetry aloud when writing because she believes that it’s a medium that should be performed.

Her sixth and most recent book is The Hurting Kind, which is about connection and the delight of being in the world and was listed as one of the best books of the year by NPR.

Karen Lynch was no stranger to the healthcare industry when she took the helm as CEO of CVS in February, 2021. With over 30 years of experience in healthcare, Lynch had previously served as the President of Aetna, where she played a crucial role in the company’s merger with CVS. Lynch has continued to prioritize healthcare innovation and accessibility by spearheading initiatives to expand the company’s virtual care offerings, providing customers with easy access to telehealth services. She has also championed initiatives to improve healthcare affordability and reduce disparities in healthcare access.

Elizabeth McCall is the Master Distiller at Woodford Reserve, a leading bourbon distillery in Kentucky. With a family history in the bourbon industry, McCall developed a deep passion for distilling. She pursued a degree in chemical engineering to help her master the technical side of the process. She worked her way up the ranks at Woodford Reserve, learning every aspect of the distilling process and honing her skills as a taster and blender. Today, McCall is a leading voice in the industry, working to innovate and push the boundaries of what’s possible in bourbon production. Her dedication and expertise have earned her numerous accolades, including being named Whisky Advocate’s “Innovator of the Year” in 2018.

Mira Murati is the CTO behind the most advanced AI chatbot ever deployed to a mass audience. Her interest in AI began when she was working at Tesla in 2013 while working on early versions of its Autopilot application. Since then, she has led product & engineering at Leap Motion, where she worked on an augmented reality system to replace keyboards. At OpenAI, she’s focused on how humans will interact with AI and believes in public testing. She’s also in favor of regulation for AI and includes a diverse set of voices to answer questions about the technology’s impact on society.