Our Team
Mario Corona
FOUNDER
Mario has spent his career specializing in new product development, marketing, and consumer behavior. He is particularly interested in frictionless innovation through technology-driven solutions. Mario delivers structural guidance for startups looking to break into the US tech scene and helps them expedite their launch speed with seamless introductions to key players across the industry.
Amie Paxton
MANAGING PARTNER
Amie is an entrepreneur, creator, and investor who has a passion for startups, online education, the power of communities, and artificial intelligence. Her entrepreneurial spirit started in the trenches of the startup community in Austin, Texas. She has consulted with numerous startups over the years, helping them raise millions in global investment and reach accolades such as SXSW awards, TIMES Best Inventions, and FAST Company distinctions.
Victor Lau
VENTURE CAPITAL & FINANCIAL STRUCTURING
Victor provides access to a growing network of funds, incubators, and accelerators across LATAM and around the world. He has a financial acumen that allows him to understand cost structures, evaluations, and capital needed. Victor is committed to helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses.
Frank Sandoval
UI/UX CONSULTANT
Frank is a startup enthusiast and UX/UI designer. With decades of experience in the design industry, he provides your team with the necessary guidance to create an efficient and lasting first impression. He has worked on various projects ranging from small startups to large corporations, and believes that innovation, user insights and instruction are key to product iterations - MVP or beyond.
Michelle Peters
UX / UI CONSULTANT
Michelle is a UX Consultant who specializes in user research testing. She understands the ins and outs of taking an idea from concept to MVP, as she is the founder of her own startup company, BRIK. This platform empowers anyone to build and launch a web and mobile app without any design or tech experience.
Rich Robison
PRODUCT STRATEGY
Rich is currently at META leading an internal organization team in Austin, TX. Previously CTO and CPO at startup, myHouseby, his resume includes CTO | Co-Founder of InPharmics, a pharmacy analytics company, which was acquired by Omnicell in 2017. In 2015 he helped Amazon open their Austin office and built successful new teams from inception for amazon.com’s supply chain optimization initiative. Rich has spent two decades in technology and across multiple domains.
Ben Eynon
TECH & AI DEVELOPMENT
An experienced CTO, Ben heads up business development, international contract negotiations, & backend development focusing on AI-related software. He has worked with a variety of product developments such as advanced lithography equipment, medical patient transfer equipment, sensing, & haptic technology for the vision impaired.
Robert Mazzola
STARTUP BUSINESS LAW & INTELLECTUAL PROTECTION POLICIES
Robert is a technology lawyer who specializes in counseling technology companies from startups in their early formation and development to securing proprietary product development, patents and intellectual property matters. He has a deep understanding of the legal issues that technology companies face and provides practical guidance to help them grow and protect their businesses.
Kristen O’Brien
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Kristen is a startup communications expert. She has years of experience helping startups develop a PR and communications strategy based on time to market and overall business goals. Kristen teaches your team how the industry works, PR tools, and assets to leverage to increase visibility and awareness for both increased investment and consumer traffic.
Stephanie Ayars
MARKETING STRATEGY & EXECUTION
With more than 23 of experience with startups and as an entrepreneur herself, Stephanie has developed and executed strategic marketing plans for a number of commercialization efforts and project launches. She has a diverse background with B2B, B2C, and B2B2C organizations across a variety of industries including healthcare, payments & FinTech, hospitality, SaaS, and CPG.
Juan Huicochea
PROP TECH EXPERT & RESEARCH
Juan is a researcher and entrepreneur with a focus on Prop Tech, both in the United States and Latin America. With his background in architecture, design, and technology, Juan brings tremendous talent to the Frictionless team. Prior to joining Frictionless, Juan spent time at MIT as a research fellow, conducting studies on how new technologies can be used to improve the built environment. As a global citizen, Juan is at the forefront of international ideation, concepts, and tech. Juan is excited to use his skills and experience to help build Frictionless into the leading platform for Prop Tech globally.