Gianluca Galletto

Gianluca is a senior executive and international public speaker with 28 years’ experience in the public and private sectors. He is currently Managing Director for Tech & Innovation Partnerships in the Chair's Office of the New York City Housing Authority, the largest public housing system in the US and the largest landlord in NYC with 400K tenants. He is a partner of Global Futures Group (GFG), which guides public and private clients in creating smart & sustainable urban communities, building innovation ecosystems, and cross-border business development. GFG is a co-founder of SCNY Urban Tech Summit at Cornell-Tech, New York. Gianluca has advised organizations at the intersection of economic development, technology and business development, working with businesses entering US markets, local and national governments, and private entities, such as Lendlease on the Milan Innovation District, Amundi, The European House -Ambrosetti, New York City’s Mayor’s Office, the World Bank, the Partnership for NYC, and the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona. He is a former executive of the government of New York City where he led International Trade and Investment as Director of International at the New York City Economic Development Corporation, which he joined in 2014. His mandate was to grow the innovation ecosystem by increasing FDI in tech, linking them to the SDGs. During his tenure, he launched programs to lure tech businesses, built a global network of relationships with investors, business and government leaders - engaging with more than 500 companies - and launched IN2.NYC, the first citywide program in the US to provide uncapped H1B visas to foreign founders. Gianluca has 20 years of prior experience in the private sector, mostly in finance as a portfolio manager, investor, startup mentor, entrepreneur and business development leader. From 1998 to 2012, he worked at Muzinich & Co., a world-class credit asset manager, where he led international business development, being responsible for new assets under management in excess of $1.7B. Prior to moving to the U. S. in 1996, he spent four years in Brussels, Belgium, where he worked as a consultant for the EU Commission. Over his entire life, Gianluca has been politically active, both in the US and in Europe, volunteering with fundraising efforts for Democratic campaigns, advising former Italian prime and finance ministers, mayors and liaising between European and US top government officials. He is passionate about sustainability and is a regular speaker at major international urban innovation conferences and a contributor to media such as Crain's, RaiNews 24, CNBC, la Repubblica. He also is an investor and mentor of startups. He speaks English, Italian, French and Spanish and holds an MA in International and Development Economics from Yale University and a BA+MA in Economics, Business and Law from Bocconi University in Milan. Gianluca is a former Fulbright scholar and a dual US/Italian citizen residing in New York City.