About Us
About Us
Michael R. Lafave
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Cette AI
Michael R. Lafave is a McGill-trained engineer and visionary founder reshaping the future of infrastructure, energy, and computation. With a rare ability to lead across disciplines—from materials and mechanical engineering to chemistry, civil systems, and physics—he brings both technical brilliance and creative insight to every frontier Cette AI explores.
Since founding Cette AI in 2016, Michael has led the development of a proprietary AI platform powering breakthroughs in carbon-negative concrete, polymer-based infrastructure, advanced fuels, and quantum processors. His leadership unites top PhDs and scientific minds under a bold mission: to accelerate discovery and engineer solutions once thought impossible.
Advisor
Jeff Schell is an accomplished patent attorney, venture capitalist, and entrepreneur based in Denver, Colorado. With multiple successful exits under his belt, he currently serves as Principal at Nova Launch Partners and Venture Partner at Erez Capital. As the former CEO of TranS1, he led the company to profitability and an eight-figure exit, while developing over 50 patent applications in spine surgical techniques. Under his leadership as Managing Director at Proov, the company was named a Colorado Bioscience Association “Company of the Year” finalist and won SXSW 2019 Startup of the Year.
Jeff holds degrees from Northwestern University, including a B.Eng, B.S., and an M.S. in Medical Informatics. His legal credentials include USPTO Patent Bar admission and licenses to practice in Colorado and Michigan. His entrepreneurial expertise has generated over $50M for clients and closely held entities, making him an invaluable asset for startups seeking to protect and monetize their innovations.
Advisor
Jim Carlson brings decades of executive experience in guiding startups and growth-stage companies through complex scaling, operational efficiency, and market expansion. With a background that spans product management, P&L ownership, sales and marketing strategy, and cost reduction, Jim has played a pivotal role in shaping high-performing organizations across industries.
As both a personal mentor to Founder Michael R. Lafave and an advisor to Cette AI, Jim provides strategic oversight on budgeting, revenue growth, client service delivery, and executional discipline. His insight is especially valuable as Cette scales from deep tech R&D to real-world deployment across infrastructure, energy, and AI-driven systems.
Jim’s guidance ensures that Cette AI remains grounded in operational excellence while pursuing breakthrough innovation here.