Speakers
Session
Gene Yu’s The Second Shot is a powerful journey through identity, resilience, and transformation. From a boyhood marked by cultural alienation in America to the crucible of West Point and the battlefields of Iraq, the Philippines, and Kurdistan as a decorated Green Beret, Yu recounts the hard-won lessons of failure, perseverance, and second chances.
He shares how setbacks—academic, personal, professional—became defining moments that forged a warrior’s mindset and, later, an entrepreneur’s grit. His involvement in the daring rescue of Evelyn Chang from Abu Sayyaf terrorists not only reawakened his sense of purpose but also catalyzed the founding of Blackpanda, Asia’s leading cybersecurity and incident response firm. At its heart, the speech is a deeply human meditation on navigating adversity, embracing growth, and finding clarity and strength in the second shot.