Cal Lopez has spent his career building things—from AI platforms and drone fleets, to early childhood education programs that support neurodivergent kids. A winner of the MIT Technology Review's Innovators Under 35 award, Cal has launched technology companies across three continents, collecting plenty of airport stories and more than a few mistakes along the way.

He's passionate about artificial intelligence, neurodiversity, and figuring out where people and code intersect. Writing fiction grew out of years spent bridging different worlds: business and classrooms, algorithms and family dinners, the drive to optimize, and the need to just be human.

The Ascension Directive is his first novel. It's a story about the risks and gifts of difference, the problems technology can (and can't) solve, and why love and imperfection deserve a place in the future. Cal splits his time between Dubai, Riyadh, Colombia, and anywhere curiosity takes him.