Nathaniel Harding

Nathaniel graduated cum laude from the University of Oklahoma with Russian Language and Mechanical Engineering degrees, and earned an MBA from Oklahoma City University. He is a decorated Air Force Captain and veteran of Afghanistan, where he was embedded with the US/NATO headquarters in collaboration with the Afghan government. Nathaniel has published in multiple industry publications in the US and China, the latter as part of his Beijing-based joint venture with major Chinese companies. The Governor of Oklahoma appointed him Chair of the Council on Workforce and Economic Development in 2017, managing $20M/year to train and connect the most vulnerable Oklahomans to employment. In 2010 the Mayor appointed Nathaniel to oversee $777M in city infrastructure and quality-of-life projects. He is a trustee for several organizations impacting education, economic opportunity, health and social equity, in addition to mentoring students in STEM fields. He has been a Miss Oklahoma judge, track national champion, Russian orphanage translator, political party National Vice Chairman, and local TV talk show host.

Nathaniel Harding is co-founder and Managing Partner of Cortado Ventures, a seed stage firm investing in the overlooked US Midcontinent across energy, logistics, life sciences, future of work. Nathaniel was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and a Most Admired CEO in Oklahoma by the Journal Record. Previously, he and his partner developed a midcontinent resource play which they sold in 2014 for >$100M. A lifelong operator and entrepreneur, his broad areas of expertise include operational strategy, financial modeling, statistical analysis, leveraging big data, connecting science with commercial strategy, and energy. Before starting Cortado Ventures, Nathaniel was an angel and family office investor, including seed investments in Lively, Wyvern, Novo Space, and Kafene.