Dax Dasilva

Technology Founded in 2005, Lightspeed is a one-stop commerce platform for ambitious entrepreneurs to accelerate growth, provide the best customer experience, and become a go-to destination in their space. It powers the world's best businesses in over 100 countries globally. Dasilva was reappointed as CEO on February 15, 2024. Prior to that, he served as Executive Chair of Lightspeed’s board of directors for two years, and previously led the company’s operations as Chief Executive Officer since its founding in 2005. Lightspeed employs thousands of staff, and powers hundreds of thousands of customer locations worldwide. During Dasilva’s leadership as CEO, the company went public in March 2019 on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol LSPD, becoming one of Canada’s top 10 technology IPOs. In September 2020, the company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Lightspeed also undertook 9 acquisitions over the course of a four-year period to consolidate the global market and launch two, best-in-class flagship products: Lightspeed Retail and Lightspeed Restaurant.

Culture Dasilva is an Emmy award-winning executive producer. In 2023, he won an Emmy for Wildcat, and has produced a body of independent conservation documentaries including The Heart of a Mission, We Are the Saint Lawrence River, CAUGHT, and The Corridor, along with the short film series On the Frontline and ICONS. In 2025, he executive produced YANUNI, Richard Ladkani's feature documentary following Indigenous leader Juma Xipaia and her fight to defend the Brazilian Amazon. Produced alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, the film premiered as the Closing Night Gala of the 2025 Tribeca Festival. It won the EMA Award for Documentary Film, the Jackson Wild Grand Teton Award, and Best Documentary Feature at the Savannah Film Festival, and was later shortlisted in the Documentary Feature category at the 98th Academy Awards. That same year, Dasilva released his second book, Echoes from Eden, where he details his battles to safeguard our planet's precious biodiversity, joining forces with legendary conservationists like Paul Rosolie in the Amazon, Dr. Russ Mittermeier in Madagascar, and Dr. Kerry Bowman in the Congo. Dasilva is now an executive producer on Just Me, Jane, Ladkani's forthcoming documentary chronicling Dr. Jane Goodall's final expeditions. He is also producing Pride of Samburu, a documentary feature made in partnership with the National Geographic Society's Impact Story Lab that follows community-led conservation in Kenya and shows how protecting wildlife and preserving Samburu culture go hand in hand, and Werewolf in the Waves, Soleil Moon Frye's documentary about her reunion with a childhood friend and the addiction that eventually took him.

Spirituality In 2024, Dasilva launched The Black Hole Experience (BHX), a mobile immersive exhibition presented by Age of Union and co-created with multidisciplinary artist Kelly Nunes, drawing inspiration from the physics and spiritual symbolism of black holes. Housed in a 53-foot expandable trailer, the eco-portal guides visitors through 1,000 square feet of light, sound, and full-dome projection mapping. This journey takes visitors from an Earth Chamber and interactive LED tunnel to a mirrored Infinity Room, tracing a path from the universe's origins to our place within it. Across its 2024 and 2025 North American tours, BHX travelled to 14 cities and welcomed more than 33,000 visitors at festivals, fairgrounds, city centres, museums, and campuses. Stops included New York's Times Square, LA Climate Week, SXSW in Austin, MUTEK in Montreal, III Points in Miami, and the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto.