Abin
​​​​​​​Kuriakose

Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer 
World Business Chicago

Abin Kuriakose is the Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at World Business Chicago, the City of Chicago's economic development organization chaired by the Mayor. As a public-private partnership, WBC drives inclusive economic growth and job creation, supports the business ecosystem, promotes Chicago as a leading global city, and a founding member of the Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership (GCEP). Abin and his team manages a portfolio of economic development programs: Chicago Venture Summit (the city’s flagship startup & venture capital conference series), Startup Chicago (capital attraction & startup growth program), ThinkChicago (talent attraction & retention program), & Entreprise Chicago (corporate-startup program). In 2023, his team led 80 unique events: the largest inno & venture program year ever in WBC history.

Abin is a 2022 Emerging Leader of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. In 2019, Abin was appointed by Governor J.B. Pritzker as a member of the State of Illinois’ Asian American Employment Plan Advisory Council. He is a 2018 Civic Leaders Academy (CLA) Fellow of the University of Chicago, and volunteers as a mentor for UChicago’s Harris School of Public Policy students. Abin is a long-time board member of the Indo-American Democratic Organization (IADO), the oldest South Asian American political advocacy org in the country. Chicago Scholars recognized Abin as one of "35 under 35 Young Leaders Making an Impact," (2017).