Our Team

Arian Simone, General Partner

Arian Simone, Chief Executive Officer and Founding Partner of Fearless Fund, is a serial entrepreneur, philanthropist, angel investor, author, and PR & marketing specialist. Arian received her MBA from Florida A&M and has over 17 years of  entrepreneurial experience: from pioneering and growing a successful PR and marketing firm to founding Fearless  Magazine and the Fearless Platform in 2010, with a mission of inspiring millennial entrepreneurial women. Her  background has allowed her to foster significant relationships in the entertainment industry with billion-dollar  corporate clients such as the Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures, Walt Disney Pictures and more.

William Duckworth, Principal

William Duckworth joined Fearless in 2021 as an active participant on the investment team for both funds. Today William manages fund operations and deal flow as well as investor relations. Prior to Fearless, William founded a startup in the connected health wearable devices field and worked for various startups in the healthcare and technology fields. William brings experience from both sides of the deal desk to the work he does at Fearless. William is a 2016 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in mechanical engineering.

Rodney Sampson, fund advisor

Rodney Sampson is a serial entrepreneur who cofounded, built and sold Multicast Media Technologies, EFactor (EFCT) and Intellectual Currency, a world class integrated go-to-market, publishing, diversity and advisory firm with clients ranging from major Hollywood film studios, cable networks, tech companies, global corporations, publishers and African heads of state. In 2013, Sampson co-founded Opportunity Hub as a follow up to the highly successful Kingonomics’ book release. Today, as Executive Chairman & CEO of Opportunity Hub, Sampson is focused on scaling its suite of collaborative and interconnected technology products, programs, initiatives and fund globally. Sampson is also a Nonresident Senior Fellow in the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brooking Institution in Washington, DC and a Professor of Entrepreneurship at Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA. Sampson previously served as the 1st Head of Diversity at Mark Burnett Productions, executive producers of the hit ABC show, ABC’s Shark Tank.

Suneera Madhani, fund advisor

Suneera Madhani is a true trailblazer in the business world. As the founder of Stax Payments, she built one of America's top 10 fastest-growing fintech companies from an idea to over $100 million in recurring revenue, making it a billion-dollar technology platform. She is the first female CEO to lead a unicorn out of Florida and has received numerous accolades for her success, including being recognized by Fortune's 40 Under 40, EY's Entrepreneur of the Year, Entrepreneur Magazine's 100 Most Influential Women, and Inc.'s 100 Female Founders to name a few.

Tracy Gray, fund advisor

Tracy Gray is currently the Founder and Managing Partner of The 22 Fund, a growth venture capital and advisory firm focused on increasing the export capacity of Southern California companies, positioning these companies to accelerate growth and scale via international sales. She is also an Executive in Residence at the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) and chairs LACI’s Diversity in Entrepreneurship Advisory Council. In addition, Ms. Gray is the founder of the non-profit We Are Enough (WAE). WAE’s only mission is to educate ALL women on how and why to invest in women-owned, for-profit businesses or with a “gender lens.” Ms. Gray was formerly Senior Advisor to the LA Mayor, an investment professional at a venture capital fund and a systems engineer on the Space Shuttle program. Ms. Gray holds a B.S. in Mathematical Science with an aeronautics emphasis from the UC Santa Barbara and dual MBAs from Columbia University and UC, Berkeley.

Sam Sugarman, fund advisor

Sam Sugarman joined fearless in 2019 as a fund advisor and part time employee. Over the years Sam has held every role at Fearless ultimately leading the fundraising and investment teams for Fund II as a Principal. Sam stepped back from his full time role to begin his MBA at Wharton in 2025 but remains an engaged company and fund advisor to both funds. Prior to Fearless Sam worked in investment banking and fund of funds investing in New York City. He is a 2017 graduate of Brandeis University.