Leadership Team

Andrew Paradise is the founder and CEO of FIRY (NYSE: FIRY). He is the inventor of real-money skill-based gaming, a category he created in 2012 when he founded Skillz, the first publicly traded mobile esports platform in the world. Under Paradise’s leadership, Skillz has become a global leader in mobile gaming, hosting billions of tournaments and distributing millions in prizes each month. A lifelong inventor, Paradise holds over 90 issued patents spanning matchmaking algorithms, fraud detection, real-time competition systems, and skill-based gaming infrastructure.

Skillz has not only disrupted the mobile gaming space but revolutionized how players interact with mobile games while fiercely advocating for fair competition. With its patented technology, Skillz has helped mobile game developers create multi-million dollar franchises. FIRY today consists of Skillz; RZR, a fast-growing AI-powered ad tech platform; and Beamable, a live-operations developer platform.

A visionary in tech, Paradise has a history of founding companies in diverse sectors, from eCommerce to image recognition. His passion for innovation began early, hacking video games at the age of seven. After a stint in private equity and venture capital, he founded his first company, Double Picture, an ad tech firm, and sold it to MPA in 2010.

In 2010, Paradise also founded AisleBuyer, a mobile self-checkout company, before selling it to Intuit in 2012. That same year, he co-founded Skillz with his fellow Aisle Buyer executive Casey Chafkin, with the mission of using competition to bring out the best in everyone.

A sought-after thought leader, Paradise has been featured in top outlets like Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg, and has spoken at SXSW, CES, and GDC. He was named to the San Francisco Business Times’ “40 Under 40” in 2018.

Gaetano joined FIRY in January 2024 and is transitioning out as Chief Financial Officer of FIRY with Alex Walsh assuming the position on July 13, 2026. Prior to joining Skillz, Franceschi was the Senior Vice President and Head of Finance of Compass, a real estate technology company. Prior to Compass, he served as CFO of Amazon Games, CFO of AWS Data Center General Services and served in a variety of operational finance positions at Citi and American Express.

Franceschi holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University.

Alex joins FIRY as Chief Financial Officer on July 13, 2026. He brings 20 years of progressive financial leadership across gaming, consumer products, manufacturing, and eCommerce. Most recently, Mr. Walsh served as Chief Financial Officer of Aristocrat Gaming, the largest business segment of Aristocrat Leisure Limited (ASX: ALL), where he led a global finance organization across more than 300 jurisdictions across the globe. Prior to Aristocrat, he was Head of Finance for the Americas at The LEGO Group, and before that spent nearly eight years in senior finance roles at The Procter & Gamble Company.

Mr. Walsh holds a Master of Business Administration in Finance from Xavier University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics from Indiana University Bloomington. He was named to the Las Vegas "40 Under 40" list in 2025.

Todd serves as the Chief Accounting Officer for FIRY. Prior to joining FIRY, he served as the Senior Vice President, Corporate Finance and Tax & Chief Accounting Officer of Everi Holdings Inc., a gaming supplier that provides casino operators gaming and financial technology products and services, from September 2015 to July 2025.

Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Corporate Finance and Investor Relations for Everi Holdings Inc., among other responsibilities, from September 2011 to September 2015. Mr. Valli holds an active Certified Public Accountant license in both the State of Nevada and Alaska. Mr. Valli received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Managerial Finance and his Master of Business Administration with a dual concentration in Finance and Marketing from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Nicole is the Chief Human Resources Officer at FIRY. In her role, Nicole leads all people-centered initiatives for the company including hiring, onboarding, and performance management. Under her guidance, the People Operations function is dedicated to increasing overall employee engagement, productivity and efficiency.

Prior to joining FIRY, Nicole served as the Vice President of Organizational Transformation for Groupon. Previously, she was the Human Resources Director across Zappos Family of Companies. While at Zappos, she specialized in Human Resource Business Partnering, handling everything from hiring and benefits to compliance and employee relations. Nicole received her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is currently completing her MBA from Babson F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business.