Tom Emrich is a pioneer in augmented reality, virtual reality, and wearable technology, with over 15 years of experience in the space. He has a proven track record of leading teams and landing strategic impact for powerhouse brands and organizations. His debut book, The Next Dimension, published by Wiley, is the definitive guide to using AR to transform business strategies, showcasing real-world use cases in marketing, advertising, and sales. Tom’s thoughts on spatial computing have been sought after by media outlets such as CNN, BBC, Forbes, and The New York Times, as well as events like TEDx, CES, and SXSW.

Gabrielle Heyman is Head of Global Brand Partnerships for Zynga, where she is responsible for Zynga’s direct advertising business. Gabrielle is a leader in Gaming and Digital Media, and has a passion for the revolution in entertainment consumption and its impact on brands.

Samantha Lim joined the Publicis Media Content and Innovation team as SVP of Gaming Strategy and Innovation in October 2022. Lim’s 18 years of agency experience includes a heavy emphasis in digital media, bringing a balance of branding and data driven strategy to her clients. Prior to joining the PMCI team, Lim held multiple client and investment lead roles with Starcom. Over the course of her career, Lim has worked on a variety of movie studios and held global leadership roles on Xbox and Amazon. Lim is excited to build on her collective experience of platforms and entertainment to craft truly innovative gaming solutions (via Web2 and Web3) for brands.

Born and bred in Los Angeles, Samantha attended the University of Southern California majoring in Business Administration with a minor in Web Technologies and Applications. In her free time, she enjoys working out, playing video games, streaming TV shows, and volunteering at an animal rescue. 

Samantha has been a featured speaker at industry events, including those from partners such as AdExchanger, Digiday and NBCUniversal.

Stephanie Llamas is an analyst and writer specializing in the business and governance of new media and technologies, including XR, games, AI and Web3. She is the founder of VoxPop Insights, which focuses on metaverse research, in addition to overseeing content, research, and communications for BITKRAFT Ventures. Previously, she led the World Economic Forum’s metaverse initiative and played a key role at SuperData Research, later acquired by Nielsen. Stephanie has advised organizations like the Smithsonian and presented at conferences like CES and SXSW. Her work has been featured in the NYT, Forbes, WSJ, NPR, and MSNBC.

Experienced leadership executive, with a demonstrated history of innovation, bridging tech with media, and advancing the video industry across both linear and digital.  Some examples of his visionary moves and where he’s made his impact across digital strategy include leadership roles at DIRECTV, TiVo, Discovery Communications, Microsoft/XBOX, and Dish.  Developing some of the first advanced TV ad products – such as, DVR/time-shifting, Addressable TV, ad supported VOD/OTT/CTV, and the use of ACR TV measurement to address the increasing shift in viewing behavior.  

Neil Redding is a keynote speaker, author, Innovation Architect and Near Futurist. Neil is Founder and CEO of Redding Futures, a boutique consultancy that enables brands and businesses to enter the Near Future. Prior to founding Redding Futures, Neil held leadership roles at Mediacom, Proximity/BBDO, Gensler, ThoughtWorks and Lab49. He has delivered for clients including Visa, Nike, Cadillac, Macy’s, NBA, Verizon, TED, The Economist, MoMA, Converse, Morgan Stanley, Apple, Oracle, Financial Times, and Fidelity Investments. He has spoken at numerous conferences including SXSW, AWE, Immerse Global Summit, infoComm, Tech2025, CreateTech, SEGD XLab, A.R.E. Shoptalk, Creative Technology Week, Design+AI and Revolution.

For the past 16+ years Randy Shaffer has served as Senior Director of Xbox for Yahoo where he has connected some of the world’s most iconic brands with highly-engaged audiences across Xbox.


Shaffer is a gaming enthusiast with more than 90,000 Xbox achievements. He was recently named one of the top 15 Microsoft Advertising Executives driving the company’s ambitious advertising strategy by Business Insider.


Shaffer holds a BA in Advertising Account Management from Chapman University in Orange County. When he is not working, Shaffer enjoys spending time with his wife and son, playing video games, road cycling, and pickleball.

Resh Sidhu is a highly accomplished and respected global leader in the field of creative technology and augmented reality. As a co-founder of Arcadia Creative Studio, at Snapchat, based in New York, she leads a world-class team of AR pioneers and manages a wide range of high-profile projects. With over two decades of experience in the industry, Resh has a proven track record of success in a variety of roles, including Chief Creative Officer for Barbarian, Group Creative Director at AKQA, and Creative Director at Oscar-winning visual effects studio Framestore.

Throughout her illustrious career, Resh has consistently been lauded for her ability to foster an inspiring, inclusive, and forward-thinking work environment. Her leadership is characterized by a commitment to innovative thinking, and she has played a pivotal role in delivering iconic experiences for an extensive portfolio of global clients, including esteemed names like Nike, Disney, Livenation, L’Oréal, and Coca-Cola, among others.

Resh Sidhu’s contributions to the creative industry have not gone unnoticed. She has been recognized by numerous prestigious organizations, earning accolades such as inclusion in Adweek Creative 100 and a spot among Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business. In addition to her accomplishments, Resh is a highly sought-after speaker who has graced events like TEDx and Cannes Lions with her insights on creativity, design, and technology.

With her distinctive perspective on the intersection of design and technology, Resh Sidhu remains an influential driving force in shaping the future landscape of digital experiences. Her recent appointments as the Jury President for Cannes Lion Digital Craft and her reception of an honorary doctorate from the University of Art London underscore her enduring impact on the industry.

Zoe Soon has 10+ years of experience building products in technology-driven businesses with a heavy focus on mobile. Six years ago Zoe flew 21 hours from Sydney to NYC for a 30min coffee meeting which led to her first job in NYC. Since then she’s worked with three major New York based media companies, The New York Times, Condé Nast and Business Insider on projects ranging from location-based apps to paywalls. Zoe began her career as a user researcher and UX design consultant working with three of the top five banks in Australia. She was then hired to establish a user insights practice at Fairfax Media, a leading Australian news and media conglomerate. Here she led the user research for the flagship news apps which won Best Mobile News Product at the 2012 Australian Mobile Awards and went on to become product lead for the news sites. In this role she launched a content paywall and a unified user data system to diversify revenue and enable more targeted marketing.

Prior to joining the IAB Zoe was General Manager of apps and email at Business Insider where she was charged with defining the go-to market strategy for these platforms. In this role Zoe launched Insider Inc’s first OTT apps across Apple, Amazon Fire and Roku offering advertisers cross-platform video digital distribution and access to an audience that generates over 2 billion views each month.

Zoe has a Masters in Organizational Psychology and lives in New York. She enjoys burning pancakes, Cuban salsa dancing and talking to strangers in line.

Kris Soumas is the Director of Platforms & Programming for the Verizon Consumer Group. In this role, she leads the development and ongoing content operations for Verizon’s +play platform, as well as next gen immersive partnerships with iconic creators from gaming and entertainment.
Prior to joining Verizon, Kris created content strategies and immersive entertainment experiences for blockbuster entertainment brands including Disney, NBC Universal, A+E Networks, the Oscars and ABC News. Kris started in TV but shifted to digital early on. She has produced award-winning websites, AR, VR, apps and social games which have grossed millions and reached the top of the app store charts. She has run game studios in Seoul and Mumbai and was an early advocate for women in gaming.

Kieley Taylor is a Managing Partner, Global Head of Strategic Partnerships for GroupM (a part of WPP.) She focuses on unlocking value, driving marketplace innovation with an emphasis on themes of responsible investment, and generating unique access for GroupM’s clients with companies like Google, Meta, TIkTok, Pinterest, Spotify, Snap, Twitter, and more. Kieley has 15+ years of media experience working on a variety of brands. She was recently awarded Campaign US’ Female Frontier Awards: Making Media Matter category. Kieley is a leading industry voice who has presented at industry conferences like Social Media Week, Ad Week, and the Facebook Developer’s conference (f8) and is widely quoted in trade and news publications.

Prior to her current role Kieley was the Global Head of Social for [m]PLATFORM (part of GroupM). Kieley’s focus was in streamlining operations, disseminating thought leadership, training, best practices, and advocating on behalf of client interests with key publishing partners. She was the lead subject matter expert within social for GroupM clients. In her prior role she evangelized an audience first approach to integrated planning and buying.

Kieley originally joined the GroupM family via the MetaVision Media agency where she lead paid social strategy and buying on behalf of Nestle’s 60+ brands in the US.

Prior to GroupM, was Director of the Intent Lab at Media Storm where she grew and oversaw the agencies Search and Social offering. There Kieley was focused on strategy, Kieley delivery, and the application of integrated insights. At Media Storm clients included Entertainment, Tech, Spirits, and Sports.

Previously, Kieley worked at Neo@Ogilvy (WPP) in a variety of paid search, paid social, and digital strategy roles. She was a founding member of Social@Ogilvy a joint venture between Neo@Ogilvy and Ogilvy PR, first executing social campaigns using a company credit card while lobbying for invoicing. She also previously held roles in Account Management at Risdall Marketing Group.

Ms. Taylor is recognized as a thought leader commenting in the trades, judging award show entries, speaking on panels, and writing opinion pieces that are shared amongst GroupM clients.

As Head of Global Gaming Business Marketing at TikTok, Rema Vasan is responsible for building innovative marketing solutions that enable the gaming industry to become TikTok fluent and wield the power of the platform to deliver against business goals. She is focused on helping brands develop strategies to engage with communities through culturally-relevant creative storytelling and understanding TikTok’s full-funnel impact.

Prior to TikTok, Rema led global marketing for some of the biggest and most recognized brands at Pfizer, P&G, J&J, GlaxoSmithKline, Coty, and more. She has lived and worked in Asia, Europe, and North America, championing brilliant creative work and business-driving ideas, capabilities, and innovations. With 20+ years of experience, both in-house and at agencies, she addresses business opportunities and challenges with an inherently integrated mindset.

An immigrant and woman of color, Rema is a passionate believer and investor in the power of mentorship to elevate high potential talent. Rema is a proud girl mom, boy mom, dog mom and lives in New Jersey with her family.

Pam is a 30+ year veteran of the media and marketing industry who is a proven media strategist across digital, programmatic, and traditional platforms. Known for innovative approaches to media and marketing challenges that turn the complex media eco system into understandable ideas for both the C-Suite and day-to-day tacticians. Pam sees the world as a white board – empty, boundless space to create, transform and innovate for growth; to re-imagine how media and marketing can work to grow brands and build companies. Pam believes winning at the intersection of data, content, marketplace, and technology means refusing to let the status quo be good enough and being humble enough to know true transformation takes collaboration, iteration, willpower, and trust.

Pam spent her first 25 years on the agency side at Publicis Media leading clients such as Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, Activision, Yahoo and others. In addition to client leadership Pam built new practices for the agency including Advanced TV and Experience Design. To broaden her experience, Pam also spent 3 years leading Media for Starcom Mediavest Group in Russia when that market first opened to media in the mid-1990s. This taught Pam that anything is possible to create in the marketplace with some ingenuity, marketplace knowledge, and a relentless push creates win – win – win experiences for consumers, marketers and publishers. Following her work on the agency side, Pam spent five years consulting for the media and technology companies (NBCU, Fox, Viacom, Double Verify) helping them design custom programs and market their digital assets for growth. For the past fifteen months, Pam has been at Amobee, an Ad Tech firm, leading their marketing and sales strategy efforts to bring new identity, performance and new targeting techniques to the DSP and cross channel planning marketplace.

Pam lives in Hastings on Hudson, NY with her two sons.