Manatt Digital, a division of Manatt, and VNTANA are pleased to present an evening of networking, demos, and a discussion on “Brands in Augmented Reality.” As new immersive technologies continue to disrupt the traditional modes of capturing consumer attention, brands are creatively exploring new channels for engagement. Augmented Reality is a medium that can fundamentally transform how customers can engage with brands. Join other industry influencers and senior executives across AR, content, marketing, and the investment community to explore how Augmented Reality can create new and engaging experiences for consumers. This event is by invitation only.
Panel Participants
Ashley Esqueda, CNET (moderator)
Ashley Esqueda is a senior editor for CNET TV and founder/co-host of Tomorrow Daily, CNET’s talk show with a focus on future tech, geek pop culture and video games (with a quirky twist). With a penchant for all things geek, Ashley offers a wide variety of knowledge across various technology topics, and has years of experience attending and covering mega-conferences such as CES, E3, Comic-Con and PAX. She hopes to be a robot when she grows up, and is based in Los Angeles.
Lindsay Boyajian, CMO, Augment
Lindsay is an experienced B2B marketing professional passionate about augmented reality. Augment is the leading Augmented Reality as a Service platform. With its mobile application, users can simulate their products in 3D augmented reality in the real world in real time. Augment has raised over $4.7 million and boasts an impressive list of clients, including Coca-Cola, Siemens and L’Oreal.
Prior to Augment, Lindsay launched her own company, WeareverYouGo, a website featuring tips on what to wear and how to pack for trips abroad. WeareverYouGo went through GE & OMD’s startup accelerator program. Lindsay has both a B.S. and master’s from Cornell University.
Ashley Crowder, CEO, VNTANA
Ashley leverages her engineering background to guide VNTANA’s overall direction and technology development. She co-founded VNTANA in 2012 with the goal of allowing people to be in multiple venues at the same time. Since then VNTANA has created the first scalable and interactive hologram system, which has been used by major brands, including Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz and Pepsi. Prior to co-founding VNTANA she graduated from USC with a bachelor’s and master’s in engineering and gained valuable manufacturing experience at Gulfstream, Northrop Grumman and BP. She also gained experience in event production at MTV Networks in Los Angeles and INCA Productions in London, planning events to be executed in multiple countries.
Ashley has been a speaker at TEDx Venice, the World Economic Forum’s Global Growth Companies & Technology Pioneers event in San Francisco, CA, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, The Montgomery Summit, Siemer Summit, Digital LA, and others. This spring, Ashley will be featured as one of USC’s leading engineering CEOs of 2016. Ashley is a part of the Microsoft Early Developer Program along with the Microsoft Bizspark Plus program.
John DeMarco, Co-Founder, Brand-Aide Entertainment
Tavio Hobson, Corporate Partnerships, LA Clippers
Tavio Hobson manages corporate partnerships for the LA Clippers. In his first 120 days he secured the largest corporate partnership deal in Clippers history. Tavio is helping transform the Clippers franchise into a global brand by leveraging corporations’ brands via the Clippers’ partner platforms. In November he was recognized by the NBA as 1 of 29 emerging NBA team executives.
Robert Schefferine is vice president, marketing production, ABC Entertainment Marketing. In this position he is responsible for the production of ABC marketing content supporting the Network’s entertainment programming. He is also an integral member of the senior management team involved with creative development and organizational management.
Suemyra Shah, Associate, Manatt
Suemyra is an associate in Manatt’s advertising, marketing and media practice and is based in the New York office. She advises clients in matters relating to advertising practices, intellectual property, rights of publicity, licensing, sweepstakes and promotions, endorsements and testimonials, privacy and social media. Suemyra reviews advertising campaigns and counsels clients on how to comply with complex federal and state regulatory requirements and intellectual property laws. She drafts and negotiates a wide variety of agreements, licenses, and releases, such as talent and brand ambassador agreements, sponsorship agreements, product placement agreements, service agreements, website terms and conditions and privacy policies.
Robert Thacker is senior director of strategy analytics and digital marketing for the Global Partnerships division of Anschutz Entertainment Group, Inc. (AEG), the largest sports and entertainment company in the world. AEG Global Partnerships oversees worldwide sponsorship sales and activation for over 120 world-class venues across five continents and numerous other assets including venues, sports franchises, events, tours, festivals and digital content among other AEG holdings.
Manatt Digital, a division of Manatt, are business strategists and advisors who see the global and complex digital landscape as an opportunity for our clients. Our team specializes in creating personalized solutions and building partnerships that accelerate growth, promote innovation and enhance enterprise value. Our integrated legal services allow our clients to navigate challenges in concert with our business advisory team. We are passionate about digital transformation and we are uniquely suited to help our clients capitalize on this opportunity.
VNTANA is the leader in social augmented reality, creating sharable experiences through its interactive hologram technology. From holographic photo opportunities with your favorite celebrity to gesture-controlled drone piloting, VNTANA has built the first and only interactive hologram system with social media integration and data-collection capabilities that provides measurable return on investment. VNTANA’s technology is at the cutting edge of social augmented reality. Its core product, HOLLAGRAM, combines real-time holographic video capture with interactive gesture control, allowing consumers to experience augmented reality in groups and without wearables. VNTANA’s technology has been used by many Fortune 500 brands, including Pepsi, Microsoft, Intel, Mercedes-Benz, DJI, and is applicable globally across multiple industries, including advertising, retail, business communications, sports, automotive and education. VNTANA is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. For more information, visit www.VNTANA.com or follow @VNTANAlive on Twitter.