Yates Buckley - CTO, UNIT9

Yates has a broad experience of technology applied to creative production. His personal interest is in how technology is enabling new tools for expression. His interests are diverse, from neuroscience, game-design for health and training to solving problems in space for immersive applications in built environments. With HyperCRC, Yates has been looking at how blending actual reality with immersive can create a more accessible and believable embodied experience.

Lauren Dyer - Director of Strategic Partnerships, Dimension Studio

Lauren Dyer joined the Dimension team as Director of Strategic Partnerships in 2019. Lauren is responsible for long-term creative and strategic partnerships with brands, agencies and industry bodies working alongside Dimension to drive forward the development and adoption of volumetric, XR and real-time technologies.  With a resume including The Mill, MediaMonks and Stink Studios, Lauren has worked on some of the world’s first interactive films and immersive social content, producing tailor made projects as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. She is an active mentor and judge, part of the BIMA Interactive Technologies Council, and has spoken at conferences and events from Advertising Week Europe, Digital Shoreditch and D&AD. In 2020, Lauren was named a BIMA100 Tech Trailblazer and a Pitch Magazine Superwoman.

James Edward Marks - Co-Founder, PlayLa.bz

Co-Founder, SEEDS Mentor & RSA Fellow

Jérôme Royan - Senior Architect, b<>com

Jérôme Royan received an Engineer Degree in Computer Science from the National Institute of Applied Sciences of Rennes (INSA), France, in 2001, as well as a Master of research Degree in Computer Science from the University of Rennes in 2001. He received a Ph.D. Degree in Computer Science from the University of Rennes in 2005. During his Ph.D. studies, he was a R&D Engineer at Orange Labs (Rennes France), position that he holds until 2013. At b<>com since 2013, he led the Immersive Interactions laboratory. He represents teacher-researchers on b<>com’s Board of Directors. He is now the Senior Architect and Senior Scientist in charge of computer vision and machine learning applied to Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality. This primary research includes 3D interaction, immersive collaborative experiences, and immersive visualization of large quantities of data. Most recently, he has worked to improve the interoperability of augmented reality technologies by creating an industrial specification group at ETSI named Augmented Reality Framework, and by launching the open source SolAR initiative to address spatial computing distribution into the cloud dedicated to augmented reality.

Nadia Aziz - Innovation Consultant, Unbounded Future Ltd

Nadia is an Evangelist of emerging technologies with an expertise in AR & VR and IoT technologies. She has advised C-level executives in Telecom and Media organisations for digital transformation and M&A projects over more than a decade. While being a SIG Champion of Future Devices and Technologies at Cambridge Wireless, she has recently co-founded Unbounded Future, a Deeptech consulting firm based in London. Previously Nadia led Emerging Technologies at NTT Data UK where she supervised R&D and innovation in Augmented (AR) & Virtual Reality (VR), AI, and IoT. Nadia is a supporter of Women in STEM initiatives and is a mentor at the University College London (UCL) IXN programme. She is an industry advisor to IoTerra, a USA-based B2B marketplace for IoT products and was a co-producer for the GIANT Health Event.

David Crawford - Emeritus Professor, Computer Science & Electronic Engineering, University of Essex, Professor, Digital Media Research, Ravensbourne University

David Crawford is Visiting Professor at University of Essex Colchester, and Emeritus Professor at Ravensbourne University London. David has worked for over 50 years across the telecoms/broadcast industries and UK academic institutions. His research interests are in new imaging techniques, applications for mixed reality technologies, and networks for multidimensional media. David facilitates and lectures in the UK on Degree Apprenticeship courses, promoting work-based learning curricula and collaborative industry-academia training.

David has worked in senior positions at BT, RE, Crown Castle and Harris Broadcast, and as a Director of a start-up company, TeamCast, in France. He has run his own technical consultancy company, and chairs and presents regularly at international events. David is a Member of the Royal Television Society, Fellow of SMPTE, Special-Interest-Group Champion for Cambridge Wireless on Content Production & Delivery, and Honorary Chairman of the Creative Science Foundation. He has previously served as a Council/Board Member of the Institute of Engineering & Technology (IET), the Conference Chair at IBC, and Executive Chair at the ‘mixed reality’ Community Interest Company, PlayLa.bZ.

Tony Lavender - Managing Partner, Plum Consulting

Tony Lavender is a managing partner at Plum Consulting. He has more than 35 years experience in technology, communications regulation, policy and spectrum management. His clients include governments, equipment vendors, network operators and regulators. Tony was a specialist adviser to the UK Parliament 2016 Culture, Media and Sport Committee Inquiry into “Establishing world class connectivity throughout the UK”, he chairs the Steering Board of the UK Spectrum Policy Forum and he was a member of the UK Government’s Expert Panel, established as part of the UK Spectrum Strategy, on “Incorporating Social Value into Spectrum Allocation Decisions”. He has worked on a wide range of studies including on the 5G mmWave ecosystem, spectrum sharing, spectrum valuation and more broadly on electronic communications infrastructure strategy. Tony is a Chartered Engineer and a member of the UK Institution of Engineering and Technology.

Chris Nokes - Senior Technical Advisor, Ofcom

Chris is a Senior Technical Advisor with Ofcom, investigating broadcasting and media technologies. He was previously the Head of Distribution Core Technologies Section at BBC Research & Development. With over thirty years' experience in Broadcasting R&D, Chris has been involved in the development of digital television since 1994, including as a key contributor to the DVB-T2 technical study group, and editor of the DVB-T2 specification and Chair of the RF Group of the UK Digital Television Group (DTG).