Karlheinz Brandenburg has been a driving force behind some of today’s most innovative digital audio technology, notably the mp3 and MPEG audio standards. He is acclaimed for pioneering work in digital audio coding and psychoacoustics. His honors include the AES Silver Medal, the IEEE Masaru Ibuka Consumer Electronic Award, the German Future Award, which he shared with his colleagues and the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. Furthermore he is member in the Hall of Fame of the Consumer Electronics Association. In April 2014, Brandenburg was inducted as an innovator into the Internet Hall of Fame. He holds three honorary Ph.D. degrees. Dr. Brandenburg holds about 100 patents. He is CEO of the Brandenburg Labs GmbH, a senior professor at the Institute for Media Technology at Technische Universität Ilmenau and former director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT in Ilmenau, Germany.
Agnes Chung is a music tech entrepreneur and business development expert with a strong background in innovation and the music industry. In 2019, she co-founded musicube to revolutionise music discovery by combining her expertise in musicology with AI technology. With over 15 years of experience, she has worked to explore the untapped potential of data-driven music and break through echo chambers. In addition to founding her own startup and working internationally across the music and tech sectors, she advises startups and organisations on growth strategies and business development. A sought-after speaker, Agnes shares her insights on the future of music, technology and innovation, inspiring businesses and creatives to embrace new opportunities. She is committed to building a sustainable, forward-thinking music industry that values creativity, diversity and innovation.
Henry has created user experience sound for over two decades, whilst being at the forefront of defining our future soundscapes and developing thinking around sound in UX. He has created interaction sounds and notifications for billions of devices worldwide, whilst developing some of the most brand-recognisable sounds in the world. He previously worked for 13 years at Nokia and Microsoft, before setting up his own consultancy and working on a range of tech products from smart glasses, navigational aids for the visually-impaired, smart door locks, and hospital alarms and patient-monitoring alarms. Henry recently moved back in-house, and now works as a Senior UX Sound & Haptics Designer for Google.
Cicely is the ECD of a world-leading sonic branding agency, Sonicbrand. A classically trained pianist, DJ and expert music supervisor, Cicely has a wealth of experience in the development and production of sonic branding and composition for global brands such as Shell, Nestle, Lucozade, MARS, PepsiCo and Marantz.
Klaus Frieler is a Systematic Musicologist with a background in Physics. He is currently a statistical and methodological consultant of Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Frankfurt a.M. Germany, after years of working on research projects in computational musicology and music psychology as well as teaching systematic musicology at the University of Hamburg and elsewhere. Since many years, he is involved with the Audio Branding industry as a scientific advisor. He is also working as music expert witness, with a speciality in pre-emptive copyright checks for audio branding using state-of-the-art computational tools he created and helped developing.
Vanessa Goh started out as a copywriter in Singapore before her pursuit of new experiences took her to the advertising agencies of Chicago, and then to the digital playground of the Bay Area. She learnt from the best minds at agencies like DDB, BBDO, Ogilvy, and DigitasLBi, before joining Pandora SiriusXM as a Creative Director at Studio Resonate. She’s been involved in audio advertising and sonic branding for almost two decades.
Chris has been creating audio for interactive media for over 25 years. After studying Music Synthesis at Berklee College of Music, he began his career in live sound for Blue Man Group. He then moved into web audio which led to over a decade of designing sound for video games, including franchises such as Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Burnout Paradise, God of War III and Kinect Adventures. In 2012, he made the transition into product sound with Microsoft HoloLens. At HoloLens, he designed UX sound, sonic branding, and 3D audio. After Microsoft, Chris formed Symmetry Audio where he designed VR audio for Unity, HBO, and Technicolor, as well as UX sound for Google. In 2017, he joined Amazon as Senior UX Sound Designer, where he worked on the audio identity of Alexa, Fire TV, and the standalone gaming system Amazon Glow. Returning to the game audio in 2022, Chris was Audio Manager at Insomniac Games and is now Audio Director at an unannounced developer.
Studies in communication design at the University of Applied Sciences, Konstanz (Master of Arts). Co-Founder of audity, a company specialised in functional sounds for brands and products. Author and co-producer of the compendium »Audio Branding«. Rainer is supervising various research projects with several universities and has been, since 2008, juror of the international Red Dot Design Award. Lecturer for Audible Design at the HTWG Konstanz.
Dr. Daniel Hug, sound and interaction designer, explores the world of sound through art, design, theoretical investigation and applied research. He is the co-founder and co-director of the Sound Design master’s program at Zurich University of the Arts, and an international lecturer in Sound Studies and Sound Design. With his practice-based and interdisciplinary research, Hug has had a significant impact on the field of sonic interaction design. As member of the steering committee of the Audio Mostly conference and founder of the sound design and consultancy company “Hear Me Interact!”, he connects the worlds of academia and business. His current interests include sound design for health technology and exercise, sound design methodology, and participatory sound design processes.
Jodi Krangle has been a full-time voice actor since 2007 and has worked with clients from major brands all over the world including Dell, Lindt & Kraft. Over the years, and doing what she does, she’s learned a lot about sound and how it influences people. In November of 2019, she created her award winning podcast on this subject called Audio Branding: The Hidden Gem of Marketing and has produced over 300 episodes. The podcast discusses the power of sound and how it influences us in the context of advertising, marketing, music and science.
Rithik Kundu is a researcher and producer bridging the gap between music, technology and people. He is the Co-Founder of NYU Generative Audio & AI, an interdisciplinary research group studying the translation between academic research and real-world music applications. He conducts various research projects around AI and music, including with NYU’s Music and Audio Research Lab, the GRAMMY winner Mr. Sonic, Abbey Road Red, Masterchannel, and more. His work aims to discover the full impact of AI on musicians. With the strategic perspective of a producer, he sits on the advisory boards of various companies and research organizations looking to tap into creative AI for music and audio. Rithik has presented his research and perspective on the state of AI in music on panels at industry conferences such as Music Frontiers, Mondo, and Eurosonic, even moderating two panels at Mondo. Outside of these projects, he scored the film Redamancy which won awards at the Flight Deck Film Festival and Wild Geese Gallery, the rom-com musical Down Bad which debuted in April 2025, and produced and engineered the 2025 Tiny Desk Submission for the GrammyU-accepted band The Millers.
Sara has a background in philosophy of science (University of Bologna, 2004) and electroacoustic music composition (Conservatory of Bologna, 2006). With a strong background in classical music, she has been a professional piano and saxophone player and has been active in Europe’s contemporary music and sound art scene since the early 2000s. In 2012, she founded the first sound design studio in Asia, designing sound identities for spaces (Singapore Changi Airport, Giugiaro Architettura Milano), products (FIAMM Electric Vehicles), and brands (Ducati Motors, BMW Asia, Volkswagen Asia). Back in Europe, she obtained a PhD in Design cum laude on the topic of Data Sonification from Politecnico di Milano (2021). Since then, she has discovered a real passion for research and remains in academia. She held postdoctoral positions at the Center for Design, Northeastern University, Boston (2021/2022) and Critical Alarms Lab, TU Delft, Netherlands (2022/2023). She considers herself an activist on the importance of sound and listening as means to connect and make sense of the world and on the ethical responsibility of designers in creating a better world for all.
Amy Lilley, a native of South Africa, brings a wealth of experience to the music industry. Her career has seen her work with Platoon and Apple Music Publishing, and she initially made her mark by founding an inclusive queer live music venue in Cape Town, showcasing her dedication to fostering diverse musical communities. With a comprehensive understanding of the music business, Amy is well-versed in copyright, publishing, data analysis, and community management. Her knowledge and expertise make her an ideal partner for artists and their marketing teams who are looking to succeed in the modern music industry. Amy understands that building a strong and engaged fan community is crucial for an artist’s success. As an advocate for innovation and inclusion, she is committed to supporting artists and their teams in their quest for success.
Connor Moore is a seasoned design leader focused in the audio ux and audio branding space. For the last 15 years, Connor has been able to work with some of the most forward thinking brands creating innovative sound solutions that drive functionality and build brand affinity. These clients span a range of industry and include the likes of Google, Lucid Motors, Peloton, Uber, Airbnb and State Farm to name a few. Connor founded CMoore Sound at a time when brands first began considering sound and music as a core part of their identity systems and quickly became one of the most trusted experts in developing branded audio ecosystems in the technology sector. He has been featured in the New Yorker, The Guardian, NPR’s Marketplace and Google’s Design Series for topics covering the role of sound for brands in advertising, product and experiential activations.
Emma Rodero is a Full Professor of Media Psychology and Neurocommunication at Pompeu Fabra University (Spain), Ph.D. in Communication, Ph.D. in Psychology, Master in Pathology of Voice, and Master in Psychology of Cognition. She is the Director of the Media Psychology Lab (UPF), where she analyzes people’s physiological responses to understand how they perceive, process, and respond to different media messages, especially audio (radio, voice, audio branding, podcast…). She is the author of twelve books and eighty scientific papers about how people process voice and audio.
Takayuki Suzuki is CEO of ParadeALL, strategic EnterTech consultant based in Tokyo, Japan, bridging music and technology across Japan, US, EU and China. As entrepreneur, he leads MetaTokyo, multiverse entertainment studio for metaverse. In addition to this, he takes on various roles such as advisory board member of SXSW Pitch, Belgium MusicTech Accelerator, Director of JASRAC, Japanese major music copyright organization and etc. His career has included roles as Head of Mobile at MTV Japan and most recently Head of Digital Business Development for Universal Music Japan. He is also angel investor, guitarist and ramen lover.
Vanesa Lorena Tate is a globally recognized Head of Audio, composer, and creative leader with over two decades of experience across film, games and emerging technology. She currently leads Creative Audio at Meta, overseeing GenAI (voice, SFX, music), the metaverse, wearables, and Meta’s entire suite of apps — including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads, and Meta AI. Vanesa also leads Meta’s original music label, Sound Collection. Her credits span Oscar-nominated films (Biutiful, Hellboy II, Harry Potter) and major game franchises like Need for Speed and Candy Crush. At King (Activision Blizzard), she directed audio across all titles and marketing, managed a $250M game portfolio, and spearheaded ads experimentation initiatives. Vanesa is a 2023 Creative Impact Award recipient from Women in Games, known for her visionary leadership, cross-functional influence, and dedication to mentoring the next generation of creative audio talent.
Drew is the founder of Opening Ceremony Media, where he currently provides consultation for music, music tech, entertainment companies, and for venture capital/private equity funds. Previously, Drew was Senior Vice President of A&R at Sony Music, where he led a global team of creative professionals overseeing the Masterworks Division. While at Sony, Drew negotiated & signed 70+ artists and IP properties across a wide music spectrum of genres and formats. His projects earned a total of 22 GRAMMY and four Academy Award nominations. Drew also spent six years as Director of Artist Partnerships & Industry Relations at Pandora, where he helped oversee Pandora’s growing role in the music business. Drew is a member of ASCAP, the RIAA, a board member of both the Americana Music Association and TJ Martell Foundation, and regularly guest lectures at NYU, The New School, Northeastern, Syracuse, and Rutgers University.
Caitlyn is the Founder and Research Director of SonicUXR, a pioneering user experience research consultancy dedicated specifically to sound and audio-driven products. With over a decade of research experience, she specializes in music psychology and UX research, helping sonic branding agencies and product sound teams ground creative decisions in scientific evidence. Through SonicUXR, she has partnered with leading sonic branding studios, music technology companies, and health and wellness innovators worldwide. Caitlyn holds a PhD in Music Theory and completed postdoctoral research in music and neuroscience as a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow. She is also a trained cellist, composer, and sound designer for film and theatre, bringing both scientific rigor and creative empathy to her work.
Dani is a leader in sound innovation across games, AR, VR, AI, and immersive media. With a decade of experience directing audio for over 60+ global projects, Dani collaborates with industry leaders like Google, Meta, Apple, and Netflix to push the boundaries of interactive sound design and storytelling. Specializing in psychoacoustics and the psychology of sound, Dani explores how emerging tech transforms user experiences, shapes human connection, and drives cultural impact. A recognized futurist, Dani lectures at NYU, mentors music-tech startups, and advises on AI ethics as Advisory Board Member for Coders Beyond Borders. Focused on building scalable ventures at the intersection of sound, gamification, and next-gen sensory design, Dani is passionate about shaping the future of audio and its impact on how we live, work, and play.
Hugo Verweij is a sound designer working across product and experience design, with a focus on sound that supports clarity, usability, and coherence at scale. At LoveFrom, he collaborates across disciplines to shape sound as an integral part of the design process. Previously, Hugo spent over a decade at Apple, where he led sound design on the Design Team and was responsible for defining and evolving the sound of Apple devices over multiple generations. Earlier in his career, Hugo taught sound design and music production at HKU University of the Arts Utrecht in the Netherlands. Frustrated by the quality of ringtones available at the time, he founded Cleartones, providing minimalist ringtones for mobile devices; work that led to his involvement with Apple and iOS 7. Hugo has spoken internationally on product sound design, including at Apple's World Wide Developers Conference.
Michèle Vice-Maslin is an Emmy Winning, #1 hit Music Producer/Music Arranger/ Songwriter, Music Publisher who composes (both music & lyrics) and produces-arranges for artists/ films/television / ads/ promos/ media, etc. for her production company Mob Force Productions and her publishing company Sweetersongs. She has had numerous hit songs and cuts all over the world as well as over 6000 music placements (syncs). Her music can be heard on radio & television every day - 7 days a week/ 365 days a year. Michèle is also a public speaker and educator with her platforms Music Is My Air and From Song To Sync. She has served as, and still is, board member of various associations like PMA (Production Music Association), Recording Academy, Television Academy, AIMP Intl, and NSAI.