Bios are sorted alphabetically by first name


  • Alexis is the co-host of Visual 1st and a strategic advisor for Suite 48 Analytics

  • In 1993 he founded imaging think-tank Future Image Inc, and in 2003 the Mobile Imaging Executive Summit which became the 6Sight® Future of Imaging executive conference. 

  • In 1997-98 he was also President and Executive Director of the Digital Imaging Group, a consortium founded by Adobe, Canon, Kodak, Fuji, HP, IBM, Intel, Live Picture and Microsoft to promote digital imaging. He’s been featured in numerous publications including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Financial Times, Newsweek, and Business Week.

  • His photographs have been exhibited in Europe and the U.S. He co-authored with Annabelle Matter Napoléon – L’Esprit des Lieux, a coffee table book tracing Napoleon’s journey from cradle to grave (Michel Lafon Publishing, 2020). In 2018 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Griffin Museum of Photography. He is represented by Farmboy Fine Arts and AKG Images.

Amelia Lin
Co-Founder & CEO
Honeycomb


  • Amelia Lin is the visionary CEO and Co-Founder of Honeycomb, the #1 most realistic family photo generator. With millions of photos generated by parents, Honeycomb helps photo businesses drive purchases by creating the perfect shot to print. Honeycomb was an early pioneer of AI in family photography, with lab members of Geoffrey Hinton, the “Godfather of AI”, among its earliest backers since 2019, and has been featured in publications including The New York Times, Forbes, and Parents.com.

  • Amelia is also the co-founder of AI & Photography, the first professional group for proponents of AI in the photo industry. (If interested in learning more, find them during their lunch Birds of a Feather Roundtable!)

  • As a seasoned entrepreneur and AI community leader with over a decade of experience building software products at some of the fastest growing companies in Silicon Valley, Amelia also co-founded GenAI Founders, the first Slack community for founders building in generative AI.

  • Amelia started her first business at age 14. After working in nanotechnology research labs, she was an early employee at Optimizely, which grew to become the #3 highest valued YCombinator startup, after Dropbox and Airbnb.

  • She holds a undergraduate degree in physics from Harvard University, and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where she lectures on leveraging AI in technology ventures.

  • Analisa is the Founder & CEO of Catch&Release and member of the Forbes Agency Council.

  • After a decade working in the advertising agency world as an image researcher at firms like Goodby Silverstein&Partners, Goodin founded Catch&Release in 2015 to change the way advertisers leverage the internet to source and license content for commercial campaigns.

  • Andy is a Managing Director at Palmarés Advisors with over 20 years of product, corporate development and general management experience in wireless, mobility, and cloud services. As a General Manager at Amazon Web Services, Andy built and ran several businesses in the Mobile and IoT cloud services segment and helped to identify and acquire several companies.

  • Prior to Amazon, Andy worked at Nokia as a corporate development and operations executive leading the acquisition of Avvenu, Oz Communications, and Novarra. Andy led the Novarra team and launched the Nokia Xpress mobile web service growing the team to 250 people while growing the user base to more than 100 million active users.

  • Prior to Nokia, Andy worked in product management and engineering roles in software and semiconductor companies including Nokia Networks/RoofTop Communications, S3, Exponential Technology, and Intel.

  • Andy holds a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA from the University of California-Berkeley. Andy is a registered Series 79 and Series 63 investment-banking representative.

Anna Dickson
VP Content Strategy & Operations
Shutterstock


  • With a proven track record of leadership and innovation in the technology industry, Anna is a visionary leader in the realm of content strategy and operations. She is also a seasoned product management professional with over two decades of experience. As VP of Content Strategy & Operations at Shutterstock, Anna has the critical task of developing a strategic roadmap for sourcing and deploying content to drive key business metrics. 

  • Formerly, Anna served as the Group Product Manager at Google, where she spearheaded the strategic direction and implementation of the Licensed Media Service, a pivotal internal tool facilitating the delivery of media content to over 100 product teams within Google. The successful launch of the Licensed Media Service in 2018, has since garnered over 30 billion daily impressions and achieved a remarkable 44% year-over-year growth.

  • Prior to Google, Anna was deputy director of photography at the Wall Street Journal, photo director at the Huffington Post and photo editor at iHeartRadio and Rolling Stone.

  • Driven by a profound mission to empower users with access to diverse and high-quality media content, Anna's vision and leadership continue to shape the future of content consumption and creation across Shutterstock and beyond.

Anya Thrash
Executive VP of Marketing, Pro Channels
Bay Photo / Sensaria

  • With over two decades of experience in the photography industry, Anya is a driving force behind the marketing strategies of Sensaria's professional brands, notably Bay Photo, where she serves as the Executive Vice President of Marketing for Pro Channels. Leveraging her profound expertise in professional photography and ecommerce, she crafts and executes brand strategies aimed at cultivating customer loyalty and satisfaction.

  • Anya's journey with Bay Photo commenced in 2003, coinciding with the rise of digital photography. Throughout her tenure, she has played a pivotal role in propelling Bay Photo into a premier print lab for professional photographers and artists nationwide. Her contributions span various domains, from spearheading the development of Bay Photo's online presence to shaping its brand identity and fostering innovation.

  • As a seasoned leader, Anya has consistently driven revenue growth and expanded market share for both Sensaria and Bay Photo by emphasizing collaboration, creativity, and a relentless pursuit of innovation.

Bruce Watermann
Founder,
Executive Consultant
PrintReady Network LLC.


  • Bruce has been at the intersection of photography and electronic output since the onset of the digital age, then running professional photo labs and supporting many of the major Northwest brands of the 1980’s.

  • Moving full-time into digital imaging in the early 90’s, he was chosen by Bill Gates to build out the initial image library at Interactive Home Systems/Continuum Productions, which became Corbis.

  • Entering the 2000’s, Bruce began supporting new and existing companies in digitizing and monetizing their content, growing the initial Apple iPhoto book business, and supporting many companies moving into the direct-to-consumer print model.

  • In 2005 he joined the founding team at Blurb.com, where he managed global print product development and production strategy, print technology, order fulfillment, partner relationships, customer support, large order services, and logistics.

  • He currently is an Executive Consultant at PrintReady Network LLC.

  • Cathi is a pioneering entrepreneur and the visionary CEO behind The Photo Managers Association, a globally recognized authority in the field of photo organizing and management.

  • With over two decades of experience in the industry, Cathi has established herself as a leading advocate for the importance of preserving memories through curated photo & video collections.

  • Her expertise has been sought after by media outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and NPR, where she has shared her insights on the evolving landscape of photo management in the digital age.

  • Charlie is the Co-Founder and CEO of Remento, an early-stage venture making it easier than ever to collect and enrich your family’s most treasured memories.

  • Before founding Remento, Charlie held a variety of media and storytelling roles, including as a speechwriter in the Obama Administration and Public Affairs Director at 21st Century Fox.

  • Previously, Charlie was a consultant with Burson-Marsteller’s crisis communications team and held multiple roles at NBC News.

  • Charlie received a BA in Political Science from Brown University and an MBA from Harvard Business School


  • Chris Zacharias is a visionary entrepreneur and technologist working at the intersection of computer graphics and the Internet.

  • He is the founder and CEO of imgix, a company dedicated to creating the world's largest image processing pipeline. Under Chris's leadership, imgix has grown to process more than 8 billion images every day, empowering its customers to unlock the full potential and intrinsic value of their image assets.

  • Prior to founding imgix, Chris was Senior Web Developer at YouTube, where he launched the YouTube HTML5 video player and built YouTube Feather, a hyper-lightweight version of the YouTube video page.

  • Chris earned his Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology & New Media with a concentration on 3D graphics from Rochester Institute of Technology.

  • Christina Vaughan has worked in the Visual Media industry for over 30 years, navigating through challenges of Gender in Business leadership and in Photography, both behind and in front of the camera, covering a wide geographical landscape having worked in the UK, France, Germany and the USA. She has also run international distribution channels in over 80 countries worldwide, while gaining a unique perspective of how women are portrayed in photography across the globe.

  • She is currently on the EDI Board of Sheffield United Football Club, one of the oldest professional soccer teams in the world with her focus being Women’s Soccer and the role of People of Color in Soccer. 

  • Christina is also the founder of Cultura Creative, an image agency, focused on Diversity and Inclusion in stock imagery both in-front and behind the camera. Cultura Creative is an early pioneer in creating ethical and sustainable datasets that address the bias in AI training.

  • Christina is Immediate past president of the international trade body, CEPIC. She has twice been president, with her most recent tenure having a mandate for Gender Equality in International Photography.

  • Christina was the founder of Image Source, which for 25 years was one of the leading stock photography producers, employing over 150 in 4 offices in 3 countries, that won many awards including Investors in People, The Queen’s Award for Enterprise and Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion. 

  • She is now based in Sheffield in the North of England where she also volunteers for local communities promoting diversity and inclusion across a broad range of socio-economic backgrounds. She has been an Everywoman Ambassador and Muse for several years and is an avid supporter of getting more Woman and Girls into both Sport and Business. She is of mixed heritage with her Mother being from the Hmar Tribe of Mizoram and her Father Anglo-Burmese. 

  • Elodie is a recognized creative and business leader in the visual media space. She is the CEO of CatchLight, a media organization building a new collaborative model for visual journalism at the local and global levels. 

  • In 2016, Elodie was named a JSK fellow in media innovation at Stanford University where she researched the monetization of photography in the age of platforms. During her 11 years at Getty Images, she oversaw and helped build Getty Images’ content offering and helped lead its strategic development. Elodie was Getty Images’ Senior Director of Strategic Development based in the Bay Area focusing on Getty Images’ relationships with platforms such as Google, Instagram and Pinterest.

  • Previously, she managed content partnerships with over 300 large media companies globally such as Vice, Conde Nast, National Geographic, amongst others.

  • Elodie co-founded Getty Images' high-end portraiture and fashion division, Contour, which she led until 2014 representing the work of over 100 high-end portrait and fashion photographers.

  • She also co-founded the Getty Images Instagram grant.

  • Elodie is the author of numerous essays as well as two books: one2one, published by TeNeues and Kant In Between Hope and Despair, published by L’Harmattan.

  • Hans is president of Suite 48 Analytics and chair of Visual 1st. He is also member of The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA).

  • Prior to founding Suite 48 Analytics, most recently Hans was sr. director of market research at multimedia software company, Nero, and director of product strategy at desktop publishing software company, Quark

  • He has directed the first European Future Image Mobile Imaging Summit and chaired various Seybold Seminars PDF Conferences, as well as the Electronic Publishing Magazine Print Workflow Summit.  

  • Hans co-founded Piczo, a teen photo sharing site that in its heydays counted over 25 million registered users. 

  • Hans was also director of professional solutions at imaging software company, Live Picture.  

  • Hans holds a Masters degree in Industrial Economics from Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. 

  • Hans is founder and CEO of HelloPrint, Europe’s leading platform for customizable printed products. 

  • With 25+ years experience in our industry, Hans brings a wealth of experience in building business models around printed and customizable products. From his early days around the millennium with his ventures Flyerzone and Printing.com, to his latest developments in AI with his company Engaige, Hans has always be on the frontier of innovation in the fast moving print and promotional industry. 

  • His latest initiative, Merch by Helloprint and its newest Enterprise/API solution, are now globally available, with Helloprint's e-commerce model soon to launch in the US.

Jason Kirby
Chief Product & Technology Officer
Magic Memories

  • Jason Kirby is the Chief Product & Technology Officer at Magic Memories, a global leader in photography retail.

  • With a foundation in engineering from Sitel and TD Ameritrade, Jason transitioned into leadership roles within sales and marketing before specializing in Product Management.

  • His proficiency in leading digital transformations and expanding into new and adjacent markets has been pivotal in driving company growth, contributing to several successful exits, including a notable IPO in 2013.  

Jeff Herbst
Founding Managing Partner
GFT Ventures


  • Jeff is Co-Founding Managing Partner of GFT Ventures. He brings to the fund over three decades of venture capital, operational, business development and M&A experience.

  • Prior to launching GFT, Jeff spent 20 years as NVIDIA’s Vice President of Business Development where he built an ecosystem of accelerated computing applications spanning the domains of AI, Data Science, Autonomous Machines, and Graphics and Visualization. During his tenure at the company, among other things he created the Nvidia ventures and acquisitions programs, overseeing more than 40 global investments and 20 acquisitions valued over $8B. He also led the Nvidia Inception global startup accelerator, now comprised of more than 10,000 AI, Data Science and High Performance computing companies.

  • Prior to joining Nvidia, Jeff ran the Business Development function at the Altavista search engine, and was a Partner at the Wilson Sonsini law firm in Palo Alto.

  • He holds a JD from Stanford University and a BS with Honors in Computer Science and Economics from Brown University.


  • Jeremy is a seasoned product leader and entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in innovating at the intersection of media and technology.

  • As the Founder and CEO of Augie Studio, he is pioneering the use of AI in video creation, making it more accessible to storytellers and content creators worldwide.

  • Jeremy's career includes executive roles at WarnerMedia, Etsy, CBS Interactive, and Viggle, shaping the future of content creation and storytelling through AI, blockchain, AR, VR, and more.

  • As an entrepreneur, he led product development for over a dozen innovative products, while his consultancy, Stage Two, transformed concepts into successes for clients like Dropcam, Boxee, and Sphero.

  • Jeremy's visionary leadership is poised to empower creators worldwide through Augie's AI-driven video editing capabilities, making high-quality content creation more accessible and efficient than ever.

Krista Minekime
Vice President, US Operations
Gelato


  • Krista is the Vice President of US Operations at Gelato, a global technology company and platform focused on print on demand for ecommerce businesses. There she focuses on scaling and building network operations to deliver a best in class customer experience. 

  • Prior to Gelato, Krista was at Minted leading the daily operations of their stationery partner network. 

  • Krista resides in the Bay Area, where she spends her time chasing around her husband and two young boys, aged 3.5 and 1 year. 

  • Matt is a leader in marketing, his career has focused on merging technology with creativity, helping to build strong brand engagement and performance working with brands and businesses including L’Oreal, Hilton, Meta, Google, and WPP.

  • His career began at M&C Saatchi in the UK, where he launched the agency's first digital company, paving the way for modern advertising.

  • In Australia, Matt developed Connection Planning strategies that went beyond traditional media to connect people with products through insight driven research, customer journey mapping and innovative creative activations aimed at sparking conversation and sharing. He also co-founded Republic of Everyone, a consultancy focused on integrating purpose and sustainability into brand stories.

  • Nine years ago, Matt moved to California with his family to join DDB, where he led the team that won the $100 million Energy Upgrade California account for the Omnicom network by turning a government program into a public social movement for energy innovation.

  • Over the last six years, Matt has led Genero, a marketing platform that uses technology to harness the skills of thousands of creatives and influencers. This provides clients with a flexible, efficient, high-quality creative solution to help meet the constantly evolving creative content needs in today’s dynamic marketing landscape.

  • Sami is a general partner at Spintop Ventures, a Nordic early stage tech venture capital firm.

  • Sami has his roots in mobile imaging technologies as co-founder of Scalado, which grew to become a leading mobile imaging software company in the world with more than 1 Billion licenses sold worldwide to essentially all the OEM’s and many of the sensor/chipset makers.

  • The company was acquired by Nokia in 2012, and later integrated into Microsoft where Sami served as Director of Photography reporting to Seattle HQ's.

Sofiia Shvets
CEO & Founder
Claid

  • Sofiia is CEO and co-founder of Let's Enhance/Claid.ai, a deep-tech company focused on developing visual AI tools that automate the production of high-quality photo content. 

  • She's been working in the Generative AI field for the last 6 years and her products have been used to edit more than 250 million photos. She is a Techstars alumna and was recognized by Forbes as one of the 30u30

  • Sofiia is passionate about combining creativity and technology.

Stephanie Mansolf
VP, Business Development & Partnerships
Perfect Corp.

  • With over 10 years of experience in marketing, business development and strategic partnerships, Stephanie currently leads business development efforts for the AR and AI beauty tech powerhouse, Perfect Corp.

  • Stephanie is passionate about creating thoughtful collaborations and powerful campaigns that enhance consumer journeys. She enjoys working with beauty enthusiasts across the globe to solve consumer pain points with technology.  


Tara Pixley, PhD
Executive Director +
co-Founder
Authority Collective


  • Tara is co-Founder and Executive Director of Authority Collective — an organization dedicated to diversifying perspectives in visual media — and a photographer and professor with a 20-year career in visual journalism.

  • Tara has been recognized and awarded by the Reynolds Journalism Institute as an Innovation Fellow, the Pulitzer Center, IWMF, World Press Photo, Folio Eddie Awards, and by Harvard University's Nieman Foundation for Journalism as a Visiting Knight Fellow.

  • Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Newsweek, ProPublica, HuffPost, Nieman Reports, ESPN Magazine, and the Black Scholar, among many other publications.

  • Projects she has led include: Journalism Source of Safety (J-SOS); the 2022 State of Photography Report; and Photoshelter’s Guide to Inclusive Photography.

  • Tara serves as Vice President of the National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) Board and is on the Board of stock photo co-op Stocksy United.


Tom Bishop
CTO & Co-founder
Glass Imaging

  • Tom is an expert in Imaging Algorithms and an entrepreneur with over 15 years of experience in AI/Deep Learning, Computer Vision, Computational Photography, and Image Processing.

  • From 2013 to 2018, Tom developed core technology at Apple for the iPhone’s Portrait Mode.

  • As a PhD/Post-Doc researcher in Edinburgh UK, he worked on inverse imaging technology, publishing papers on De-blurring, Super-Resolution, and Depth Estimation, applied to computational camera architectures like Light Fields and coded aperture imaging. He later led teams at two startups, applying advanced Machine Learning to large-scale image recognition and retrieval systems, and automated Photo Retouching with Portrait Professional.

  • At Glass Imaging, Tom combines his extensive experience to radically improve camera system quality. His team aims to bridge the gap between smartphone cameras and DSLRs using edge AI and novel optics. Their Glass AI technology replaces traditional Image Signal Processing (ISP) with a Neural Network approach, correcting lens aberrations and sensor issues while denoising, demosaicing, and deblurring RAW images for detailed, sharp and clean results. Additionally, the Deep Optics paradigm is applied to create new lens designs combined with and AI post-processing - transforming the possibilities of miniaturized cameras.