Jer Thorp is currently the data artist in residence at The New York Times. His software-based art has been featured all over the world. His art brings big data sets to life, combining state-of-the-art science with a natural interest in the human condition. His “Cascade” project at The New York Times visualizes the sharing of content through social media, offering tremendous insight into the way we use digital networks to share, influence, and connect with others. He was also a major contributor to the 9/11 memorial project in New York City, where he wrote a program that organized the names of victims not by alphabetical order, but by relationships—putting coworkers next to coworkers, and brothers next to brothers. Originally from Vancouver, he lives in New York City, where, along with his work at the New York Times, he teaches in NYU’s ITP program. To investigate the entailments of Big Data, Jer helped launch The Office for Creative Research with his peers. Thorp’s award-winning software-based work has been exhibited in Europe, Asia, North America, South America, including in the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan. Jer has over a decade of teaching experience, in Langara College’s Electronic Media Design Program, at the Vancouver Film school, and as an artist-in-residence at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Recently, he has presented at The Ford Foundation in New York City, at the National Academies, and he is a member of the world Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on Design Innovation.

Gabe Zichermann is the chair of GSummit where top gamification experts across industries gather to share knowledge and insight about customer & employee engagement and loyalty. He is also an author, highly rated public speaker and entrepreneur whose next book, The Gamification Revolution looks at how leaders are leveraging gamification strategy to crush the competition. His previous books, Gamification by Design (2011) and Game-Based Marketing (2010) have helped define the industry's standards and frameworks, and continue to be key reference materials today. Gabe resides in New York City, where he is co-director of startup accelerator The Founder Institute, and a board member of StartOut.org.

Kaplan Mobray, award-winning author, thought leader, career coach and motivational speaker, is recognized as one of the nation’s leading career experts and an authority on personal branding. With over fifteen years of experience leading corporate marketing for Fortune 500 companies, Kaplan teaches organizations how to develop inspired leaders, increase employee engagement and productivity and unify diverse workforces for greater teamwork and company growth. Kaplan Mobray is author of the bestselling book The 10K’s of Personal Branding, offering ten principles to attain superior satisfaction and success in both career and life. He serves as a frequent contributor to various media including the Wall Street Journal, CNN, CBS, NBC, FOX News, BET, Businessweek, and Ad Age and is an active advisor to leading business school professors. In 2010, Mobray was selected as the keynote speaker to address NFL players at Super Bowl XLIV in Miami. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and College of Arts & Sciences, Mobray was named one of the “Top 40 Under 40” by the Network Journal Magazine and received the 2008 Rising Star Award by the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR). He serves on the national board of (ALPFA), the nation’s largest Latino business professional association and is active in charitable and civic organizations.