On Wednesday, December 3, 2025, Chris Pfaff moderated the ‘Streaming and Beyond: The Future of TV Sports’ panel at the TV of Tomorrow Show NYC at Hudson Commons in Manhattan.

The conversation ran from FAST channels for niche sports to gamification of sports on TV, and AI personalization for viewers.

The expert panel consisted of:

•    Cathy Rasenberger, President, Free Live Sports
•    Christy Tanner, Chair, Swerve TV
•    Matt Felder, VP of Ad Sales, Fubo
•    Pete Scott, Chief Strategy Officer, Play Anywhere
•    Rob Bocchicchio, President, Centriply

STREAMING AND BEYOND: THE FUTURE OF TV SPORTS

Live-streaming sports is a global market that is valued at $32.4 billion and is projected to reach more than $100 billion by 2033. As live sports shifts to direct-to-consumer platforms, engagement matters more than ever, with AI and data shaping the experience. The gamification of sports is upon us, and features ranging from alt-casts to multi-view to real-time personalization will drive greater monetization of sports content, increasing fan engagement. This panel will discuss the production of a brave new world for sports content.

On Tuesday, October 21, 2025, Chris Pfaff moderated the ‘Future of Fan Engagement with AI’ panel at the 2025 Upside U.S. Sports Tech Summit at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, FL (the home of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champs, the Florida Panthers).

The session discussed tailoring content and experiences for individual fans and AI-powered fan engagement and training tools, and featured:

* Bill Chapman, Emmy® Award-winning live director and producer, Warner Bros. Discovery
* Pawl Osterreicher, co-founder and CEO, Respo.Vision
* André Antonelli, CEO, Machina Sports
* Steven Lund, head of sales, Cerbrec
* Robert Hull, CFO, Panini America

You can watch the full session at:

https://youtu.be/UTd6RCEIw94?feature=shared

ABOUT THE 2025 UPSIDE U.S. SPORTS TECH SUMMIT

The Sports Tech Conference, produced by Upside Global, features leading sports medicine, sports science, sports training, sports engagement, and sports management professionals in an all-day event that includes leagues (NHL, NBA, NWSL, NCAA), teams (Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, New York Liberty, Florida Panthers), schools (Florida Atlantic University, FIU, University of Miami), as well as leading venture capitalists (SeventySix Capital, Courtside VC, Wildcard Ventures, Cartan Capital, Stadia Ventures, Causeway Media Partners, Relay Ventures), and leading sports tech firms (Machina Sports, Vert Sports, Kinvent, Winback).

Chris Pfaff moderated an expert virtual panel for Streaming Media Connect, on February 27, 2025, ‘App, Crackle, Pop: What a Video App Really Needs,’ with Bruno Giner, NPAW; Ankit Awasthi, Amazon Prime; Deirdre Magrane, Tubi; Tom Hurlbutt, Crunchyroll, and Jason Williams, Plex.

The session discussed the product considerations and technical issues surrounding app development for video publishers. You can watch the full session at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-jpftHBl9M&list=PLcSb1s2U3uyDMnUvP0RMv0WnVwp25b6OS&index=15

Chris Pfaff moderated the ‘Now It’s Personal: AI and Streaming Personalization’ panel at the virtual Streaming Media Connect conference, on Tuesday, August 20, 2024. The expert panel featured Chris Regina, CCO, TCL; Shobana Radhakrishnan, sr. dir., engineering, GoogleTV, Arash Pendari, founder/creative director, Vionlabs AB. and Alex Gruber, chief product officer, Deltatre.

You can watch the full session at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RvJ4JUPhIY&list=PLcSb1s2U3uyA8AMciRoww3BTj6QwoOQII&index=4&t=503s

‘NOW IT’S PERSONAL: AI AND STREAMING PERSONALIZATION’

Many of the ways AI is poised to alter the streaming ecosystem happen behind the scenes, involving the streamlining of workflows or the automation of repetitive production or delivery tasks. But AI also has the potential to transform viewing experiences, making them more personal and immersive. The panel explores what’s possible and what’s probable and how we can expect to see AI’s real-world impact on streaming experiences take shape in the months and years to come.

Chris Pfaff moderated a fireside chat – ‘How AI + Data Shift Businesses Today’ – at Arctic15 2022 in Helsinki on June 7 2022 at Kaapelitehdas. The session featured two dynamic founders who are using AI in their businesses: Ariane C. Gomes from Baseimmune and Marit Rødevand from Strise.

Ariane C. Gomes, Baseimmune (left), listens as Marit Rødevand, Strise, discusses AI and data strategies, as Chris Pfaff, moderator, looks on (right).

Marit Rødevand, from Strise (left), Chris Pfaff, from Chris Pfaff Tech Media LLC (center), and Ariane C. Gomes, from Baseimmune (right) prior to the session

envision.ai, the Montreal-based firm that has been a leader in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for video insights, launched its VideoViews product, a cloud-based tool which enables video professionals to conduct automatic discovery of topics and information in video content. VideoViews uses patented technologies in areas such as speech detection, facial tracking and video scene understanding to explore topics within video and enables automatic curation and editing of video.

On May 27, 2020, envision.ai conducted a live webinar, ‘AI for Video: Scaling Deep Learning for the Multichannel Universe,’ that demonstrated and discussed the use of AI for video and visual imaging in the in the broader media and entertainment industries. The webinar featured conversation with some of the leading figures in the science of visual information, and will discuss considerations for AI in video as they relate to mobile networks, broadcast production, and computer vision.

In addition to Thomas Jelonek, founder and CEO of envision.ai, the panel included:

•    Dr. Eric Petajan, principal systems engineer, Video, CV, AI, AT&T Mobility
•   Bryce Hunter, senior vice president, digital, Boat Rocker Media
•   Chris Pfaff, CEO, Chris Pfaff Tech Media LLC (moderator)

You can watch the entire webinar below:

Thomas Jelonek, from envision.ai, introduces VideoViews

Eric Petajan, from AT&T, discusses the role of AI in 5G networks

Bryce Hunter, from Boat Rocker Media, discusses the use of AI in production workflow

Jan Ameri, CEO of Arctic15, welcomes the crowd on Day 1 of Arctic15 Stockholm 2020

Peter Vesterbacka kicks off the show on Day 1 with a heady talk

Our good friends at Arctic15 held one of the last events in the venture world before lockdown at the Münchenbryggeriet in Stockholm, on February 5th and 6th. The sprawling event space was ideal for making new contacts, and dozens of new investors and start-ups crowded the Deal Room area (a much more commodious and well-lit space than the Cable Factory in Helsinki). This was the first legitimate Arctic15 event in Stockholm, and the likes of Industrifonden, Northzone, Bonnier Ventures, Ericsson Ventures, Luminar Ventures, Creandum and GP Bullhound, among other reputable Swedish investors, welcomed founders and investors alike at their stands facing massive windows overlooking a surprisingly sunny Stockholm sky.

Outside, and inside, the Münchenbryggeriet

Chris Pfaff chaired the Media Revolution track on Day 1, which included a fireside chat with Arctic15 CEO Jan Ameri and the legendary Tommy Palm (Candy Crush Saga, King Digital Entertainment, Resolution Games), a panel moderated by Pfaff, with Harri Manninen, Finnish gaming legend and founding partner of Play Ventures, and Joakim Dal, partner at GP Bullhound. The panel, ‘How Gaming Will Dominate the Entertainment Industry in the 2020s,’ can be heard at:

https://bit.ly/3gXFKL4

Chris Pfaff introduces the Media Revolution Track at Arctic15 Stockholm 2020

Tommy Palm (left) discusses gaming with Jan Ameri

Harri Manninen (left), from Play Ventures, Joakim Dal (center), from GP Bullhound, and Chris Pfaff (right), from Chris Pfaff Tech Media LLC, discuss ‘How Gaming Will Dominate the Entertainment Industry in the 2020s’

Other sessions on the track included a showcase demo of Playpilot by founder/CEO David Mühle; a keynote – ‘Scale 10X like a Mobile Game Company’ – by Sonja Ängeslevä, product lead for Zynga; a fireside chat with Epidemic Sound founder/CEO Oscar Höglund and Staffan Helgesson, general partner at Creandum, and a rousing fireside chat to finish, with Jan Ameri and Yamba founder/CEO John Zerihoun.

David Mühle, founder/CEO of Playpilot, demonstrates the service on Day 1 of Arctic15 Stockholm

Sonja Ängeslevä, product lead for Zynga, gives a keynote – ‘Scale 10X Like a Mobile Game Company’ – on Day 1 or Arctic15 Stockholm 2020

Pfaff moderated a panel on Day2, ‘Journeys of AI & ML startups in the Nordics’ with Anna Holmquist, founder/CEO of Gazzine; Arash Pendari, founder/creative director of Vionlabs; Jonna Ekman, marketing director at Storykit, and Jonathan Selbie, CEO at Univrses.

Anna Holmquist, from Gazzine (with microphone), discusses her journey to AI

Arash Pendari (with microphone) discusses Vionlabs’ work with leading operators

Jonna Ekman (with microphone) explains Storykit’s value proposition

The panel, left to right: Jonna Ekman, Anna Holmquist, Chris Pfaff, Arash Pendari, Jonathan Selbie

Jonna Ekman (far left), from Storykit; Anna Holmquist, from Gazzine (second from left), Arash Pendari (center), from Vionlabs, Jonathan Selbie, from Univrses (2nd from right), and Chris Pfaff (far right), from Chris Pfaff Tech Media LLC

With a reception at Stockholm City Hall, and a grand tour of the historic building on Night 1 and a fabulous dinner at Stockholm Fisk, hosted by Epistemic VC and Northzone on Night 2, Arctic15 closed out another strong event in high fashion.

The scene at Stockholm City Hall, with (left to right) Chris Pfaff, Jordan Shapiro, VP, IonQ; Jari Mieskonen, managing partner, Conor Venture Partners; Henrik Keinonen, head of partnerships, gaming/XR/blockchain, from NewCoHelsinki/City of Helsinki, and Jan Ameri, CEO of Arctic15

Jan Ameri (standing) addresses the crowd at Stockholm Fisk

Chris Pfaff and Peter Vesterbacka discuss the “FinEst Bay” concept of connecting Helsinki and Tallinn via tunnel

Chris Pfaff, Arash Pendari, and Tomas Bennich on Day 1 of Arctic15 Stockholm 2020

The latest edition of the TV of Tomorrow Show New York, in a new location at Town Stages in TriBeCa, delivered a day’s worth of engaging discussion and demos of advanced TV and OTT analytics and programmatic ad solutions on Wednesday, December 4, 2019. I produced and moderated the ‘AI and ML Take Over TV: Monetizing Every Pixel’ panel, which featured a powerhouse of experts in visual content automation and AI, including Richard Collins, CEO of Tellyo; Randa Minkarah, COO and co-founder of Transform Inc.; Phil Zepeda, vice president, product & marketing at Vilynx, and Thomas Jelonek, CEO of envision AI.

You can listen to the full session at: https://lnkd.in/e9hd-aG

Chris Pfaff, Richard Collins, Randa Minkarah, Phil Zepeda, and Thomas Jelonek, after the ‘AI and ML Take Over TV’ panel, December 4, 2019

Richard Collins discusses Tellyo’s multichannel automation features

Phil Zepeda discusses Vilynx’s content sentiment detection features

Randa Minkarah discusses Transform’s curation features

Thomas Jelonek discusses envision AI’s intelligent tagging features

Simon Applebaum (back to camera) asks a question of Richard Collins, from Tellyo, at the ‘AI and ML Take Over TV’ panel

Ravi Peravali, from event sponsor Tavant, with TV of Tomorrow Show founder and CEO, Tracy Swedlow

The TV of Tomorrow Show in San Francisco, held at the Golden Gate Club in the Presidio, June 12-13, 2019, was a solid event. I moderated a panel – ‘AI and ML in the TV Industry: Mining Data in Every Corner’ – that brought together an incredibly rich array of perspectives on AI from five different solutions providers, including Randa Minkarah, COO and co-founder, Transform Inc.; Juan Carlos Riveiro, CEO, Vilynx; Kevin Gou, CEO, Hive; Aman Sareen, CEO, ZypMedia, and Arun Prakash, CFO, Cerebri AI.

The discussion ran from use cases of AI and ML in the OTT world as it reflects customer journey; content curation; content distribution, and programmatic advertising.

Chris Pfaff leads discussion on the ‘AI and ML in the TV Industry’ panel

Aman Sareen, from ZypMedia, discusses his approach to AI-powered local-first programmatic advertising

Kevin Gou discusses Hive Data, and how to build machine learning models 

Chris Pfaff, Aman Sareen, Randa Minkarah, J.C. Riveiro, Arun Prakash, and Kevin Gou, after the ‘AI and ML in the TV Industry’ panel

At Arctic 15 in Helsinki, I conducted a fireside chat on the ethics of AI with Pia Erkenheimo, founder and chief orchestrator of iloom.io (http://www.iloom.io), on Thursday, June 6th, from 1:20-1:45 pm on theAccenture AI Track at Arctic 15, at the Cable Factory (Kaapelitehdas, Tallberginkatu 1) in Helsinki.

iloom.io uses natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML) to analyze authentic text and language that employees and customers use to deliver narrative understanding beyond words. In addition to her role with iloom.io, Pia is also chairman of Solved – the clean tech company; serves on various company boards, is an AI researcher at the Aalto School of Science and Technology, and serves as an innovation expert and evaluator for the European Commission.

The conversation discussed the recent geopolitical issues with social media and targeted messaging and advertising, and how AI tools can spot and manage manipulation of public conversations. Pia’s work on the venture and non-government agency (NGO) sides lent great credence to the overall topic, and she hinted at further coming work on her behalf to help stem the tide of AI run amok in the public sphere.

Chris Pfaff and Pia Erkenheimo discuss the ethics of AI at Arctic 15 on June 6, 2019 at the Cable Factory, Helsinki

Chris Pfaff and Pia Erkenheimo discuss conversational topics prior to their fireside chat on the ethics of AI at Arctic15, on June 6, 2019

Chris Pfaff and Pia Erkenheimo enjoy radiant sunshine outside the Cable Factory in Helsinki, prior to their fireside chat on the ethics of AI at Arctic15, June 6, 2019