Q1. Could you start by giving us a brief overview of your professional background, particularly focusing on your expertise in the industry?

I am a technology and innovation executive with over 20 years of experience leading digital transformation across the gaming, AI, and emerging tech industries. As the former Director of Emerging Technology at Starbucks and founder of Tech Levitate, I’ve built a career at the intersection of creative innovation and scalable engineering.

My expertise spans game development, immersive technologies (AR/VR), AI automation, and enterprise architecture, with a strong focus on driving innovation within Fortune 500 companies, high-growth startups, and mission-driven organizations. I hold multiple U.S. patents in innovation and emerging technology and have led the development of both consumer-facing digital products and internal innovation frameworks.

With a deep understanding of the technical and strategic dimensions of product development, I help organizations bring cutting-edge experiences to life—whether through interactive platforms, smart automation, or gamified solutions.

Q2. What emerging technologies are large enterprises most actively exploring to stay ahead of digital-native disruptors?

AI is at the center of most digital transformation discussions within large enterprises today. However, upon closer examination, several key applications are emerging as priorities. 

Enterprises are increasingly leveraging computer vision for visual analysis of customer behavior, voice AI to manage initial customer interactions, and AI-driven recommendation engines to enhance personalization. Another rising trend is AI-assisted software development, sometimes referred to as “vibe coding,” where AI tools support or even replace parts of the traditional coding workflow. 
Additional areas of exploration include AI-powered edge computing, digital drive-thru experiences, and AI-generated digital avatars used in customer service, marketing, and virtual engagement.

Q3. How do you see the evolution of "phygital" (physical + digital) customer experiences—what's working, and what's still experimental? 

Over the past decade, enterprises have increasingly emphasized omnichannel customer engagement, with a particular focus on mobile. As technology continues to evolve, the next wave of "phygital" experiences is centered around creating more immersive, personalized interactions in physical spaces. 

For example, when customers arrive at a retail location, they might receive personalized recommendations, interact with augmented reality (AR) displays, or opt for automated checkout—all of which are becoming increasingly common. 
What’s still in the experimental phase is the use of spatial computing to deepen in-store engagement. High-end devices like the Apple Vision Pro are paving the way for richer, hands-free experiences—but widespread adoption and practical use cases are still being tested. 

Q4. Which AI tooling or platforms have delivered the most measurable impact in your experience—from innovation labs to full-scale enterprise deployments?

Collaborations with major cloud providers, such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, have delivered the most measurable impact—particularly when used to build customer-facing, AI-driven experiences. These platforms offer the scalability and infrastructure necessary to deploy enterprise-grade solutions, ranging from voice assistants to intelligent recommendation systems. 

By choosing to collaborate with a partner, this reduces the risk and technical expertise needed in-house to build and support a solution that's customer-facing. There is also significant traction with custom generative AI models tailored to specific business domains and deployed on public-facing channels such as websites or apps. These solutions allow companies to deliver rapid responses to customer inquiries, automate first-line support, and create interactive experiences that were previously impossible. What makes this impactful is the measurable ROI: improvements in engagement rates, reduction in customer service workloads, and increases in customer satisfaction scores all provide clear indicators that the technology is driving meaningful outcomes.