Rob Maigret is a Los Angeles-based entrepreneur, technologist, and digital storyteller. He currently serves as President & CTO of DigiSynd, Inc., which he and longtime collaborator, Oliver Luckett, founded in 2007.
In June of 2008, DigiSynd was acquired by The Walt Disney Company, and now serves to manage the company's brand presence in the social space, working with franchises from Disney Studios, Disney Animation, and Disney*Pixar, among others. Within this framework, Rob leads all creative, strategic, and technological advancements and implementation.
DigiSynd's competitive edge is the direct result of the synergistic relationship it has fostered between its creative and technology departments - a balance that Rob has cultivated since the beginning. One of the company's specialties is the creation of original content, whether by their award-winning in-house creative team or through collaboration with fresh and innovative artists such as Eepybird, Pogo, and Simmons & Burke. Inherent to this success is the team of bleeding-edge technologists that Rob has assembled throughout the years, a group that includes some of the best hackers, Open Source advocates, hardware nuts, Linux maintainers, security experts and social networking specialists around.
Rob is also a founding member of X12 Productions, the LA-based new media collective formed within DigiSynd as a way to allow its creative team to experiment outside of the perimeters of client work. In 2008, X12's first social reality game, Nowheremen, received an Honorary Webby Award, and proved to be a case study of how to build and nurture online communities through traditional storytelling, top-notch video production, and innovative technological puzzles.
Since DigiSynd was initially founded, it was essential to both Rob and Oliver to create a revolutionary company that would be self-sufficient, productive, and humble. To quote Walt Disney himself, "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." This mindset has been the formula behind DigiSynd's success. Under strong leadership, both DigiSynd and X12 have accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time, and continue to break new ground daily.
In the past, Rob has held executive positions at a number of media technology companies, most recently at Revver.com - also co-founded by Oliver Luckett. Revver's vision was one of rewarding content owners and copyright holders, which differentiated them from competitors such as YouTube. As Chief Technology Officer, Rob was responsible for the design and execution of the company's revenue-sharing approach to user-generated video syndication. In 2008, Revver was sold to Live Universe for an undisclosed amount.
Rob Maigret as Karl from “Nowheremen” 2008
Prior to Revver, Rob spent time as Senior Vice President of Technology for iBlast, Inc., an early pioneer of digital broadcasting, and another company co-founded by Oliver Luckett. During his time at iBlast, Rob was instrumental in the design and deployment of the largest terrestrial datacast system in the United States.
Earlier, Rob rose through the ranks at PolyGram/Universal Music to become one of the company's youngest directors of information technology. He was a key player in the technical integration of the two companies, which ultimately led to the formation of the largest worldwide music conglomerate. It was here that Rob received his education in technology politics, enterprise decision-making, and studio life.
Rob was born and raised in Warwick, Rhode Island, where his mother was a local representative and his father was an electrical engineer. He earned a bachelor's degree in Performing Arts from Boston's Emerson College, where he began his entertainment career as a playwright, filmmaker, and short story writer. In 1994, he left the East Coast for Los Angeles, and has briefly resided in London, England and Seattle, Washington.
Rob currently lives in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles with his wife, Julie. His current choice of weapons are a MacBook Pro 5,1, 997 CS2 Cabriolet, 32GB 3Gs iPhone and a Canon EOS 50D. Rob's hobbies include automobiles, photography, music appreciation, fitness, gaming, and socializing in controlled situations.