About The Speaker
Prem Akkaraju
CEO / Weta Digital
Joining Weta Digital as CEO in early 2020, Prem oversees all aspects of the company, including its recent expansion into original content and the launch of its cloud-based software as a commercial service division. Bringing years of experience and a creative vision, Prem plays an integral role in Weta Digital’s tremendous growth and has established a distinguished board of directors to lead the company, expanded Weta’s footprint with offices in California, and built a successful remote workflow during a time of need with the pandemic. Prior to joining Weta, Prem co-founded SR Labs with Sean Parker, where he previously served as CEO and still serves as Executive Chairman. Using a unique combination of anti-piracy technologies, SR Labs hardware and software-based solutions streamlined traditional distribution to theatres and consumers with an unprecedented level of quality and security at a fraction of the price. Prem is an inventor on eleven domestic and 25 global utility technology patents related to SR Labs’ ground-breaking architecture. Prior to SR Labs, Prem was the Chief Content Officer of SFX Entertainment, the world’s largest electronic music festival organizer and content producer. At SFX, Prem oversaw live and recorded electronic music festival and related content, which collectively received over one billion views online, and served as an Executive Producer of the Tomorrowland documentary film and Tomorrowland: World Stage TV special. Most recently, Prem was Executive Producer on the Oscar-nominated 2021 film, The White Tiger. Before joining SFX, Prem was a Principal at JPMorgan Entertainment Partners. Prem started his career as a Financial Analyst at Salomon Brothers, Media and Entertainment Investment Banking Group. Prem has an MBA from Columbia Business School.