Real Industry's 2018 Fall Events

These programs educate, empower, and inspire thousands of students towards creative industry careers. Students make a dent in the universe, while gaining the real-world experience and professional networks they need to secure future employment.
— Jay LeBoeuf, Founder and Executive Director at Real Industry

On September 13th, the Real Industry Design Workshop circuit will kick off, with 13 design challenges taking place at amazing university campuses and cities across the United States. Real Industry is thrilled to partner with our amazing colleagues at Pandora, Bose, Sonos, and Turtle Beach to bring our third year of experiential learning to the future leaders of the arts and technology industry.

As an educational non-profit, Real Industry developed these hands-on workshops ("design challenges") to create the opportunity for students to work with expert mentors at industry-leading companies to tackle real-world product, technical, and business problems. As a result, students are exposed to new career paths in industry, develop new skills, and rapidly expand their professional networks. Our partner organizations stand to benefit as well; companies receive invaluable product insights, employer branding, and talent access, while supporting the future leaders of our industry.

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Turtle Beach

Game Industry Night

University of Michigan - Oct. 12th

Check out the Real Industry mission video below for a closer look at our organization’s guiding goals in educating, inspiring, and empowering university students in the arts and technology industry.

To stay up to date on all things Real Industry and gain access to our world-class network of industry leaders, join our community by signing up with us below!

Real Startup 2018 In Review

The teams come with great ideas, fresh perspective, and enthusiasm, and the results are incredible. As a mentor I learn as much from them about where the world is going as they learn from me, it is a highlight of my year.
— Mike Herring, VP, Business Finance Officer, Google

On June 19th, Real Industry welcomed five teams of university based startups to San Francisco for Real Startup 2018. Real Startup is an intensive two-week entrepreneurship program for student entrepreneurs pursuing ventures in music, media, and entertainment technology. The cohort spent each day of the program visiting industry-leading companies, connecting with world-class mentors, and progressing their ventures closer and closer to their next milestones. On the last day of the program, each team delivered final presentations, which included their pitches, their lessons learned from Real Startup, and their next steps as they move forward with their startups.

Here's some fast facts and figures on Real Startup 2018:

  • 24 students hailing from universities all over the world

  • 13 fantastic host companies during site visits, including Google, Dolby, Pandora, Eventbrite, Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, and more

  • 84 mentors from various and diverse areas of industry

  • Ventures across live ticketing, AR/VR for concerts, wearables for creative expression and performance, mobile music creation apps, and media distribution platforms for cultural institutions.

Real Startup is made possible thanks to our generous corporate sponsors. Thank you to LANDR, Reverb, Stashimi, iZotope, Pro Sound Effects, New York University Steinhardt, Jaunt, and Polsinelli, and to Olivann for supporting Real Industry through a philanthropic grant.

Real Startup included visits to over a dozen amazing companies in the San Francisco Bay Area. Our time spent with companies included facility tours, masterclasses, mentor Q&As, demos, and more. Keep reading for a day-by-day snap shot from our program. For even more detail on the daily activities of the cohort check out the full schedule here: https://realstartup2018.sched.com/

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Day 1

Polsinelli

Intellectual Property for Startups; Marketing, Pitching and Storytelling with Dave Hill Jr.

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Day 2

Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center and Eventbrite

Milestones Makers Program; Industry Insights with Marty Ringlein, Mentor Meetings

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Day 3

Playgrounds and SUBPAC

Fireside Chat with Founders, Facility Tour, Product Demos, and Mini-Design Challenge

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Day 4

Dolby

Masterclasses on Hardware, User-Generated Content, and the Music Ecosystem, Demos, and Mentor Sessions

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Day 5

Google and Pyramind

Fireside Chat, Mentor Q&A, Masterclass on the World of Outside Investment, and a session with Tribe VR

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Day 6

Sandbox Suites

Mentor Madness - Teams meet with 17 of our expert mentors back to back, both in person and virtually

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Day 7

Pandora and Avid

Fireside Chat and Mentor Q&A; Masterclass on Avid's Path and Mentor Q&A with Ed Gray

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Day 8

Sennheiser and Brilliant Corners

Masterclasses on How R&D Becomes Product, The Basics of Working with Artists, and an Artist Manager and Mentor Q&A Session

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Day 9

CCRMA at Stanford University

Tour, Workshops, Mentor Meetings, and a Fireside Chat with Tim Westergren, Founder of Pandora

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Day 10

Polsinelli

Final Reception with presentations from each team

Thank you to all of the fantastic hosts of Real Startup 2018!

Real Industry was thrilled by the engagement and focus the Real Startup 2018 Cohort displayed, and our mentors were similarly impressed. For a full list of the amazing mentors who participated in this program, click here: https://realstartup2018.sched.com/directory/speakers

The passion and drive of these guys is contagious. There is an atmosphere that we are about to be witness to something really big; the joy of being a mentor is getting to share that feeling and knowing you could help make it happen.
— Mark Thomas, Researcher in Audio and Acoustics, Dolby
I think we all went through the rocky transition from college to our first real job. Being a mentor for Real Startup allows you to make a huge impact with the next generation of professionals through your experienced guidance and feedback.
— Brian Knauss, Experienced Professional at the Intersection of Design, Product, and Electrical Engineering

The two-weeks of jam-packed experiential learning and networking went by fast, but this fantastic group of young entrepreneurs made every day count. Now it’s your turn to meet the cohort:

Curtain Call - New York UniversityChange the way you discover music. Curtain Call's unique access to last minute discounted concert tickets gives users the chance to ditch digital discovery and bring local bands and artists back to their roots—live …

Curtain Call - New York University

Change the way you discover music. Curtain Call's unique access to last minute discounted concert tickets gives users the chance to ditch digital discovery and bring local bands and artists back to their roots—live music.

Quinn Robertson, Tanya Gupta, Laura Ahmetaj, Carissa Estilo

Website: http://www.curtaincall.us/

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Genki Instruments - Malmö University, University of Iceland, McGill UniversityTechnology should feel natural. Their first product is Wave. Wave by Genki Instruments is a ring that lets you control sound, shape effects and send commands with the moti…

Genki Instruments - Malmö University, University of Iceland, McGill University

Technology should feel natural. Their first product is Wave. Wave by Genki Instruments is a ring that lets you control sound, shape effects and send commands with the motion of your hand. Wave is a wearable MIDI controller that adds a creative layer on top of your musical instruments and enables you to do more with what you already have. Use Wave to express your musical intentions using motion in a visual and natural way.

Ólafur Bjarki Bogason, Jón Helgi Hólmgeirsson, Haraldur Hugosson, Daníel Grétarsson

Website: https://www.genkiinstruments.com/

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Playgrounds - New York UniversityPlaygrounds is the hub for gamified art experiences for kids and families. A direct channel between homes and art and cultural institutions, Playgrounds gives users the opportunity to engage directly with art, cultur…

Playgrounds - New York University

Playgrounds is the hub for gamified art experiences for kids and families. A direct channel between homes and art and cultural institutions, Playgrounds gives users the opportunity to engage directly with art, culture, and one another, turning play into patronage. Unlike apps like Pokemon Go, Playgrounds fosters real-life experiences that are intellectually stimulating and built in partnership with art and cultural institutions.

Tyler Bisson, Andre Kostiw-Gill, Willie Payne

Website: http://plygrnds.co/

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Merciv - University of Southern California

Merciv is a musical content studio focusing on creating additional revenue streams in live music by integrating AR technologies with existing concert infrastructure. By creating immersive experiences for pre-show, during-show, and post-show consumption, Merciv enables any musical business or artist to differentiate themselves from the crowd and provide unique ways for their fans to interact with their brand. By pioneering the integration of immersive technologies with the live setting, Merciv is ushering in a new age of immersive musical performance and consumption that will fundamentally change how music is experienced in the generations to come.

Cam Lindsay, Bryce Matsumori, Jacob Fishman

website: www.mercive.com

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Cherrystems Music - Tufts University, Purdue University

Cherrystems is a tool that lets you turn simple musical ideas – tapped rhythms, hummed melodies, or recorded audio samples – into a complete song in under a minute. Our algorithm is packaged into an app which connects you with music enthusiasts to share inputs and collaborate with producers. Without extensive training, modern production tools are too complicated to use and previous solutions for this problem have come at the expense of creativity. Cherrystems is a musical community that empowers anyone to easily make, share, and listen to music with nothing more than their phone and a little imagination.

David Pearl, Ari Brown, Benson Cheng, Ge Gao, Jakub Walerstein

Website: https://www.cherrystemsmusic.com/

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On June 29th, the last day of Real Startup, each team delivered final presentations at our closing reception. You can watch each pitch here: https://www.facebook.com/RealIndustry/videos/1053482388161432/

The Real Industry team could not be happier with the results of Real Startup 2018. Supporting young entrepreneurs is a task we passionately pursue, and doing so with our network of world-class mentors and fantastic partner companies during this program was exceptionally rewarding.

Real Industry aims to bridge the worlds of industry and academia. Our community is always growing, and we’d love for you to be a part of it. Join us today as we continue to support the next generation of industry professionals and innovators.

University Startups Head to Silicon Valley for Real Startup 2018 Entrepreneurship Program

Real Startup, Real Industry’s two-week entrepreneurship program for university-based startup ventures focusing on media, entertainment, music, and technology, kicks off on June 18th in San Francisco. Teams experience a jam-packed schedule of mentorship and education from professionals at Dolby, Google, Pandora, Eventbrite, and many more. By leveraging Real Industry’s rich network of professionals in this niche sector of innovation, Real Startup accelerates the careers of young entrepreneurs.

Our 2018 Cohort includes five teams hailing from New York University, University of Southern California, Tufts University, Purdue University, McGill University, Malmö University, and the University of Iceland. These startups were selected from a pool of over 100 applications from across the globe. This cohort consists of teams working on ventures in various areas of media and technology, including innovations in live ticketing, AR/VR for concerts, wearables for creative expression and performance, mobile music creation apps, and media distribution platforms for cultural institutions.

Throughout the two week program, teams receive direct access to Real Industry’s network of corporate partners and over 300 expert mentors. Our 2018 schedule includes sessions with companies leading the way in industry-altering developments. We appreciate the support from all of our amazing hosts. With exposure to these organizations, plus the connections made with our fantastic community of mentors, teams complete the program with unparalleled professional networks. 

Check out what two of our mentors from Pandora and Pyramind had to say:

“Mentorship is an incredible way for students hoping to enter the industry to start building their network. My own mentors have been immensely helpful in shaping my career so far, and their support and guidance continue to help me become a better professional and person. A great entrepreneurial spirit has always been alive at Pandora, and we’re proud to support the brilliant young minds that Real Startup is introducing to the world of music tech.”
— Heather Ellis, Artist Marketing Manager at Pandora
“Pyramind is excited to host Real Industry’s Real Startup 2018 Cohort as part of their two week accelerator program...At the core of Pyramind’s music production training ethos is the connection between real-world experience and the value that mentorship provides in bridging the gap between education in the classroom and the professional workplace. Pyramind’s over fifteen-year history in music education and production was built on this dynamic equation and we value greatly our partnership with Real Industries and what we believe is the future of education and entrepreneurship.”
— Gregory J. Gordon, CEO and Founder at Pyramind

As we gear up for a phenomenal experience, we want to express our gratitude to our major corporate sponsors: LANDR, Reverb, Stashimi, iZotope, Pro Sound Effects, New York University Steinhardt, Jaunt, and Polsinelli. Real Startup is additionally funded through a philanthropic grant from Olivann. Without the generous contributions of these organizations, we would not be able to reach the level of impact we strive for through the Real Startup program.

Stashimi was a founding sponsor of Real Startup back in 2017, and we’re happy to continue supporting the student accelerator program for the second year in a row, as we believe experiential education and mentorship is invaluable in the music and tech industries.”
— Kosta Elchev, Chief Marketing Officer at Stashimi

Not in the San Francisco Bay Area? You don’t need to miss out on all the fun! We will be posting regularly to the Real Startup 2018 Facebook Group throughout the program. We invite you to join the conversation, see updates from the teams, and share your own thoughts on the interesting crossroad of media technology and entrepreneurship. The Livestream link to the final presentations from each of the 5 teams, taking place on June 29th, will be available within this group and on Real Industry’s Facebook page by June 22nd.

Real Industry aims to bridge the worlds of industry and academia. Our community is always growing, and we’d love for you to be a part of it. Join us today.

Stanford Pandora Challenge with Common & Imagine Justice

On Thursday, April 19th about 100 Stanford students came together for a kickoff event in Partnership with Common and Imagine Justice to inspire young people to rally around the message and vision of Imagine Justice, focusing on Justice Reform, Community & Civic Engagement. 

The assignment is to create, launch, market, and optimize a national playlist that drives awareness of Imagine Justice. The playlists will include voice messages that educate listeners about one of the above messages. The students have five weeks to grow their listenership and influence their audience to become activated in the conversation around Justice Reform and Community and Civic Engagement. These students will be the first to use Pandora's new mixtape platform. 

Check back soon to experience the student's mixtapes and see how the challenge wraps up. 

Pandora Challenges 2017 In Review

October 4, 2017, October 9, 2017, October 11, 2017, October 21, 2017 | In partnership with BloodPop®, USC Thornton Music Industry Program, Manchester Orchestra, 1 Million 4 Anna, and the MTSU Music Business program, Common, and the NYU Steinhardt Music Business Program, Jack Antonoff, The Ally Coalition, and the UMass Lowell Music Business and Recording Technology Programs


In 2017, Real Industry and Pandora empowered the next generation of media, music, and business leaders on a US campus tour. Over 1,200 students worked with major artists (Tegan and Sara, Common, Jack Antonoff, Manchester Orchestra, and BloodPop®) to support the artist’s Foundations (The Ally Coalition, Tegan and Sara Foundation, Common Ground Foundation, Make Yourself Foundation, 1 Million 4 Anna, Made of Music) Student’s applied their music and business skills towards real-world awareness and social impact campaigns for mental health, cancer research, helping students and musicians in underserved communities, and LGBT equality. Students had exclusive access to Pandora’s Artist Marketing Platform and real-world data provided by Pandora and Next Big Sound.

University of Washington Sonos Challenge

November 16, 2017  |  In partnership with University of Washington Department of Electrical Engineering. #SonosChallenge

Sonos and Real Industry are transforming how university students prepare for industry. Smart speakers are transforming how we enjoy music, access information, and interact with our homes. This month, over 200 University of Washington students had the unique opportunity to work with leaders from Sonos in a design challenge to build a new smart speaker experience that improves someone’s daily life.

“There is a synergistic belief that great opportunity exists at the intersection of technology and music. Both Real Industry and Sonos sought to play at this intersection, and believe that upcoming grads will drive the future in this space.”
— Susan Monaghan, Director of University Programs, Sonos

Organized by Real Industry, Sonos, and hosted by University of Washington Electrical Engineering, the event kicked off on November 16th. University of Washington student teams met with industry experts from Sonos to learn more about the design challenge, and then had 10 days to develop a working prototype. Winning teams were awarded Sonos One speakers and given invitations to interview for full-time and internship positions at Sonos.

“There is a surprising amount of technical complexity within a seemingly simple smart speaker,” said Ron Kuper, SW Director, Advanced Concepts Lab, Sonos. “It’s a problem space that touches a broad spectrum of hardware and software domains, so there’s bound to be something for everyone."  

“The massively growing smart home and smart speaker market is the perfect opportunity for young engineers and innovators to gain valuable skills” said Priyanka Shekar, Program Director, Real Industry.

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The winners of Sonos One speakers were:

Sound Transition - a solution that automatically transitions between Sonos speakers as a listener transitions between rooms. 
Akshay Randad - Engineering (Mechanical Engineering)
Abdullah Othman - Electrical Engineering
Akshay Chalana - Computer Science/2019
Ashwin Badrinath - Electrical Engineering/2019
Shipra Gupta - Information Management/2018

Beamforming - a system to allow 2 listeners, in the same room, to listen at different volume levels. 
Colin Pate - Electrical Engineering/2019
Muhammad Farooq - Electrical Engineering/2019
Dhanush Kannagola - Electrical Engineering/2019
Jordan Drew - Electrical Engineering/2019
Glenn Paden - Electrical Engineering/2019

An Intelligent Speaker That Can Recognize Your Voice - adds functionality to identify the which person is controlling the Sonos system.
Alvin Cao - Electrical Engineering
Ege Gurmericliler - Computer Science & Engineering, Graduate Visiting
Emilien Pilloud - Computer Science & Engineering, Graduate Visiting


EXAmple Student Submissions

Real Startup 2017

May 31, 2017

How Real Startup is Cultivating Student Startups and Building a Bridge to Innovation

Experiencing the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) Listening Room’s 3D immersive environment with 22 speakers positioned from ceiling to below floor at Stanford University.

Discovering headset prototypes and discussing trends in consumer audio with Richard Kulavik, CTO of Turtle Beach at the San Jose R&D office.

This summer, four teams traveled to Silicon Valley’s hotbed for music and audio technology innovation with their own original startup ideas including automatic volume safety technology and artist merchandise repurposing. Participants came from Stanford University, UC Berkeley and Berklee College of Music to receive industry mentoring, challenge one another’s assumptions, and expand their audio technology networks. As members of Real Startup’s inaugural cohort of startups, they spent the month of September developing their products and business models with the mentorship of industry experts from Sennheiser, XPERI (previously DTS), Dolby Laboratories, Turtle Beach, Warner Music Group, Zeitgeist Artist Management, and founding industry partners Universal Audio, iZotope, LANDR and Stashimi

How Real Startup works

Real Startup teaches university students how to apply their classroom learning to entrepreneurship in the music and audio technology industry. Describing his experience, Yuval Adler, program participant and CEO of SterIO said, "interacting with industry partners gave me a more mature view of the opportunities and challenges in going forward with a new business venture.” 

Demoing a new 3D immersive audio for VR in Sennheiser San Francisco’s in-house studio with Sebastian Chafe, Strategic Innovation Manager.

Students participated in workshops, site visits, and ran customer interviews with industry, while learning about subjects such as business model design, intellectual property, UI/UX design and product management directly from the top minds in those fields. “We want to educate and empower the next generation of entrepreneurs by taking them behind the scenes of industrial innovation” said Real Startup’s Program Director Priyanka Shekar, “so that they can gain the knowledge, resources and networks to grow in the real world."

Meet the new 2017 Real Startup class of music tech innovators!

A private tour of Studio 610, a modern production studio with classic vintage studio hardware at Universal Audio’s HQ in Scotts Valley.

Universal Audio CEO Bill Putnam shows a sample from the studio construction - the architectural design is both acoustically and aesthetically aware.

Real Startup is the first-of-its-kind -- launched in 2017 by Jay LeBoeuf and Priyanka Shekar, as an initiative of Real Industry. The program provides structure and process to the best and brightest entrepreneurial teams from top university music, media, entertainment and technology programs, to commercialize their ideas and expand their professional networks. Students received mentorship from the program’s network of almost 200 industry mentors including industry veterans. "The teams rolled up their sleeves and applied feedback immediately, it was like watching a business transformation happen in hours rather than months." said mentor Dave Hill Jr., Go 2 Market Coach (previously Director at Ableton, VP of Sales and Marketing, iZotope).

  • String Theory Labs (Stanford University, UC Berkeley): Delivers immersive 3D audio and multimedia content to live music events, enabling artists to create immersive experiences and allowing music venues to deliver them.

  • MAD Archives (Stanford University): Addresses the “merch stigma” by transforming surplus physical merchandise into classy, sophisticated, and chic lifestyle collections, allowing artists to promote their brand as a lifestyle, increase profits, and gain exposure to new markets of fans.

  • SterIO (Stanford University): Uses psycho-acoustics and signal processing technology to automatically attenuate sound levels in audio playback systems to lower and safer levels without any noticeable change from the user’s perspective, reducing long-term hearing damage.

  • Between the Dimensions (Berklee College of Music): Audio-visual production house creating interactive and experiential art installations that translate new scientific insight into artistic expressions that are intriguing and immersive.
The Real Startup class: (back row from left) Jay LeBoeuf (staff), John Snelgrove, Yuval Adler, David Abrams, Matthew McIntyre, Wisam Reid, Priyanka Shekar (staff), (front row from left) Madison McClung, Tejaswi Gorti, Itamar Orr, Eesha Choudhari (TA)

The Real Startup class: (back row from left) Jay LeBoeuf (staff), John Snelgrove, Yuval Adler, David Abrams, Matthew McIntyre, Wisam Reid, Priyanka Shekar (staff), (front row from left) Madison McClung, Tejaswi Gorti, Itamar Orr, Eesha Choudhari (TA)

The challenging three-weeks program culminated in teams gaining support from a group of industry executives and connectors in a private showcase event. Leading up to their pitch test, the teams had met with a diverse range of over 70 customers and mentors. They are now poised with focused business plans, skills, and networks to be able to successfully grow on their own. Learn more about the program at: realindustry.org/rs/overview/

Fast Facts

  • First-of-its-kind program, supporting next-generation entrepreneurs in the music and audio tech industry.

  • Four university student groups came to Silicon Valley to work on their startups alongside industry-leading music and audio tech companies and mentors.

  • Teams included engineers, researchers, musicians, and designers from top schools Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and Berklee College of Music.

  • Teams participated in hands-on workshops, company site visits, customer interviews, skillbuilding, and inspirational talks to foster industry understanding and catalyze their startups.

  • Mentorship by a unique network of almost 200 industry experts and executives including Mike Herring (ex-President & CFO of Pandora), Bill Putnam (CEO of Universal Audio), and Jeff Riedmiller (VP, Sound Group at Dolby Labs).
 

Introducing startups to a group of passionate industry leaders who can support their next phase of development at the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics, Stanford University

 
Real Startup Founding Sponsors

Real Startup Founding Sponsors

Tufts University Sonos Challenge

September 28, 2017  |  In partnership with Tufts Gordon Institute and Tufts Computer Science Exchange #sonoschallenge

Sonos and Real Industry are transforming how university students prepare for industry. Smart speakers are transforming how we enjoy music, access information, and interact with our homes. This Fall, over 250 students at Tufts University and University of Washington will prepare for careers and design smart speaker experiences to improve daily life. 

This month, over 100 Tufts students had the unique opportunity to work with leaders from Sonos in a design challenge to build a new smart speaker experience that improves someone’s daily life.

“We’re thrilled to work with Tufts students and our partners, because the next generation of technology leaders are here [at Tufts],” said Jay LeBoeuf, Executive Director, Real Industry. Sonos and Real Industry chose Tufts as a location for the challenge because of its strong interdisciplinary academic programs in engineering and entrepreneurship, and the potential for Tufts students to have an impact on the field.

Organized by Real Industry, Sonos, and hosted by Tufts Gordon Institute and Tufts Computer Science Exchange, the event kicked off on Sept. 28. Tufts University student teams met with industry experts from Sonos to learn more about the design challenge, and then had 10 days to develop a working prototype. Winners were awarded Sonos One speakers, invitations to attend the companies’ Sonos Hack Day at Sonos’ Boston office, and invitations to interview for full-time positions at Sonos.

Tufts students were the first university students to have access to the pre-release Sonos API. “There is a surprising amount of technical complexity within a seemingly simple smart speaker,” said Ron Kuper, SW Director, Advanced Concepts Lab, Sonos. “It’s a problem space that touches a broad spectrum of hardware and software domains, so there’s bound to be something for everyone."  

“The massively growing smart home and smart speaker market is the perfect opportunity for young engineers and innovators to gain valuable skills” said Priyanka Shekar, Program Director, Real Industry.

“There is a synergistic belief that great opportunity exists at the intersection of technology and music. Both Real Industry and Sonos sought to play at this intersection, and believe that upcoming grads will drive the future in this space.”
— Susan Monaghan, Director of University Programs, Sonos

The winners were:
·Bonker: iOS app that starts a music playlist playing on Sonos based on an input photo
Team: Ali Decker, BSEP ’18, Woody Shortridge, Human-Computer Interaction certificate ‘19
·Ultrasonic Tracker: Hardware system for adjusting playback based on user location
Team: Shadath Chowdhury, BSEE ’19, Harrison Downs, BSCS ’19, Davis Franklin, BS, Physics ’18, Chanel Richardson, BSCE ‘20
·Wake Up Remix: Software to play your wake up music in sync with your sleep cycle
Team: Hermes Suen, BSME ’19, Eric Chen, BSCS ’19, Fabio Vera, BSCS ’19, Zack Nassar, BSBME ’19, and Thomas Coons, BSME ’19.

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Student Submissions

University of Massachusetts, Lowell Pandora Challenge (supporting Jack Antonoff)

October 21, 2017  |  In partnership with Jack Antonoff, The Ally Coalition, and the University of Massachusetts, Lowell Music Business and Sound Recording Technology programs. #pandorachallenge

Every year, Jack Antonoff and The Ally Coalition organize The Talent Show, a celebrity-packed  music and talent showcase, to benefit LGBTQ equality and issues. How might we create a series of fan engagements before, during, and after the event to allow The Talent Show to live on long after the performances? How might concert attendees at The Talent Show engage with their friends, fellow fans, and their communities before, during, and after the show? How might we engage Jack Antonoff's listeners, fanbase, and friendly artists? How might we engage fans, listeners, and friends to support The Ally Coalition?

To solve these problems, students were provided access to Jack Antonoff's proprietary Next Big Sound profile. Offered as part of by Pandora's Artist Marketing Platform tools, this interactive portal helped students learn about Jack's fanbase, social reach, engagement, geographical impact, and Pandora listener data. 

Students created marketing campaigns, Pandora Artist Audio Message, and strategies to engage Jack Antonoff's fans to be launched by The Ally Coalition.

Congrats to the winning team of Andrew Silveira (Biology 2021), Andrew Marshall (Music Studies 2021), Shaina Perates (Music Business 2021), Renee Lamy (Music Business 2021), Emma Glynn (Music 2018). Their proposal included a series of social media campaigns dispelling common
misconceptions about the LGBTQ, photo booths in the lobby, and hashtag campaigns during and immediately following the event.  

Mentors from L-R: Kim Pfluger (iZotope), Brittany Holloway (Pandora), Heather Ellis (Pandora), Jeb Gutelius (The Ally Coaltion)

Mentors from L-R: Kim Pfluger (iZotope), Brittany Holloway (Pandora), Heather Ellis (Pandora), Jeb Gutelius (The Ally Coaltion)

 

Example Student Submissions