INNOVATION | BUSINESS | MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS
Ben Taylor
Ben was born in Dunedin in 1988 at the same time his father, Sir Ian Taylor, was founding Animation Research LTD. Ben spent his childhood surrounded by innovation and unorthodox thinking. Originally nick-named 'seek and destroy' along with his older brother for the chaos they caused at ARL, Ben now uses that same disruptive energy to revolutionize the way we consume some of the biggest sports events in the world.
To the shock of both his parents, at 16 years old Ben declared he was going to boarding school having already completed the necessary transfer paperwork with both Headmasters. He had decided he was going to get a scholarship to play college tennis in the States and being based in Wellington was a necessary step. The most surprising part about all of this was that Ben wasn't that great at tennis. A few years later Ben graduated Florida Southern College summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA and having one of the best winning records in his school's history.
After college Ben spent 6 years on the road visiting up to 30 countries every year, immersing himself in culture, TV production and innovation. Now Ben oversees ARL's work in across sports where he helps lead a team of developers and graphic artists to deliver the world-leading graphics we see on our screens every day. Ben is an expert in commercial deals and has successfully negotiated long term contracts with Paramount, Discovery, Disney, Comcast, PGA TOUR, MLB, FOX USA, FOX Australia, Golf Channel and many more.
Ben has three young children and lives in Dunedin with his wife Samantha, where he is a fierce promoter of his city’s history and future potential. He invests locally in Dunedin and participates in a number of initiatives focused on securing Dunedin's future as one of the worlds great small cities.
