XP Game Summit programming is curated by an industry-led board, ensuring every session delivers relevant, high-impact insight for today’s game business.
The Curating Board is made up of founders, studio leaders, and industry operators who review submissions, guide programming themes, and select sessions based on what drives real business value.
This approach ensures the program reflects current industry priorities, not just individual perspectives. Submissions are evaluated through multiple lenses, resulting in stronger content, broader representation, and sessions selected for their relevance and impact.
Founder & CEO @ XP Gaming Inc
Jason is a passionate connector in the video game industry, who thrives on bringing people and businesses closer to success. He’s had the opportunity to build a cross-country B2B game conference circuit in Canada, fostering collaboration and innovation among game developers and industry leaders.
Jason believes that every connection can spark new ideas and opportunities. If you’re a game company looking to expand your reach and find new clients, let’s connect! Together, we can create pathways to success in this dynamic industry.
Emily Claire Afan is a communications and partnerships lead at Ubisoft. With more than 15 years of communications experience across Canadian film, TV, and video games, she specializes in connecting industries, communities, and purpose-driven organizations.
She builds strategic industry relationships across education and corporate social responsibility initiatives, with expertise spanning stakeholder engagement, community investment, and cross-sector collaboration.
Zina Rahman is the Co-Founder and CEO of Transitional Forms, a Toronto-based emergent entertainment studio where AI and interactive storytelling converge.
Her work includes Simia, a patented platform where audiences shape narratives in real time, recognized by TechCrunch Disrupt Battlefield 200 and a Webby Honoree for Experimental Innovation. Her previous work has earned a GDC Best in Play win and a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Video Game. She is Co-Chair of the Board at Interactive Ontario and co-leads its AI Committee.
Russell is an avid gamer who turned that passion into a career in game development to help create unique experiences in virtual space. After working in indie XR, and launching games for the Meta Quest, he built expertise in Developer Relations for the 3D engine ecosystem while working at Unity. After joining Inworld AI, he worked in the world of Gen AI Avatars, helping lead state of the art game demos with Nvidia, Microsoft and Ubisoft. Now as the founder of ImmerSynth Inc, he builds Enterprise AI & XR solutions focused on areas like telecommunications, customer service, hospitality, health, and education. Russell is also a regular industry judge for the Level Up Showcase and Canadian Game Awards committee.
Past projects include implementing brain injury rehabilitation tasks in VR for healthcare, and non-traditional control schemes like eye tracking and gesture navigation in Unity for accessibility and UX.
Evan Jones is the founder of Games by Stitch, a Toronto-based indie studio creating story-driven games. A two-time Emmy Award winner, Evan has released over fifty interactive projects for Virtual Reality, PC, Web and Mobile worldwide. His background in Computer Science and Film Production have given him a keen understanding of the intersection of narrative and code.
Evan has been recognized as a ‘Top 10 New Media Groundbreaker’ for his work in Alternate Reality Games, named ‘Best in Digital Marketing’ for his branded games, and won GDC’s ‘Best in Play’ and ‘Best VR Experience’ for recent projects.