Directory Profile

Laird Malamd is the founding COO and CFO of Oculus VR, Inc, acquired in 2014 and the center of Meta's new mission. Malamed remains at Meta working on the future AR/VR/MR interaction models. He is a 25+ year veteran of the entertainment industry.  Malamed was Sr. Vice President and head of development at Activision Blizzard overseeing software, hardware and manufacturing for products such as Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and Skylanders.  In his role as Adjunct Profressor in Interactive Media, he works closely with all of the MFA thesis candidates on their final projects.  Malamed earned a joint BS degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Aeronautical & Astronautical Engineering and Film & Media Studies, and a MA from USC's School of Cinematic Arts. Malamed serves on the boards of iCivics and MIT. He cohosts the Magic of John Williams Podcast as part of TheIndyCast podcast.