Artist, Innovator, Educator, Futurist

Biography

Robert Tercek is a global authority on the process of dematerialization and digital innovation. He is an award-winning author, entrepreneur, and educator. He is highly sought as a keynote speaker at international conferences, and he is the co-host of the Futurists podcast.

Robert Tercek, pensive, in a black jacket — Matter → data. Point at the portrait to resolve it.

01 / Matter

Biography

Tercek is the founder and CEO of General Creativity, a strategic advisory firm specializing in digital transformation and long-term planning. Previously, he served in senior executive leadership at motion picture studios, television networks, and software companies, where he supervised the launch of pioneering digital services that are now used by hundreds of millions of people every day.

In 2021, Mr. Tercek was recognized as the Humanitarian of the Year by the Media Excellence Awards for his leadership in designing and launching COVID SMART, an interactive training program designed to keep workers safe on the job during the pandemic.

Tercek's book "VAPORIZED: Solid Strategies for Success in a Dematerialized World" was selected as the 2016 International Book of the Year at the Frankfurt Book Fair by the editors of GetAbstract from a field of 10,000 business titles.

The publication of VAPORIZED established Tercek as an authority on the process of dematerialization into software. Today the process he identified as "vaporization" continues to transform nearly every industry.

In the media industry, where dematerialization began, Tercek has long been recognized as a thought leader. He served as President of Digital Media for Oprah Winfrey and the OWN Network. Previously, he was Sony Pictures Entertainment's first Senior Vice President of Digital Media, where he supervised the launch of a series of hugely successful online games. Earlier in his career, he was a creative director at MTV: Music Television. While there, Tercek launched the pop culture network in more than 20 nations.

He was featured as one of the "25 Executives to Watch" by Digital Media Wire. Variety named him one of the "Digital Dozen" most influential players in new media. The Industry Standard dubbed him the "TV Anarchist".

02 / Signal

What the press called him

5 labels, collected over thirty years.

L/01
the TV Anarchist
The Industry Standard
L/02
Digital Dozen: most influential players in new media
Variety
L/03
25 Executives to Watch
Digital Media Wire
L/04
the Steve Jobs of mobile
Adrian Sexton, Lionsgate Entertainment
L/05
a technological provocateur
Jarl Mohn, CEO, National Public Radio

03 / The record

The record, 1985 → 2022

Tercek's 30-year career is marked by achievements in media, including the design and launch of several digital media services that are now used by hundreds of millions of people:

1985 — Fulbright Teaching Fellow
Taught English language and literature at the Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel. Graduated from Williams College in 1985.
1991 — First multichannel satellite TV in Asia
MTV Asia and STAR TV
The launch of the first multichannel satellite television service in Asia at MTV Asia and STAR TV in 1991
1993 — Co-founds 7th Level
7th Level
The first generation of games for multimedia PCs as a co-founder of 7th Level in 1993.
1997 — First multiplayer Java games on the web
Sony Pictures
The first multiplayer Java games on the World Wide Web, including Jeopardy!, Wheel of Fortune, Trivial Pursuit, and the Dating Game at Sony in 1997.
2001 — First streaming video on mobile phones
PacketVideo and NTT DoCoMo
The world’s first streaming video service on mobile phones for PacketVideo and NTT DoCoMo’s V-Live and 30 other mobile networks, in 2001.
2003 — First mobile app store in North America
Mforma for AT&T Wireless
The first mobile app store in North America launched by Mforma for AT&T Wireless in 2003.
2009 — Largest live audience for online education
Oprah Winfrey
The largest live audience for online education with Oprah Winfrey’s 2009 “Live Your Best Life” webcasts.
2009 — Most popular free book download in history
Oprah.com
The most popular free book download in history for Suze Orman on Oprah.com in 2009.
2016 — International Book of the Year
VAPORIZED was selected as the 2016 International Book of the Year at the Frankfurt Book Fair by the editors of GetAbstract from a field of 10,000 business titles.
2021 — Humanitarian of the Year
Recognized as the Humanitarian of the Year by the Media Excellence Awards for his leadership in designing and launching COVID SMART, an interactive training program designed to keep workers safe on the job during the pandemic.
2022 — The Futurists launches
Co-founded The Futurists podcast with Brett King. The show has since passed episode 349 and grown into the Futurists Network with live events.

01 / 11

04 / Now

What he is building now

General Creativity

Founder and CEO

A strategic advisory firm specializing in digital transformation and long-term planning.

generalcreativity.com

The Futurists

Co-founder and co-host, with Brett King

Weekly conversations with the people building the future. Live events under the Futurists Network banner, including Dubai, September 2025.

thefuturists.com

Nura Studios AI

Co-founder, former COO, strategic advisor

AI toolkit and agentic workflow for scripted episodic video. Emerged from stealth in April 2026 with the Showcraft platform.

The Owner's Guide to the Future

Author

Newsletter on Substack, resumed in 2026.

tercek.substack.com

05 / Readout

Three numbers

1 / 10,000

International Book of the Year 2016, chosen from 10,000 business titles

30+

years launching digital services now used by hundreds of millions

349+

episodes of The Futurists podcast

06 / Inventions

Patents

Robert is a prolific inventor with deep expertise in patent strategy and intellectual property management. He is the co-author of several patents granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office including the following that pertain to decentralized systems for entertainment, blockchain gaming and cryptocurrency:

12 US patents

07 / Image

Every great idea, starts with an image

Robert Tercek practices creative visualization daily. He is proficient in several visual arts including photography, oil paint, watercolor, and schematic diagrams. He starts every project with a thorough visualization process, including process diagrams and illustrations.