Rob van Alphen is a highly regarded leader who has over 15 years of experience in digital marketing and AI adoption. With his most prominent achievement being that he founded and is Managing Director of Polaris Digital, he helps organisations to build AI capabilities and ensure responsible usage. Rob has a proven track record of working with top-tier clients and is therefore widely sought-after for speaking engagements globally.
Beginning his career in the digital strategy space, Rob gained valuable experience with huge names such as Coca-Cola, Toyota, and Phillips, at agencies like Digitas. His understanding of digital transformation was set in his role as Senior Digital Strategy Consultant at Digitas in Belgium and Dubai. Where he oversaw the development of digital strategy and customer experience projects and lead integrated campaigns. Rob went on to become the General Manager of Digital Marketing at AI Tayer Group, which is the largest luxury retailer in the Middle East. Another impressive achievement of his includes launching the School of Disruption, which aimed to upskill organisations on the impact of exponential technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and virtual reality.
More recently in his career, Rob led the first global research on the impact of generative AI among communications professionals. This research ended up placing in the 2023 ‘Top 10 Thought Leadership’ study, an incredible achievement. Rob also notably developed Asia’s first PR industry AI guidance in partnership with the Institute of Public Relations of Singapore. As founder and Managing Director of Polaris Digital, Rob focusses on helping companies successfully navigate the new age that is AI, and supports these companies through speaking sessions, workshops, learning programs, and strategy support. Some of his most notable global clients include Johnson & Johnson, Ferrari, Stratasys, and Harvey Nichols.
As a speaker, Rob’s passion for his field is immediately evident in any engagement he attends. He holds a unique blend of knowledge in deep AI and digital transformation which can be essential to any organisation looking to expand their knowledge of the ‘Age of AI’. He can make complex topics accessible to any audience and tailors each session to ensure that his talks are impactful for diverse audiences. If you or your organisation is looking to expand their knowledge in this field, look no further than hiring Rob van Alphen today!
Rob van Alphen's official speaker topics are listed below:
Navigating an Age of AI
An eye-opening ‘awakening session’ to get people excited and showcase what’s possible today and what’s to come. We inspire participants to develop and deepen their understanding of AI and instill a need to prepare the organisation, their teams, and themselves for the coming Age of Intelligence.
Managing Brand Reputation and Trust in an Age of AI
Generative AI’s rapid progress and the democratisation of deepfakes and misinformation is impacting how we build and maintain reputation and trust. This session will help you understand key AI trends and challenges impacting brand reputation management, as well as the actions for companies to take to best prepare themselves.
Ethics of AI
A thought-provoking session to understand the ethical challenges and opportunities raised by AI and its impact on individuals and society, and how to navigate them. We will build familiarity with the core concepts and principles of responsible AI adoption such as fairness, accountability, and transparency.
Official Feedback from In-Person & Virtual Events
Feedback from In-Person Events:
"Rob is an excellent presenter who really knows his subject. The team and I were very grateful for having him share his views on AI trends and the future of the communications industry and role."
"We had the pleasure of having Rob as a speaker for one of our CEO/MD peer groups. Rob did a fantastic job and blew everybody away with his vast knowledge on generative AI, the future of work, and how to become an 'exponential organisation'."
"Rob’s keynote was a tremendous success! The industry is confronted with disruption across the value chain and has historically been late to the race of transformation. Rob’s session was informative, engaging and provided a clear call to action. They may be operating at 1X today, but have been given great insights into what it takes to both think AND become 10X tomorrow."
- 2025 - Advisor AI Capability Building, Folgate Advisors
- 2024 - Founder & Managing Director, Polaris Digital
- 2023 - Led First Global Research on Generative AI in Communications, Top 10 Thought Leadership study
- 2022 - Head of Strategy & Innovation, Sandpiper
- 2020 - Senior Digital Strategy Consultant, delaware BeLux
- 2018 - Founder, School of Disruption
- 2018 - Developed Asia’s first PR industry AI Guidance with IPRS
- 2015 - General Manager, Digital Marketing, Al Tayer Group
- 2013 - Sr. Digital Strategy Consultant, Digitas Dubai
- 2009 - Social Media & Digital Marketing Strategist, Digitas Belgium
How to hire Rob van Alphen
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Rob van Alphen for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do NOT accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
