Riz Virk

Riz Virk is a distinguished faculty associate and research associate at Arizona State University, where coursework focuses on the social and entrepreneurial dimensions of the Metaverse, complementing ongoing PhD studies in Human and Social Dimensions of Science and Technology. As the founder and executive director of Play Labs @ MIT, Riz established an incubator for playful technology startups in collaboration with the MIT Game Lab. Additional roles include venture partner at Griffin, freelance writer for major publications, advisor at Ridge Ventures, entrepreneur-in-residence at 500 Global, and co-founder and managing partner at Bayview Labs. With over 25 years of involvement in the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition and board positions at NorthBay Solutions and 1 Billion Tech, Riz holds a BS in Computer Science and Engineering from MIT, an MS in Management from Stanford University, and is pursuing a PhD at Arizona State University.