Sam Coates

Sam Coates is an accomplished professional in the interactive entertainment industry, currently serving as Vice President and Head of Innovation at the LEGO Group since July 2016. In this role, Sam leads initiatives that blend physical and digital play, previously holding titles such as Senior Director and Design Director within the Creative Play Lab. Prior to joining the LEGO Group, Sam had a lengthy tenure at Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe from 1996 to July 2016, where significant achievements included establishing a first-party studio for PlayStation VR and holding various creative leadership positions across multiple PlayStation platforms. Sam's career commenced at Peak Interactive as a Multimedia Developer, following an educational background in architecture from Sheffield University.