Visual 1st conference features imaging industry leaders and visionaries
The Visual 1st conference moved to a new location in 2025, the KQED studios in downtown San Francisco. While the location was new, the Oct. 28-29, event continued its established 13-year tradition of executive-level networking, new technology discussions, and educational sessions.
The annual Visual 1st awards, presented at the end of the event, are presented to entrants who participated in the four-minute Show-and-Tell sessions. Four awards are selected from the 25 presentations. This year’s winners are:
Visual 1st Best of Show award: Pika
“We chose Pika as Best in Show because it embodies what innovation in visual storytelling should be: intuitive, expressive, and human. We found ourselves using the app to transform our own photos into engaging short videos, effortlessly bringing emotion and personality to life. In a crowded field of visual tools, Pika stood out for its ability to make creativity feel personal and fun, seamlessly bridging imagination and technology.” – judge, Cathi Nelson, CEO at The Photo Managers
Visual 1st Best Business Potential award: Design Huddle
“Design Huddle was chosen as the company with the best business prospect. Visual content creation using GenAI is nearing the inflection point of the Turing Test. However, with so many free tools offered, monetization will be challenging. We were impressed not with the breadth but rather the practicality of Design Huddle’s solution, as an indication to revenue generating frame of mind.” – judge, Eran Steinberg, Co-Founder & Chairman at FotoNation
Visual 1st Best Technology award: Glass Imaging
“Glass Imaging’s neural ISP technology has the potential to empower hundreds of millions of consumers and imaging professionals to take better still images and video and will also enable smartphone vendors to improve the image quality of their camera systems while potentially reducing costs. It’s great to see that technology now also being applied to live video.” – judge, Rudy Burger, Founder & Managing Partner at Woodside Capital
Visual 1st Special Recognition Award: Revibes
“Revibes captured what innovation in visual tech should feel like. Simple, human, and seamlessly bridging the digital and physical worlds. Their creative use of an NFC-enabled Polaroid turns a familiar object into something interactive and alive, reimagining how we connect with our memories in a beautifully modern way.” – judge, Anna Dickson, VP Content Strategy & Operations at Shutterstock
The Dead Pixels Society held its annual coffee meetup before the Visual 1st conference, Tuesday, Oct. 28, at the Starbucks across the street from KQED. The event attracted executives from around the world to network before the event.