Bram van de Ven

Bram van de Ven is a 31-year-old creative technologist and founder of arfected, an experience design studio pioneering immersive storytelling across Europe and the Middle East. Originally from the Netherlands and now operating between the Netherlands and the UAE, Bram has become a key figure in helping brands, destinations, and institutions transform how they connect with audiences, by blending physical environments with augmented and mixed reality.

His passion for AR began with a single moment of wonder: experiencing how a digital layer could tap into a previously untouched part of the imagination. That fascination quickly evolved into a career focused on merging cutting-edge technology with creative storytelling to deliver high-impact, emotionally resonant experiences. For Bram, AR is a new medium for memory-making.

After witnessing the viral power of Snapchat Lenses reaching millions without paid media, Bram realized that traditional static advertising was no longer enough. This insight led him to launch arfected, which has since developed immersive experiences for global entertainment brands, cultural institutions, real estate developers, and forward-looking cities, particularly in the UAE, where innovation is embraced at scale.

In recent years, Bram has deepened his presence in the Middle East, working on activations that range from AR-powered pop-up installations to interactive invites and digital extensions of major theme parks and real estate showrooms. As CTO at The Klick Agency, he leads the technical and experiential vision behind campaigns that bridge physical and digital storytelling. From Dubai to Abu Dhabi, he collaborates with regional partners to create hybrid experiences that feel both magical and locally relevant.

Day to day, Bram splits his time between developing creative concepts, guiding cross-functional teams, pitching visionary campaigns, and keeping hands-on with the tools and platforms that power next-gen AR. He’s as comfortable in boardrooms as he is in Blender, believing that great immersive work must be both strategically sound and technically executable.

To stay ahead, he continuously experiments with emerging tech, learns from fellow innovators across the XR landscape, and keeps a pulse on behavioral shifts in how users engage with spatial content. Bram is particularly excited about the Middle East’s leadership in tech adoption, smart city planning, and immersive retail, positioning the region as a perfect canvas for experiential storytelling.

He sees the future of AR as increasingly frictionless, with wearables, AI, and spatial computing accelerating mainstream adoption. Whether that future includes headsets, smart contact lenses, or something entirely new, Bram’s focus remains: to build experiences that draw people in, to feel, explore, and remember.

From children’s AR storybooks to immersive real estate journeys and global brand activations, Bram is shaping how the next generation will see, and shape, the world around them.