Play Creators Conference

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Welcome to the Play Creators Conference

Wednesday, June 24th 2026

Play Creators Conference, Play Creators Festival

WELCOME TO THE PLAY CREATORS CONFERENCE

Focusing on creativity, innovation, inspiration and design

The annual Play Creators Conference is a one-day event designed to inspire, inform and energise the industry’s community of designers and inventors.

Bringing together an exceptional line-up of speakers from the worlds of toys, games, technology and design, the conference offers design deep dives, fresh perspectives and meaningful networking opportunities to spark new ideas and collaborations. The event will be held at London’s Stamford Bridge Stadium on Wednesday, 24 June alongside the other Play Creators Festival in-person events including the Play Creators Summer Party, Play Creators Awards and the Mojo Pitch.

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Our 2026 speakers...

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The 2026 sessions...

Session	Speaker(s)
09:45 - 10:20 \| Arrival & Breakfast Networking
10:20 \| Opening Remarks	Billy Langsworthy, Mojo Nation
10:25 - 10:30 \| Meta Strategies in Robot Wars – Game Designer Drew Richards	Game designer Drew Richards looks at how players adapt their strategies based on what other players are doing – using the TV show Robot Wars as the case study. In this talk – presented in the Pecha Kucha style of 20 slides with 20 seconds per slide – Drew will also cover prototyping, making and the art of iteration.
10:30 - 11:00 \| The Future of Play: The Next Decade Panel Session	As technology, culture, and consumer behaviours continue to evolve, what will define the future of play over the next decade? This panel brings together leaders from across the toy and game industry to discuss the signals they're watching, the shifts they're seeing in consumers, and what it takes to create products that feel genuinely new in a rapidly changing world. From AI and digital tools to collectibles, kidults, and emerging play patterns, the conversation will explore the opportunities and challenges shaping the next generation of toys and games.
11:00 - 11:20 \| Hidden in Plain Sight: Underleveraged Play Patterns as Opportunities to Innovate – 2 Much Fun’s Heftzi Zion-Mozes and Vered Bahat	This session explores a simple but powerful idea: some of the most effective play patterns are hiding in plain sight. They’re familiar, deeply human, and instantly recognisable across cultures and generations — yet many remain surprisingly underused. In this insightful and interactive session, 2 Much Fun’s Heftzi Zion-Mozes and Vered Bahat will shed light on the extraordinary play potential hidden inside the ordinary.
11:20 - 11:40 \| LEGO Smart Play: The Story Behind the Bricks that Play Back! – Chris Catton, Interactive Product Owner, The LEGO Group	LEGO’s Chris Catton shares an inside look at LEGO Smart Play system and discusses how one of the world’s most iconic play brands is reimagining interactive play for a new generation.
11:40 - 12:10 \| Reaching Connection Workshop – Tela Creative Director, Gabi Drew	Tela’s Founding Creative Director, Gabi Drew, presents an interactive workshop exploring human-centric design thinking within product and brand building. Through live discussion and creative exploration, the session will look at how emotional connections shape IP development, product ideation and concept selection, creating value-driven consumer experiences.
12:10 - 13:10 \| Lunch	Lunch
13:10 - 13:50 \| Playtime Pioneer – Fuse’s Pete Cartlidge & Toy Design Legend Bob Brechin	This session sees Fuse’s Pete Cartlidge speak with toy design legend Bob Brechin and his extraordinary career and legacy. Bob was at Palitoy from the late 1960s to mid 1980s and became chief designer and a key figure in the development of beloved toy brands like Action Man and Action Force, as well as part of the company’s Star Wars range. The session promises to be an insightful, entertaining deep dive into the craft, creativity and decisions that helped shape some of Palitoy’s most iconic creations.
13:50 - 14:30 \| Toy Room 101 Panel Session	Industry figures will once again hope to put their biggest pet peeves in Room 101 at this year’s Play Creators Conference. Taking part this year are Bananagrams’ Rena Nathanson and Big Potato’s James Vaughan. All three will try to convince the host – Mojo Nation’s Deej Johnson – that their industry pet hate deserves consigning to Room 101… Never to see the light of day again!
14:30 - 15:00 \| 20 Questions – Bob Moog, President, University Games	University Games’ Bob Moog sits down with Mojo Nation’s Billy Langsworthy for this 20 Questions session inspired by the company’s best-selling global secret-topic game. The chat will cover pitching, AI and epic stories, as well as exploring University Games’ biggest hits, Bob's favourite flops and his own approach to assessing – and coming up with – new ideas.
15:00 - 15:15 \| Break	Break
15:15 - 16:00 \| Licensing Inventions vs. Going It Alone Panel Session: Sponsored by Eastar Manufacturing	Every inventor hits the same crossroads at some point: do I license this concept to a manufacturer or publisher, or do I take the leap and bring it to market myself? There's no universal right answer. Both paths work; both paths can blow up in your face. This panel, moderated by The Plan A Group’s Lee Allentuck, explores the ups and downs of each with Fi Murray, David Snow and Rachel Krause.
16:00 - 16:30 \| From Inspiration to Production – David Yakos, Co-Owner & Inventor, Streamline Design	Award-winning inventor, artist and engineer David Yakos shares a behind-the-scenes look at how toy and game ideas are discovered, developed, refined and pitched. Through examples of inspiration, creativity, prototypes, sell sheets and real-world imagination strategy, David will help designers better understand what it takes to turn a spark of an idea into an industry-ready product.
16:30 - 16:55 \| From Concept to Category Leader – Ben Dermer, SVP, New Brand Group & IR, Spin Master	What makes a toy connect with consumers, stand out in the marketplace, and succeed on a global scale? In this session, Spin Master's Ben Dermer will speak with Mojo Nation's Billy Langsworthy about what helps concepts achieve their maximum potential – from identifying compelling play patterns, features and themes, to looking at the right categories to play in.