I think about what happens when the physical world becomes virtual, and I've spent 25 years building at that edge.
I'm Elizabeth Strickler. Media futurist. Educator. Builder. I work at the intersection of AI, media, art, and innovation, connecting patterns across technology, culture, and systems that most people see as separate.
I teach at Georgia State University. I consult for Coca-Cola as an AI media strategist. I read 50 books a year and I'm usually thinking about what's coming five years from now.
Core Thesis
Everything in the physical world will be recreated in the virtual world. The important questions are how, by whom, and with what consequences.
What I've Built
MindSpring Internet Infrastructure
First female software engineer. Employee #40. Led the company's web hosting division when the internet was just beginning.
1995
Creative Media Industries Institute
Co-founder. Secured $20M grant for a state-of-the-art immersive media production facility. Transformed an abandoned building into an innovation hub.
2014
Media Entrepreneurship Degree
Created the curriculum and launched the program. It became one of GSU's fastest-growing majors from 2017-2020.
2015
Innovation Studio & Blockchain Lab
Developed courses and certificate program in the Robinson College of Business integrating entrepreneurship, AI, and emerging technologies.
2021
MIT Reality Hack Winner
Won two top prizes for UCity, a blockchain-based augmented reality civic engagement tool built with a team at MIT.
2022
AI Filmmaking Intensive
A one-day program that has drawn executive producers, studio directors, and innovators to explore AI's role in visual storytelling.
Ongoing
Speaking
I speak about the future of media, AI's transformation of creative industries, and what happens when physical and virtual worlds collide. Available for keynotes, panels, and workshops globally.
Past venues: SXSW, TEDx Atlanta, NFT.NYC, World Futures Studies Federation (Paris), Netherlands Film Festival, MENA ICT Forum (Jordan), Futures Conference (Finland), SINFO (Lisbon), Chain2020 (Hong Kong), Invetures (Calgary), Infinity Festival Hollywood
Upcoming: SXSW 2025, Atlanta AI Week Keynote (April 2025)
AI Filmmaking Intensive
A one-day immersive program where filmmakers, producers, and creatives learn to work with AI as a creative collaborator. Not theory. Practice.
This isn't about replacing filmmakers. It's about understanding how the tools are changing so you can shape what comes next rather than react to it.
Inquire About Next Session
About
I started at Boston College studying philosophy with Jesuit priests who taught me to see patterns across math, science, culture, music, and art as one interconnected system. That way of thinking has shaped everything since.
I came to Georgia State to teach high school math and fell in love with computer science just as the internet was beginning. I helped build the university's internet infrastructure, then joined MindSpring as employee #40 and its first female software engineer. I led their web hosting division during the early days of the commercial internet.
I returned to GSU to run the Kodak Cineon film system, earned an MFA in digital filmmaking, and started making short films and games. Eventually I became faculty, created the media entrepreneurship program, co-founded the Creative Media Industries Institute, and got jointly appointed in the Robinson College of Business.
Now I work as Director of Media Innovation at CMII, consult for Coca-Cola on AI media strategy, and teach courses on AI in the creative industries, immersive experience design, and media ventures. I'm a 2024 Fulbright Specialist, currently running a project in Tunisia teaching AR and AI to women.
BA Philosophy, Boston College. BS Computer Science, Georgia State. MFA Digital Filmmaking & Art, Georgia State. Fulbright Specialist 2024. Program Chair, Immersive Experience Alliance. Certified in Futures Foresight (University of Houston) and IDEO Design Thinking.