“Since technology defines our culture, culture should define our technology” is Marleen Stikker’s credo.

After reading Philosophy in Amsterdam, Stikker (1962) was the founder of De Digitale Stad (The Digital City) in 1994, the first virtual community introducing free public access to the internet.
Soon she co-founded the “Society of Old and New Media”, now Waag Society, Institute for Art, Science and Technology. Waag Society actively developes creative technology for social innovation through R&D projects with leading international partners.
As CEO of Waag Society she launched succesful products as the Storytable for the elderly and the Museum App, enabling every citizen to remain part of the mediatized society.

Together with Bas Verhart (Media Republic) she created PICNIC, the leading European event for the creative industries, an innovation platform hosted yearly in Amsterdam.

In 2007 Marleen Stikker initiated the ICT Innovation Platform Creative Industries (IIPcreate) which aims to bring together science, industry and the creative sector to formulate a strategic research agenda.
Stikker is a member of the Board of Directors at WPG Publishers, an independent publishing group. She continues to advocate her message of "inclusion through technology" around the world.