Mark Whelan joins Eline van der Velden’s company Xicoia to create, manage and monetise digital talent, starting with the ’Tillyverse’
Xicoia, the talent studio founded by the creator of AI actor Tilly Norwood, has made its first major appointment with the addition of former Amazon Prime Video executive Mark Whelan.
He becomes head of strategy and operations at London-based Xicoia, which was founded by Particle6 chief exec Eline van der Velden last year to create, manage and monetise digital talent.
Whelan will work directly with van der Velden to scale the studio’s vision, beginning with the expansion of AI actor Norwood and the launch of the ‘Tillyverse’.
This will be “a dynamic, constantly evolving digital universe where Tilly and a new generation of AI characters will live, collaborate and build careers,” the company said.
It will launch later this year and marks the latest expansion for AI actor Tilly Norwood, whose YouTube appearance was first revealed by Broadcast International in June. A social media controversy then blew up around revelations that talent agencies were interested in signing the digital avatar.
Whelan previously led Prime Video’s social expansion across numerous territories in Europe, spending six years with the company to develop social strategy for brands including The Grand Tour and Clarkson’s Farm.
He was also behind a push into new YouTube formats for Prime Video, one of which (De Knop) evolved into an Amazon Original, and before that was a comedy producer at Third Leg Studios.
He also held roles at Hollabox, Culture Trip, and Your Life, as well as an early development role at Objective Productions. Whelan also had a previous short stint as a producer at Xicoia’s sister company, Particle6.
Van der Velden described Whelan as “a brilliant storyteller with a rare skillset” who “understands comedy, character-building, AI, audience behaviour and digital culture — which is exactly what Tilly and the wider business - needs at this stage.
“Tilly Norwood isn’t just an AI character — she’s a personality, a brand, and a future global superstar with a compelling narrative arc.
“Mark will help us craft and shape every layer of her world, from her humour, daily life and career choices to how she interacts with fans across various platforms. It all promises to be bold, playful, a little chaotic - and impossible to ignore.”
Whelan added: “Becoming a lead architect of the Tillyverse is genuinely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. AI is evolving at breathtaking speed, and combining cutting-edge tech with ambitious creative thinking means we’re not following an industry playbook at Xicoia - we are writing it.
“Tilly already has the momentum, an audience and the cultural spark. Now we’re writing her story and building her universe. It’s a huge responsibility — but an incredibly exciting one. I think the world is going to have a lot of fun watching what happens next.”
Whelan will also lead the team in the development of new proprietary AI characters for use by Xicoia and Particle6, as well as oversee the creation of bespoke AI talent commissioned by third parties.
No comments yet