Molinare appoints Richard Welsh as group chief innovation officer

Molinare has recruited Richard Welsh as group chief innovation officer, to accelerate its strategy across AI, automation and next-generation production workflows.

Welsh has held senior roles at Deluxe, Dolby and Technicolor. He was also founder and CEO of Sundog Media Toolkit, a cloud-based mastering technology company acquired by Deluxe in 2020.

In this new role, Welsh will work across Molinare Creative Group’s five businesses to identify where emerging technology can make a meaningful difference to creative and production workflows, the client experience and the way the group operates.

His remit spans AI and automation alongside the development of new technology-led products, services and ways of working.

Nigel Bennett, CEO of Molinare Creative Group, said: “Richard is a significant appointment for Molinare Creative Group. He understands this industry, but also has a track record of looking ahead to where technology is taking it.

“We have an exceptional depth of creative expertise and operational knowledge across the group. Our focus now is on bringing those capabilities together through technology and AI, simplifying the way we work and creating more connected, efficient and valuable solutions for our clients.

“This isn’t about technology for technology’s sake. It’s about making the experience of working with us better, giving our teams better tools and building services that respond to where our clients and the industry are heading.”

Darren Woolfson, CTO of Molinare Creative Group, adds: “Richard brings rare experience of taking emerging technology and turning it into something genuinely useful at scale. We already have strong technology, development and operational expertise across the group. Richard will help us connect that thinking and accelerate the best ideas from concept into tools and services that deliver real value for our clients.”

Welsh said: “I’ve spent much of my career working through major technology shifts in our industry, from digital cinema to cloud production, and AI has the potential to be the most significant change our industry has ever seen.

“What excites me about joining Molinare Creative Group is the opportunity to build on such a strong technical and creative foundation. I’m looking forward to working across the group to explore how new technologies can solve real challenges, improve workflows and give our teams the tools and freedom to focus on creative work.

“I believe innovation is much broader than AI, of course. The goal is to harness technology to deliver practical improvements today, while developing the products, services and workflows our clients will need tomorrow.”