From DEI pioneer to startup champion, Kelly Kehn joins the MaxBet Podcast to talk about what it takes to build in gaming right now. Kelly has spent more than two decades in iGaming and co-founded the All-In Diversity Project.

She's now working with Defy the Odds alongside Sue Schneider and Paris Smith, supporting founders and helping open doors that have not always been open.

We get into:

Building startups in gaming and where people get stuck

Managing risk when everything is moving fast

Culture, and what happens when people feel comfortable speaking up

The difference between saying you value diverse perspectives and creating space for them

What Defy the Odds is doing behind the scenes

On this episode of MaxBet Podcast, Martina Åkerlund breaks down what actually drives company culture and why so many leaders get it wrong. As CEO of Elevated Edge, Martina works directly with founders and leadership teams to build companies that perform without burning out their people.

This conversation gets into the real issues and what actually happens inside teams when leadership avoids hard decisions, not what companies say about culture.

In this episode, you'll find: Why high performers can quietly damage culture The risk of keeping the wrong people for the sake of results Why culture always starts at the top The leadership habit that can undo years of progress Hiring for potential vs hiring for performance How to make hard decisions without losing respect Why numbers alone are not enough to scale a company What sustainable leadership actually looks like

What is DraftKings actually paying attention to right now… and what does that mean for the rest of the industry?

In Episode 1 of WTF?! with IGI, MaxBet sits down with a Director from UNLV's International Gaming Institute to break down the trends shaping gaming behind the scenes.

We get into what suppliers should be building over the next 3 years, what is actually working in persistent games, and how student-created ideas are making it onto real casino floors.

Some of those same ideas are even catching the attention of DraftKings inside IGI's innovation lab.

If you care about where gaming is going next, this is the stuff you want to be paying attention to.

MaxBet is teaming up with UNLV International Gaming Institute to create a mini-series lovingly and relatably called WTF?! with IGI. Because there are people out there doing incredibly smart research on our industry. So we're bringing them in to break it down, translate it, and tell us what we probably should've known sooner. If you're an operator or a supplier, you'll probably want to hear what IGI has been studying… because it probably applies directly to your work. In this episode, we kick off the series with the co-mastermind Dr. Brett Abarbanel and walk through exactly what you can expect from WTF? with IGI. First episode airs 3/19! Also, IGI's International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking is happening May 26–28, 2026 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, where a lot of these exact conversations are happening in real time. You can learn more and register here: 👉 https://lnkd.in/gnjF2MA9

Magnus Olsson, CCO of Play'n GO, joins MaxBet to discuss the evolving economics of iGaming.

From hosting partners in the Formula 1 paddock to building games that players return to for years, Magnus shares how entertainment value and strong storytelling drive long-term retention.

The conversation covers U.S. regulatory hurdles, the differences between European and American gaming markets, and why the industry's future depends on attracting new online-first audiences.

Hillary sits down with Catie Di Stefano, one of the most genuinely connected people in the gaming industry. With 15 years in gaming (which officially makes her a self proclaimed baby dinosaur), Catie has built a strong reputation for how she approaches both marketing and LinkedIn in a B2B world. It's practical, consistent, and rooted in real relationships.

The conversation covers how people can show up on LinkedIn without waiting on their company page to do all the work, how personal credibility grows over time, and why supporting other people in the industry matters more than most realize.

If you work in marketing, care about building a personal presence online, or want a clearer sense of how people actually build connection and opportunity in gaming, this episode is for you.

AGS recently launched a new brand identity at G2E, and this episode unpacks what that evolution represents for the company.

Julia Boguslawski and Nikki Davis from AGS share why the rebrand was necessary, what they wanted the market to better understand about who AGS is today, and how the new identity reflects the company's growth across slots, tables, and interactive. The conversation explores the realities of rebranding in gaming, from internal alignment and rollout strategy to how a brand lives on the show floor and in long-term customer relationships.

It's an inside look at how a gaming supplier modernizes its brand without losing its edge, paired with an honest perspective on trade show culture and the dynamics of marketing in the industry.

Joe Solosky, Managing Director of Sports Betting at NASCAR, joins the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on what sports betting looks like from a motorsports and league-side perspective. Before helping build out NASCAR's sports betting strategy, Joe spent six years with the FBI, giving him a unique lens on regulation, integrity, and how leagues think about betting partnerships.

We talk about how sports betting fits into motorsports, how prediction markets are viewed from the league side, and how quickly "the future" is arriving in this space. It's a practical, thoughtful conversation about where betting, leagues, and regulation are actually intersecting right now.

Aristocrat CPO Matt Primmer joins MaxBet and gets right into it, including whether he prefers Lightning Link or Buffalo and how he looks at product even when he's off the clock.

We chat about his mindset around change and adapting, why doing things the same way as before usually means something is wrong, and how intensity, efficiency, and short meetings shape the way he leads. He also shares why, despite running global product, he is very clear that he is the lowest on the totem pole at home.

There is real talk about lessons learned, parenting, club sports, and what balancing product and family actually looks like.

Emily Haruko Life Coach and CEO of Soroca joins the show to talk about what actually improves teams and company culture. Emily works within B2B organizations to help leaders strengthen communication, increase efficiency, and build healthier work environments.

A major focus of her work is emotional intelligence. She shares a study where Coca-Cola implemented emotional intelligence training and saw a 15% increase in earnings. We'll have whatever they're having.

We also get into how leaders can recognize different employee states, how communication flow impacts performance, and why culture shows up in the "doing".

Practical, clear, and relevant whether you lead a team or work within one.