Derek Jenkins

Senior Vice President Design and Brand

Lucid Motors, Newark, California, United States

Thomas Orenz's deep understanding of automotive marketing, combined with his firsthand experience of our journey since CES 2019, has been invaluable to Lucid Motors. His ability to leverage world-first innovations and successfully promote our products is a testament to his expertise and strategic approach. The Global EV Launch of Autocar Award-Winning D2C eCommerce Connected Customer Journey and the Global Rollout of our Ray-Traced Interactive 3D Web Configurator have set new industry standards, thanks to Thomas' commitment to delivering best-in-class quality. His expertise in implementing groundbreaking initiatives like the 1:1 Remote Sales Platform: Lucid Studio Live and the 3D Streamed Volumetric Video for VR and Web have propelled Lucid Motors to the forefront of innovation. The VR-Buck for Retail, featuring a Two-User, Two-Car Metaverse VR at Retail, exemplifies our shared commitment to reimagining the automotive industry.

Thomas has played a pivotal role in creating a perfect digital journey for our customers, establishing various digital touchpoints from the ground up. Through his innovative ideas and strategic implementation, he has seamlessly enabled customers to interact and engage with our products at every step. Whether it's the configurator or the immersive VR experience, Thomas has revolutionized the way customers explore and personalize their automotive choices, ensuring a truly immersive and personalized journey.

At Lucid Motors, we are incredibly proud of the groundbreaking work that Thomas has accomplished with our configurator and VR experience. His dedication to pushing boundaries and delivering exceptional results has solidified Lucid Motors' position as a leader in the automotive industry. Thomas has been an invaluable member of our team, driving our vision forward with his expertise and passion. As he moves on to new endeavors, we extend our heartfelt appreciation for his contributions and wish him continued success in his future endeavors.

Jörg Oberglock

Director Studio Engineering and Program Management Design

Lucid Motors, Newark, California, United States
 

Thomas Orenz's collaboration with our Lucid Motors design team has been transformative. Through close collaboration between Brand, Design, and Marketing, we have achieved a seamless integration of prototype 3D data, resulting in high-quality output that sets new industry standards. 

Thomas's expertise and visionary thinking have enabled us to push the boundaries of design and brand collaboration, delivering exceptional results and positioning Lucid Motors as a leader in the automotive industry.

Dr. Felicitas Nogly

Head of Marketing Communication

AUDI AG, Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany

 
During his tenure at AUDI AG, Mr. Thomas Orenz showcased exceptional expertise in developing integrated interactive marketing strategies and leveraging interactive marketing channels, online marketing tools, and best practices. His contributions in these areas were instrumental in driving the success of our marketing initiatives.

Notably, Mr. Orenz played a key role in spearheading the AVE2WEB  

(Audi Visualization Engine to Web) initiative, a groundbreaking project that revolutionized the automotive industry. This innovative endeavor involved the development and global rollout of the Global Cloud Streamed 3D Car Configurator, offering customers an immersive car customization experience accessible across 25 countries. Powered by cloud streaming technology, this configurator allowed users to explore Audi's full range of vehicles in stunning 3D detail, setting new industry standards.

Throughout his employment, Mr. Orenz consistently demonstrated his extraordinary sense of responsibility, strive for innovation, and dedication to pushing boundaries within his scope of work. His technical proficiency in areas such as Virtual Reality, High-End VR, Multiplatform Content, and more, coupled with his comprehensive understanding of interactive marketing strategies, positioned him as a valuable asset to our organization.

We deeply regret Mr. Orenz's departure from our company, as his contributions and commitment to excellence were highly valued. We extend our heartfelt appreciation for his outstanding work and extend our best wishes for his future endeavors in his career and personal life.

(adapted from the employer's reference)

Norman Marks

Global Vice President - Automotive Industry 

Nvidia, Detroit Metropolitan Area, United States
 

Collaborating with Thomas Orenz on a transformative configurator experience was a remarkable journey. Together, we pushed the boundaries of innovation, leveraging cutting-edge technologies to create a visually stunning and immersive platform.

Thomas's expertise in bridging the gap between Brand, Design, and Marketing was instrumental in our success. With his leadership, we reimagined the configurator building process, resulting in an exceptional experience for future customers.

Our collaboration has set a new standard in the automotive industry, and I am grateful for Thomas's valuable contributions.

Simon Jones

Director, Unreal Engine

Epic Games, London, England, United Kingdom
 

I worked with Thomas Orenz at Audi as he and the team developed a truly next-generation retail configuration experience and as they upgraded from supplier managed tech into the open platform that is Unreal Engine.

I found that Thomas has passion for innovation and demonstrated the ability to push boundaries which built Audi's collaboration with Epic Games team and helped demonstrate the impact of Unreal Engine in the automotive industry.

The project helped to revolutionise the automotive retail experience, creating immersive environments that bring cars to life in innovative ways, methods that have now been taken-up by other industries such as film, TV, aviation, aerospace, architecture, fashion etc.

I welcomed the collaboration between Thomas, Audi, and Epic which helped to transform the way customers perceive and interact with Audi vehicles and helped build Unreal Engine’s dominance in the auto industry.

I look-forward to working with him again.

Heiko Wenczel

Director, Unreal Engine Business, HMI & Automotive

Epic Games, Detroit Metropolitan Area, United States
 

The collaboration with Thomas Orenz was an important step towards automotive innovation for EPIC. The joint work on a pilot project for CES and the successful cooperation with EPIC, Theia, and Surreal Events for our "Next Generation Showroom Configurator" have opened up new opportunities for us. Thomas' comprehensive understanding of automotive marketing and his strategic approach have contributed to elevating our solutions to a successful level.

The collaboration was characterized by creativity, dedication, and innovation. 

Thiago Fagionato 

Senior Client Partner 

Unity Technologies, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
 

Thomas Orenz's work with Unity Technologies has been instrumental in our ongoing pursuit of world-first innovations. Through our collaborative efforts, we have successfully created a 3D streamed and ray-traced car configurator that has revolutionized the automotive industry. 

Our long-lasting partnership since 2012 has consistently driven digital transformation and elevated our customer experience to new heights.

Darren Jobling

CEO 

Zerolight, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, United Kingdom 

Thomas Orenz has consistently demonstrated his innovative and forward-thinking mindset, delivering exceptional digital solutions for clients and teams many times during his career. 

In the recent past, Thomas has successfully realized groundbreaking projects at both Audi and Lucid, showcasing his unwavering commitment to pushing the boundaries of what's possible.

His track record of attracting and collaborating with leading tech companies from around the globe, driven by his passion for exploring new frontiers, sets him apart in the automotive industry.

A unique blend of technical expertise, captivating storytelling, and a relentless pursuit of excellence, has positioned him as a sought-after industry expert, capable of redefining the automotive digital landscape.

Phillip Scales

Customer Success Director 

Zerolight, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, United Kingdom 

Thomas Orenz is a seasoned sales and marketing professional with an unwavering commitment to quality that permeates every facet of his work. His relentless pursuit of excellence leaves an indelible impact on his teams and collaborators, driving them to uphold nothing less than the highest standards.

Through his exacting benchmarks, Thomas swiftly establishes new norms in the industry, compelling others to strive for excellence. His ability to consistently deliver exceptional results is a testament to his expertise and experience.

The agility and swiftness with which Thomas and his teams operate are palpable to all stakeholders. He has always been at the forefront of technological advancements in the automotive sector, evident in the industry-standard approaches that have become commonplace today.

Faruk Heplevent

CEO  

The Scope, Hamburg Metropolitan Area, Hamburg, Germany  

Thomas Orenz, the driving force behind Lucid's 'cinematic drive,' has orchestrated an unparalleled collaboration between Lucid, Lucid Design and Brand Team, The Scope, and Zerolight, each bringing their unique expertise to the table. 

With Thomas's visionary leadership, we embarked on an extraordinary journey to redefine the customer-car interaction along the buying journey. Leveraging the core high-end assets from The Scope and the cutting-edge real-time tech from Zerolight, Thomas skillfully aligned our diverse teams and pushed the boundaries for quality. The result? A groundbreaking concept of 'cinematic drive' that mesmerizes and captivates customers, setting a new standard for immersive experiences. 

This fruitful collaboration, driven by Thomas's passion for innovation, has delighted customers and led to remarkable conversions. Get ready to witness more of this next-level interaction as we revolutionize the automotive industry with customer-centric experiences. 

Thad Dungan

Head of Strategy - Digital Customer Experience for Automotive  

Amazon Web Services (AWS), Salt Lake City Metropolitan Area, United States 

Collaborating with Thomas Orenz and the Lucid Marketing Team, along with Theia, Surreal, EPIC, Unity, Zerolight and AWS on the Metaverse pilot for CES 2022 was an inspiring experience that showcased our collective dedication to innovation. Although the project did not reach its final stage, the partnership demonstrated our shared commitment to pushing boundaries and exploring new possibilities. 

Thomas's expertise and leadership, supported by Theia, Surreal, EPIC, Unity, Zerolight, AWS and Lucid played a pivotal role in driving the project forward. It was a pleasure to work with such a talented and passionate team, and I have no doubt that they will continue to lead the way in driving groundbreaking innovations in the automotive industry.

Randy Ochs

Vice President, CRO & Strategic Alliances

Theia Interactive, Pleasanton, California, United States 

Collaborating with Thomas Orenz and the joint efforts of Lucid Motors, Epic, AWS and Theia in our pilot project have been a game-changer in our pursuit to revolutionize the automotive selling experience. The innovative use of the Metaverse approach and the reliable high-end prototyping capabilities provided by this partnership have set new industry standards. 

Together, we have crafted a truly immersive and groundbreaking configurator experience, showcasing the immense potential to transform how customers engage with our brand. 

Jed Fisher

Managing Partner 

4D-Pipeline, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 

Thomas Orenz's expertise in automotive marketing, coupled with the collaborative approach of 4D Pipeline, has been instrumental in improving our shared client's data integration processes. Together, our goal has been focused on creating seamless digital experiences that have connected end users in a more meaningful way. 

The innovative solutions provided by Thomas and the 4DP team have elevated our Client's marketing strategies to new heights.