Penn Entertainment, Inc. announced that Aaron LaBerge has been named chief technology officer (CTO) effective July 1, subject to customary regulatory approvals. LaBerge will report directly to Penn CEO & President Jay Snowden.
In his new role, LaBerge will be responsible for driving the technology strategy and execution for Penn, while leading the multinational team of technologists and serving as the key business leader for the company’s Interactive division.
LaBerge spent more than 20 years at the Walt Disney Company, in two stints as a technology entrepreneur. He was most recently president & chief technology officer for Disney Entertainment and ESPN, where he was responsible for driving all technology and product development in support of Disney’s two media divisions. In that role, he helped set the vision and strategic leadership for how Disney uses technology to enable story-telling and innovation, drive its business, and create unparalleled consumer experiences with entertainment and sports content.
“We are thrilled to have someone of Aaron’s caliber join our Penn executive team,” said Snowden. “Having overseen a global organization of thousands of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists and data scientists that created some of the largest scale and most successful media properties in the world, there is no better candidate to lead our Technology and Interactive division into its future.
“I know Aaron is looking forward to working with Todd George, our head of operations, and our entire executive team to continue growing our position as a leader in online gaming, sports betting, and digital sports media.”
“I’m excited to join another talented team at Penn Interactive and lead our technology strategy,” said LaBerge. “Penn Entertainment is at the forefront of the fast-changing gaming and sports media industry. I plan to use my experience from Disney and ESPN to help make ESPN BET an essential piece of the sports fan experience. Together, we’ll push the limits and redefine how fans interact with sports and gaming.”
Prior to his most recent role at Disney, LaBerge was executive vice president and CTO at ESPN from 2015 to 2018. At ESPN he played an instrumental role in the growth of ESPN’s consumer-facing digital media products and services, leading many of ESPN’s most ambitious and challenging projects and helping establish ESPN’s position as the leader in digital sports and innovative sports technology development.
He was a key architect in the design, development, and engineering of ESPN’s state-of-the-art facilities, as well as data centers and infrastructure that connect those facilities around the world, as well as the technology design and development to support the launch of the multi-platform SEC Network.
Between 2007 and 2012, LaBerge was co-founder and CEO of Fenster, Inc., a venture-funded consumer software and digital product development company.
