Work at the edge of a category before the market agrees that it exists.
Official biography
A life spent
ahead of the curve.
Barry Henthorn’s career spans telecommunications, cellular retail, media technology, entertainment, restaurant brands, aviation, automotive manufacturing and artificial intelligence.
Barry Henthorn is an American entrepreneur, inventor, producer and technology executive known for recognizing inflection points early and building directly into them.
His work began in telecommunications, where he developed private networks and architected V.O.P.T., pioneering packetized voice technology that led to the elimination of long distance phone charges worldwide. He then created the Free Cellular Phone strategy, removing handset cost as a barrier to service and transforming how consumers obtained mobile devices.
Barry later applied the same category creating instinct to distributed video delivery, virtual reality, television, restaurant concepts, panoramic imaging, aviation, low volume vehicle manufacturing and artificial intelligence. The industries changed, but the pattern remained consistent: identify the opening, build what comes next and give the market a reason to follow.
Use the approved press biographyTurn technical possibility into an offer that ordinary people can understand.
Use storytelling, media and memorable positioning to carry an idea into culture.
The chronology
The record,
chapter by chapter.
An Atari, a modem and an early idea
As a University of Puget Sound freshman, Barry used an Atari computer and modem to experiment with routing calls between local calling areas, an early expression of the communications work that followed.
Emerald City Telecommunications
Barry entered Washington’s emerging competitive telecommunications market, developing private network approaches intended to reduce the cost of calls across traditional toll boundaries.
All in at the AGC Center
Barry lived in his Lake Union office and slept beneath his desk so his time and resources could remain dedicated to building the company.
A telecommunications breakthrough
Barry won a landmark regulatory case that eliminated long distance charges and opened the ability to carry telephone calls through emerging network technology.
The first national U.S. West Cellular dealership
U.S. West Cellular awarded Barry what he describes as its first national cellular dealership. He formed Emerald City Cellular and pursued a new model for mobile adoption.
The Free Cellular Phone changes the market
Barry created the Free Cellular Phone strategy, pairing service activation with a handset. The approach produced record sales at Emerald City Cellular and was rapidly emulated across the industry.
Voice Over Packetized Technology
At Innovative Communications Technologies, Barry architected V.O.P.T., Voice Over Packetized Technology, pioneering packetized voice technology that led to the elimination of long distance phone charges worldwide.
Name That Lick
Barry created, hosted and produced the music driven game show Name That Lick. The program became an early part of MTV’s expansion beyond music videos, and its concept was later adapted for My Generation on VH1.
Watch the surviving program videoDistributed video delivery
Barry architected ReelTime’s grid based distribution system to deliver full screen, DVD quality internet video before broadband streaming became ordinary.
Exosphere Aircraft
Barry owned and led Exosphere Aircraft Company with aeronautical designer Jim Bede, pursuing the BD-22 and BD-22S for the new Light Sport Aircraft category.
View the 2007 program announcementCostume Coffee goes national
As CEO of Baristas Coffee Company, Barry helped develop Costume Coffee into a nationally marketed consumer concept with expansion, merchandise and television.
Read Entrepreneur’s coverageAn immersive turn
ReelTime VR brought production, editing and distribution together across music, travel, youth programming and documentary work.
Forbes Technology Council
As ReelTime VR’s CEO and CTO, Barry accepted an invitation to join the Forbes Technology Council as an advisor and contributing author.
Read the technology media coverageThree virtual restaurant brands
Munchie Magic, Minibar Magic and Thai-Dah used a connected delivery first operating model to launch distinct consumer concepts through major delivery networks.
The Periramascope patents
Barry received U.S. patents 10,761,303 and 11,614,607 for a simultaneous spherical panorama image and video capturing system.
View the patent recordE-Cite Motors
Barry founded E-Cite Motors and became its CEO, bringing his pattern of category building to American low volume automotive manufacturing.
View the federal manufacturer recordReel Intelligence
Barry returned to a familiar frontier as the creator and driving architect of Reel Intelligence, or RI, bringing artificial intelligence into creative production and distributed computing.
In brief
About Barry Henthorn
Who is Barry Henthorn?
Barry Henthorn is a Seattle area entrepreneur, inventor, producer and technology executive whose career spans telecommunications, media, restaurant brands, aviation, automotive manufacturing and artificial intelligence.
Why is he called “The Innovator”?
The title reflects a career pattern of creating technologies, business models and marketing strategies around emerging categories rather than entering them after they become established.
What did Barry invent?
His issued patents cover simultaneous spherical panorama image and video capture. His wider technical record includes V.O.P.T., the packetized voice technology that led to the elimination of long distance phone charges worldwide, and ReelTime’s grid based video delivery architecture.
What is Reel Intelligence?
Reel Intelligence, or RI, is Barry’s current artificial intelligence initiative spanning creative production, generative music and distributed systems. Within the project, he is known as the Father of Reel Intelligence.