On December 18, Rev Lebaredian, Vice President of Omniverse and Simulation Technology at NVIDIA, joined TUMO’s Board of Directors, marking a new phase in his long-standing involvement with TUMO. An active member of TUMO’s advisory board since 2018, Lebaredian has played a key role in guiding the executive team on technology, strategy, and educational content development. By joining the Board of Directors, he deepens his commitment to TUMO’s ambitious global expansion trajectory and will play a central role in overseeing the integration of AI into the program’s curriculum and learning management systems.
Lebaredian will serve as the sixth member of the TUMO Board of Directors, joining Chairman Sam Simonian, Mozilla Chief Technology Officer Raffi Krikorian, Figma Chief Communications Officer Nairi Tashjian Hourdajian, ServiceTitan Co-Founder and President Vahe Kuzoyan, and KingsIsle Founder Elie Akilian.
Lebaredian brings more than 30 years of experience in the computer graphics industry. He previously held roles at Warner Brothers Digital and Disney Dream Quest Images before founding his own company, Steamboat Software. He joined NVIDIA in 2002, where he led the development of AI platforms and technologies, real-time multi-GPU scalable rendering, and physics simulation. He currently leads the product, engineering, and research teams of NVIDIA Omniverse, a software platform and operating system that enables developers to build simulation applications for physical AI and robotic systems.
His rendering and volumetric techniques have been used by leading visual effects studios in films such as Stuart Little and X-Men 2. At NVIDIA, he contributed to the development of early programmable GPU shading and worked on projects involving automated 3D testing, virtual photography, robotics simulation, and immersive visualization. He now leads efforts to unify NVIDIA’s rendering, physics, and AI technologies into a single simulation platform. In 2023, together with his wife, Rachel Lebaredian, he founded the Rev and Rachel Foundation, which is dedicated to advancing educational and innovation-driven charitable causes.
“TUMO is extremely special. There is nothing like it anywhere in the world. The idea behind TUMO is to enrich the minds of the young generation early so that they are ready for this new world, to build technologies, to be creative in a joyful way, not just as something you have to do to live, but something you enjoy and through which you give back to the world,” said Lebaredian, adding, “I saw TUMO graduates as interns who work at places like NVIDIA, and I realized that this is essentially the factory that will produce the brains companies like NVIDIA will benefit from.”
About TUMO
TUMO is a free, after-school program where teens build skills at the intersection of technology and design through self-learning activities, workshops, and project-based labs. Founded in Armenia in 2011, TUMO now serves 35,000 students each week across the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Argentina, Armenia, the Netherlands, Portugal, and other countries through a global network of centers and TUMO Boxes.
