WIT Employee Profile: Brandon Wilson

This is the first in a new series of profiles focusing on WIT employees. Today's post features WIT senior software engineer Brandon Wilson, who joined the company in 2023. Currently living in New York City, Brandon is one of WIT's great engineers who build and deploy the technology that powers WIT activations.

Where are you from? 

I was born in Virginia in the Hampton Roads area. It's actually the largest “city” in Virginia, called Suffolk. Most of the other large cities are actually counties. 

I went to school in D.C. An art institute. It was about 3.5 hours away. The reason I went to D.C. was I wanted to be an Air Force pilot. I did ROTC for 3.5 years and had to make a decision on if I wanted to enlist and do officer training or do the school route and get my bachelor's and then automatically become an officer. By the time I graduated, I was like “I'm not about to go back into military life.” So I decided, yeah, web developer it is.

So I was doing web development back in the MySpace days. Changing the backgrounds, being paid to do custom images floating down. I was charging folks to do their backgrounds. And so it was like, air force or web development. And I went with the latter.

What were some of your professional experiences before joining WIT?

I graduated in December 2012 and most of my family was from New York. My grandmother was here and I moved in with her. And then I started working with a web firm, at that time it was called Emagid. And we were contracted with another company called Junebug, which was an event company. We would set up the tech for things like New Year's Eve parties and what not. Around 2016, I started working with Junebug full-time for the next few years. 

I then worked at a place called Kangaroo, which was a security company. Then the tech layoff situation happened and that impacted the whole New York team.

And then I got connected with Vaidhy Murti, and that's when I started working with WIT.

What attracted you to WIT?

My life is pretty much gaming and sports. I was an athlete growing up. Track, football and martial arts. I did my research on what WIT was doing and realized that this got my foot in the door working with sports. Something I love. That was one of the most intriguing aspects of it.  

Then when I met with Vaidhy, he told me the goals and vision he saw with WIT. And that intrigued me even more. And honestly, when you have good conversation with down-to-earth CEOs it just makes everything better. When I met with Vaidhy and Stephi, I just knew I was going to love it here.

What is one of your favorite projects that you've worked on here at WIT?

I'd have to say two big things that are at the top of the list.

First, was our Live Nation project. When I first started, we were working with Live Nation who wanted to do a custom giveaway. They had a lot of specific things for us and getting thrown into it immediately really pushed me and my energy level. I was really excited. I wanted to make sure that everything was flowing well. Everything had to be perfect, especially with a client like Live Nation that was a little different than our typical clients at that time. To see that work out the way it did with minimal problems, I loved it.

The second one was the helmet shuffle. We created a helmet shuffle product for the Cleveland Browns for their in-game platform. It was like when you look at the Jumbotron and you have to pick which helmet has the ball underneath it. It was funny because each time I watched the various videos with the helmet shuffles, I never actually guessed it right because it moves so fast. But that was a fun one to work on. 

What do you love to do outside of work?

I fight and train Muay Thai. I’ve been doing it officially for 2.5 years now. I started back in college going to Northern Virginia Muay Thai. I wasn’t running track anymore. I had to do something to keep myself occupied. And the trainer there was so intense. Every time you did anything wrong, this guy would kick you in the leg as hard as he could. So you’re not just sore from the workout, but also from all those kicks. So after a few classes of that, I realized that I needed to put that on the back burner for a bit. So years later, now in my 30s, I knew I had to do something to stay active. So I started going to a Muay Thai camp in Queens. The team there was great and welcoming. I was a natural fighter. My instincts to know what to do were really strong.

So Sundays through Thursdays every week, I train. So nearly 10 hours a week of training. I have a tournament in May. It will be my first tournament so it should be kind of interesting. In a tournament, you’re doing at least 2-3 fights throughout that weekend. 

So for those of us who haven’t seen Muay Thai, is it like MMA? Boxing? Describe this in detail.

So it’s more like kickboxing. In order to clinch, you have to be active. And by clinching, that’s hand around the neck and throwing knees and elbows. If you’re not doing anything or fall to the ground, the ref will break it up. Everything is standing up. The difference from kickboxing is that you’re throwing knees and elbows. Amateurs wear padding, but there are different classes with different levels of pads and protection. The professionals don’t wear anything but gloves.

What is something new that you want to try in 2024?

Well, as you may have guessed, I’m a thrillseeker. So this year, I want to do scuba diving. That’s probably my next adventure. No particular place, I just want to get certified with a good trainer.

What are your college or professional sports allegiances?

Well, in terms of college, I’m a Longhorns fan. Roughly around the early 2000s, they were good and making bowls every year, that’s when I picked up on them. The Vince Young days. I mean, the colors are kinda weird, but I thought I could get rolling with them. Any time Texas is on, no matter the sport, I’ll stop and watch them. 

In MLB, it’s the New York Mets. That’s just being in Queens for so long. 

I’m a 90s baby, so I grew up on the Mighty Ducks. So it’s the Ducks for my NHL team. Granted, I don’t watch hockey enough to really know what’s going on. And no, I’ve never been to Anaheim to see them play. 

I recently picked up soccer, so I pull for the New York Red Bulls. And that’s mostly because of FIFA. And I go back and forth between them and NYCFC. 

I was a Kobe fan from the beginning. But overall, I pull for the Knicks. And we’re kind of on a roll right now. If the Knicks are happy, the city of New York is happy. 

And last but not least, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are my die-hard team. Why Tampa? When I was growing up I played either wide receiver or cornerback. Just throw it deep and I’ll go get it. And on defense, I was an instigator. My favorite player back then was Ronde Barber, who graduated from Virginia and went to Tampa Bay when they started to get pretty good. Defense wins championships and they won one in 2002. And yeah, it took 20 years for the next one. But I’ll always defend my Bucs.