The AURO-3D Legacy

Since 2011, AURO-3D has revolutionized the audio industry with the introduction of a true immersive sound experience and groundbreaking technology suite, enabling content creators and product developers to elevate the emotions to higher levels than ever before.

Originally conceived and developed by Wilfried Van Baelen of the world-wide renown Galaxy Studios in Mol, Belgium, AURO-3D has its roots in a top-quality music recording and movie mixing facility. The concept and core techologies are therefore driven by the creative vision of sound engineers and audiovisual artists who then inspired some of the brightest engineers to develop the ground-breaking technology that became the reference for immersive audio coding and reproduction.

Between 2011 and 2022, Auro Technologies NV was the first to introduce immersive sound in the audio industry. Starting in the professional cinema world, they further developed and marketed the AURO-3D technology suite to support integrations in leading brands of AVRs, soundbars, car audio systems and even set-top boxes, as well as providing cutting-edge creative tools for the artistic community.

In July 2022, the Saffelberg Investment group acquired all assets, teams and rights of AURO-3D and founded a new company, NEWAURO BV, with the intention to further support the growth of the format and technology suite across all markets.

Leadership

Rudy Van Duppen

Chief Executive Officer

Rudy Van Duppen is Chief Executive Officer of Newauro, as he continued the position at Auro Technologies, the former company behind AURO-3D. Under his leadership, the AURO-3D team has built world-class 3D audio technology and continued to introduce new and better immersive sound experiences to the market that reveal the real potential of entertainment audio for music, movies, and games.
Before becoming CEO in 2018, Rudy served as Auro’s Chief Operations Officer, developing the company’s structure to support growth and expansion. Prior to AURO-3D, Rudy was Vice President of Worldwide DSL Business and MD at Technicolor Belgium. Before, Rudy was at Alcatel as Vice President R&D for xDSL CPE worldwide.

Bert Van Daele

Chief Technology Officer

Bert Van Daele is Chief Technical Officer at NewAuro, as a continuation of his role at Auro Technologies, the former company behind AURO-3D. Since the beginning, Bert was the driving force behind the technology suite supporting the format and company’s vision.
Before joining Auro, Bert started as an electrical and acoustical development engineer at Royal Philips NV, gaining a vast experience in the hardware and software development of audio products for the international CE business.
Passionate about music and sound, Bert became a recognized expert in surround and immersive sound throughout his career of more than 25 years, participating in various standardization bodies and acting as speaker or moderator at industry events.

Iwan de Kuijper

Director Content and MarCom

Iwan de Kuijper serves as Director Content and Marketing & Communications at NewAuro. As Director of Content and MarCom, Iwan is responsible for the content acquisition, production and distribution of Auro-3D® content within all segments of the entertainment industry, as well as all Marketing and Communication for NewAuro.
Iwan graduated in 2001 from SAE (School of Audio Engineering) in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and started taking a position as “Licensing Manager” at Black Hole Recordings. Later he moved to “New Media Manager” with a focus digital music distribution, whilst finally moving to the the A&R position.
He also worked within the gaming industry with many audio outsourcing partners to provide solutions for music licensing and production and joined afterwards the Galaxy Studios. 

Directors

Wiebo Vaartjes

Chairman of the Board of Directors

As a former Executive Vice President of Royal Philips NV with more than 25 years of international experience, Mr. Vaartjes has been responsible for global business divisions as well as countries.
Throughout his career he has been strongly involved in Consumer Electronics with a passion for the Audio businesses , e.g. as CEO of Philips Sound Solutions and later as CEO of Philips Audio, Philips Lifestyle Entertainment.
He now serves as Chairman of the Board of NewAuro and as independent management advisor.

Jos Sluys

Director

Jos Sluys founded Saffelberg Investments with a focus on helping entrepreneurs create value. Until 2007, Jos Sluys was CEO, Director & majority shareholder of ARINSO International, listed on Euronext Brussels. The group operated in 27 countries with consolidated net sales of 220 million euro and over 2,500 staff.

Luc Osselaer

Director

Luc Osselaer is Managing Director at Saffelberg Investments, overseeing a portfolio of 45 companies, most of which have a strong technology focus. Previously he founded several management consultancies in Europe and directed Marketing & Investor Relations at ARINSO International.