We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brian Oaks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Brian, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
In 2017, at 43 years old, I experienced a life-changing event. During a basketball game, I took a lowered shoulder hit to the chest on a fast break. I’m a fairly big guy, but this blow laid me out flat. As I got up, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. That pain soon turned into a cardiac arrest, similar to what Damar Hamlin experienced in the NFL a few years ago. The EMTs arrived quickly, and despite my heart stopping for several minutes, they were able to revive me. I later learned that 90% of people who suffer cardiac arrests like mine don’t survive, and of the remaining 10%, only a fraction are able to walk and talk without difficulty. While I struggled with memory issues for a while, I was fortunate to recover my ability to function relatively normally.
But the experience left me feeling lost. The confidence I once had was gone, especially with the daily frustration of struggling with short-term memory loss. At one point, I even considered filing for disability, but I knew it would lead me down a path where my needs were met without having to push myself any further. That didn’t sit well with me, yet I had no idea how to move forward. I lost my most profitable business during my recovery and things were looking bleak.
Two years later, I found myself at the Wright Brothers Museum in North Carolina on a quiet holiday weekend. As I walked through the exhibits, I was struck by the challenges the Wright brothers faced. I read about their failures, including a moment when Wilbur Wright declared, “Not within a thousand years will man ever fly.” I could relate to their frustration—how much time and effort they had invested without success. But they didn’t give up, and eventually, they made history. As I stood there, I couldn’t help but wonder: how would the world be different if they had quit?
That question echoed in my mind for weeks. It made me ask myself, “What would happen if I quit? What would the world miss if I gave up?” It was the first time in years that I felt the desire to set a new goal. I decided to create a patent—a wild idea, considering I had no experience in inventing. But I needed something to pull me out of the despair I was in, something to channel my creativity into.
Amazingly, I didn’t just create one patent; I created two. The first was an exercise workstation—a treadmill where I could walk while working, with a swing-out chair for sitting and an elliptical system for pedaling while seated (https://fitworkstation.com/). It allowed me to burn about 2,000 calories a day while getting work done. I built a prototype, and it was working great. But unfortunately, I launched it just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The treadmill manufacturer I was working with was overwhelmed with demand (gyms shutting down in the U.S.) and no longer had the capacity to support my project. So, I pivoted.
Failure didn’t discourage me for long. At the time, I had been coaching my kids’ Ultimate Frisbee teams and traveling with them across the country to compete. I wanted a way to capture and live-stream their games, but existing options like Facebook Live or YouTube just weren’t cutting it. Watching sports without a scoreboard is tough. So, I started working on a solution to record and live-stream games with a proper scoreboard.
Each year, the product improved. I tweaked and refined it through trial and error. Then one day, a sports team from Brigham Young University reached out to me, asking how I was streaming such professional-looking broadcasts from remote locations. They even asked to borrow my equipment for a tournament. At the time, “my equipment” was anything but professional—setting it up was a lengthy process that only a tech-savvy person could follow. But I trained a parent volunteer, and they streamed the entire tournament. The result? Over 15,000 views, and suddenly, other teams were asking, “How are you doing this?”
That’s when I realized I had a business. I filed another patent and began focusing on developing this product full-time. What started as a personal project to film my kids’ games turned into something far bigger than I could have imagined. Now, more than five years later, I’ve built a business that rivals some of the top sports broadcasting companies. Our system can capture multiple camera angles, capture and play slow-motion instant replays, customize scoreboards, run a game clock, and even play commercials during games. And we do it all live, in HD, on a mobile hotspot. What used to cost large companies tens of thousands of dollars and take all day to set up, we can do with equipment that fits in a backpack, and sets up in just minutes.
Looking back, I never would have thought this was possible. But here we are, with industry professionals taking notice of Apollo Streams—a company I named after my son, whose games I spent so many years filming. What started as a search for purpose after a near-death experience has led me to create something that I’m truly passionate about. And that’s how I found my purpose.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Apollo Streams Inc. is transforming the way high school and college sports are broadcast, offering the most advanced live-streaming and sports recording platform in the world. Imagine this: one person can film and control multiple camera angles using just an Xbox controller, play slow-motion instant replays, keep score, and even earn money from their broadcasts. The highlights captured during the game are immediately uploaded following the game allowing players and fans alike to like and share the highlights—all for free. That’s the power of Apollo Streams.
With our innovative Apollo Streams Capture app, capturing the most exciting moments of any game has never been easier or more affordable. Our mission is ambitious: we aim to capture every high school and non-televised college sport within the country. But it’s more than just technology; we’re also dedicated to cultivating the next generation of broadcasters.
We’re working with high school and college students who are passionate about learning how to film and broadcast their school’s games. These students receive hands-on training from industry professionals like Mike Smith and Alema Harrington (Utah Jazz), Mychal Thompson (LA Lakers), Bob Fitzgerald (Golden State), and other professionals in the industry, who are passing on their expertise to future broadcasting stars. The results have been outstanding!
How do we sustain this cutting-edge service? Similar to traditional sports broadcasts, we generate revenue through advertising—but with a twist. We share a portion of that revenue with the teams, allowing them to reduce participation fees, purchase new equipment, and invest in their programs.
Ready to bring your school’s sports to the world? Visit https://ApolloStreams.com to sign up your school today!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The Road to Innovation: Perseverance, Determination, and Grit
Perseverance, determination, and grit—without these qualities, success is impossible. From the very beginning, I learned that a “never quit” mentality is essential. I invested a significant amount of money early on, only to realize our technology couldn’t deliver what we thought it could. I was faced with a choice: give up or find another way. I chose the latter.
When you’re creating something that’s never been done before, finding help can feel impossible. Even billion-dollar companies have struggled to achieve what I’ve built. The journey has been unbelievably challenging, filled with countless failures and pivots. But each setback made me more determined to succeed. Every time I hit a wall, I found a new path forward.
The truth is, the tougher the journey, the sweeter the success. And now, after everything we’ve overcome, I can confidently say—good luck trying to catch us!
Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?
The Toughest Lesson I Ever Learned from My Dad
My dad was the greatest influence in my life, teaching me lessons that have stayed with me to this day. I was born in and raised around Detroit. One of the most impactful days came when I was a kid living in what was undoubtedly the roughest neighborhood I’ve ever lived in. New to the area and without friends, I was bored and pestering my dad, who was struggling with work. Tired of my complaints, he sent me outside with a simple command: “Go make some friends.”
So, I hopped on my bike and rode down the street. I saw a group of kids sitting on some steps and figured I’d start there. As I rode past, they all stared at me. Gathering up my courage, I turned around to approach them. But before I could say anything, one of the kids jumped up and charged toward me—not in a friendly way. I tried pedaling as fast as I could on my one-speed bike, but he was quick. He caught up, grabbed my seat post, and I had no choice but to hop off and sprint home.
When I looked back, he was chasing me—on my own bike! I made it home, out of breath and on the verge of tears, and ran to my dad for help. Calmly lowering his newspaper in half, he sized me up and said, “Now, son, I got you a baseball bat. Go get your bike back.”
While I’m not encouraging violence, my dad’s message was clear: don’t give up, and fight for what’s yours. So, I grabbed the bat, wiped the tears from my face, and went back to confront the kids. I must’ve looked pitiful, but instead of mocking me, they were impressed by my nerve. They gave me my bike back, and we even ended up becoming friends.
My dad taught me that day to stand up for myself and to never back down. It’s a lesson that’s stayed with me throughout life. A fun fact is that my dad was always my biggest supporter and was fascinated by what I was creating with Apollo Streams. Sadly, he passed away before he could see the technology fully work. However, in a special twist of fate, my first successful live stream was of his funeral service. It felt like a fitting tribute to the man who taught me never to quit. I even have that baseball bat framed and hanging in my office today.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ApolloStreams.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apollostreams/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063520930828
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/apollo-streams/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@apollostreams
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
