25 Years of Oniracom

25 years ago, I sat in a room at UCSB and co-founded Oniracom. No Wi-Fi.  No smartphones. Friendster & Napster. The landscape wasn’t quite the same.

What I couldn't have known then was that I was beginning a lifelong practice of learning how to help people and organizations find their voice, tell their truth, and build something that actually means something.

Over 25 years, that practice took us everywhere.

We toured the world with Jack Johnson. We pressed records and threw festivals. We built digital platforms before anyone had a name for them. We helped cannabis pioneers find dignity in a market that wanted to shame them. We opened a creative venue during a pandemic because the world needed beauty more than ever. We built a psychedelic social club because healing deserves a home.

And through all of it, the work was never really about the deliverables. It was about communication as an act of care.

Helping a founder finally feel seen in their own brand. Helping a movement find words for what it's trying to become. Helping a community recognize itself in a story we told together.

That's what Oniracom has always been. Not a vendor. A dream communicator.

Now we're stepping into the most exciting chapter yet, AI-first, still human-centered, still obsessed with authentic storytelling at the intersection of technology and culture.

So here's the question we're asking as we enter year 26: Whose dreams are we communicating next?

If you're building something that matters, a brand, a movement, a company, a cause, we'd love to talk. The tools have never been more powerful. The stories have never mattered more.

Oniracom • Est. May 17, 2001 • Santa Barbara, CA 

Communicating Dreams since 2001. oniracom.com 

"Why Psychedelics Matter" Presentation by Jacob Tell

Why Psychedelics Matter | Jacob Tell
MiraCosta College Presentation
Oceanside, CA • May 15, 2026

Psychedelics are having a moment — and it's not an accident. In May 2026, Jacob Tell brought his signature talk to MiraCosta College in Oceanside, CA, walking a packed room through the full arc of psychedelic history: from Indigenous ceremonial traditions thousands of years old, to the first wave of Western scientific research in the mid-20th century, to today's third wave of clinical breakthroughs, policy shifts, and cultural normalization.

The talk centers on psilocybin mushrooms — the science behind them, the therapeutic promise, and the regulatory landscape now moving faster than most people realize. That includes President Trump's April 2026 executive order fast-tracking psychedelic research and rescheduling, a milestone that signals just how far this conversation has come.

Jacob also shares the story behind District216, the psychedelic social club he founded in Santa Barbara, and why community-based education matters as much as clinical research. The session closes with a wide-ranging Q&A covering ketamine therapy, schizophrenia research, international drug policy, and the often-overlooked racial history of drug prohibition in America.

If you've ever been curious about psychedelics, or skeptical, this is the talk to watch.

District216 - https://district216.com

Jacob Tell - https://jacobtell.com

District216 Chief Dreamer Jacob Tell joins Pecha Kucha Night Santa Barbara

Last week at Night Lizard Brewing Company on State Street in Santa Barbara a gathering of creatives, thinkers, and storytellers came together for a platform unlike any other: PechaKucha Night.

Originating in Japan, PechaKucha (Japanese for “chit-chat”) is a storytelling format that’s as challenging as it is captivating. Each speaker gets exactly 20 slides, shown for 20 seconds each, and the slides advance automatically. That’s 6 minutes and 40 seconds to deliver a compelling narrative — no more, no less.

The format forces presenters to distill their ideas down to their most essential, visual, and emotionally resonant core. It’s fast-paced, energetic, and beautifully concise — which is why it’s caught on in over 1,200 cities around the world.

🎥 Watch the Full Presentation Here:

This PechaKucha night was part local speaker series, part social experiment in storytelling brevity. A diverse lineup of presenters shared their passions and insights in front of a full house — with cold craft beers and warm applause fueling the vibe.

Our very own Jacob Tell, Chief Dreamer of District216, took the stage second and delivered a powerful, visually rich presentation titled “Normalizing Psychedelics with Conscious Community.”

In just under seven minutes, Jacob explored the cultural stigma around psychedelics, his own awakening through music and community, and how District216 is forging a new kind of social club — one rooted in connection, healing, and transformation. With stunning imagery and a deeply personal story arc, Jacob’s talk resonated strongly with the crowd. Several attendees shared that it was their first time hearing psychedelics talked about with such clarity, intention, and heart.

Some were so inspired they decided to attend the District216 Marquee Event later that weekend — a beautiful reminder that ideas shared with authenticity can ripple out into real-world impact.

Darryl Tell Celebration of Life Speech

APRIL 30, 2022 - Carlsbad, CA

By Jacob Tell

Photos by Kathy Tell

As optimistically as I operate, it’s critical to acknowledge the range of ones’ emotions. 

So to start I will say that it sucks my dad was diagnosed with a super rare blood cancer. It sucks that my dad suffered. It sucks he didn’t live longer as he told my mom several times that he wasn’t ready to go. It sucks he’s gone; I miss him. It sucks that many of you didn’t have an opportunity to see him recently, or to say goodbye — maybe because of the pandemic, or maybe because of distance. Or that my dad’s wishes to be private about his health kept a sense of urgency from seeping into your psyches like it did the Tell family. Many of you didn’t even know he was sick at all until he had already left us. Part of the human condition; not forecasting our futures.

My gratitude however, runs much deeper than all of this. And it has recently come with ease for me to draw upon silver linings. I mean look at you all, carving out precious springtime — traveling across timezones, some of you from different continents — all to be together, here, to celebrate Darryl Tell.

So yes, it has become natural for me to draw upon silver linings. 

Silver linings like having time in his final months to peer into his upbringing and gain understanding how being “Other” or being “Outsider” could mold his cynical worldview, his appreciation for diversity, his questioning of authority,  and his quest for justice. 

Silver linings like being with my mom, focused solely on her now.  Planning with her and Sarah for our futures. Hell, even doing taxes together gave us a sense of accomplishment that would bring my dad’s mind ease.

Silver linings like hearing stories from strangers or faint acquaintances about the great impact my dad provided them throughout their lives. Stories about the time he went to bat for them, protected them, educated them, or really heard them. Darryl Tell shared moments that genuinely mattered to so many — something I firmly understand, and yet am just beginning to understand.

Silver linings like reconnecting with childhood friends and learning my dad meant something deeper to them than being merely their buddy’s parent. Then recalling fading stories, or finding old photographs, or VHS tapes, and retelling his countlessly retold bad dad jokes.

Silver linings like experiencing palpable moments of sadness and grief with Kerri, which have created profound understanding for each other’s loss and love.

Silver linings like recognizing what my dad has meant to me at various stages of my life. For example, that he’s been my source of “YES AND” energy, encouraging my varied entrepreneurial ventures, and stoking my wild experiments throughout life.

And perhaps the greatest silver lining recognized yet is the lesson shared directly from my dad for us all: to make the most of the moments we are gifted. 

He told me several times in his final months:

“Do not wait. Travel and explore. Experience the world. Find new foods and cultures. Spend time with people you love. Spend more money on life’s experiences, rather than save it for material assets.” 

Or as I recently and often enjoy saying “Do all the things.” 

Upon his passing, this new perspective feels light on my heart. 

• Appreciation for the moment.

• Actively listening to self, the world, and others.

• Being present.

• Seeking wholeness.

• Taking life by the smooth handle.

• Not taking for granted our time with one another.

It really is life to “Do all the things.” Part of the human condition; living in the moment. 

Thank you all for being here to celebrate Darryl Tell.

And finally, to briefly share my words written moments after my dad’s passing on February 13, 2022:

“Thank you, Dad: you inspired, taught, questioned, challenged, illustrated; you gave unconditional love, humor, interest, insight, understanding; you are wise, sincere, brilliant, hilarious, and infinite. I’ll forever carry your spirit and continue to make you proud. I love you.”