The Way of the Futurist

Brian Nelson

Leaders with the ability to foresee the future and the capacity to build it are quickly becoming the most valuable assets to every business. Brian Nelson explores our accelerating and emergent future with leading entrepreneurs, investors, hustlers, and innovators. But rather than focusing exclusively on the trends and technologies shaping our world, Brian also dives into the mindset and methods of his guests to provide listeners with the most valuable tips, tricks, and tools to begin thinking and acting like a futurist. (Powered by ExTech Ventures - www.extech.io) read less

024: Ross Thornley - Co-Founder and CEO of AQai / Adaptability: The Most Important Skill To Master
Sep 29 2020
024: Ross Thornley - Co-Founder and CEO of AQai / Adaptability: The Most Important Skill To Master
Ross Thornley and I are on a similar mission; to make sure nobody is left behind as we enter an exponential and accelerating future, which led to an amazing and fun conversation. Ross is the author of two books: Moonshot Innovation and AQ Decoded, an exceptional entrepreneur, and a pioneer in the future of work. Driven by the idea that a person’s ability to adapt to unanticipated changes is the most important skill to master in today’s workplace, Ross launched AQai, an HR/EdTech platform. In this episode, Ross shares why understanding our Adaptability Quotient is so important, what it means to be adaptable, and how we can increase our ability to adapt and thrive in today’s economy."Entrepreneur and 'AQ' Pioneer. Author of Moonshot Innovation & AQ Decoded. Ross’s work is opening up new frontiers in HrTech and EdTech. Leveraging conversational AI and predictive analytics his company’s platform enables people, teams and organizations to successfully navigate accelerating change. His ability to contextualize diverse and complex subjects, inspire and engage audiences makes him a highly sought after international speaker." - WALL STREET JOURNALConnect with RossAQai - https://www.aqai.io/@The_AQ_GuyLinkedInLinksDocumentary - Seeing The Invisible: Adaptability And The Future Of WorkAQai Assessment - AdaptabilityBook - Moonshot InnovationPodcast - Decoding AQTyrrell’s English Crisps - Wanky VegCreators of Last Resort - COLR
022: Gabriele Rizzo - Bioweapons, NATO, Space Force, and the Future of Armed Forces
May 14 2020
022: Gabriele Rizzo - Bioweapons, NATO, Space Force, and the Future of Armed Forces
Dr. Gabriele Rizzo is a visionary futurist and an enthusiastic innovator. He is NATO Member at Large (“world-class expert drawn from academia, industry or government”) for Strategic Foresight and Futures Studies, and he leads deep futures visions in Defense and Security for the United States, Italy, Switzerland, NATO, and European institutions, and advised European Defense Agency and United Nations. Gabriele also serves as Professor of Strategy at Sapienza University. He is the CEO and Director of Futures, Longviews.We cover a number of interesting topics such as...Is the coronavirus a bioweapon?What we should know about deepfakes.Is the US Space Force necessary and what are the potential unintended consequences of it?Connect with GabrielePersonal - LinkedInCompany (Longviews) - LinkedInLinksPhys Org - https://phys.org/NATO Futures Work - https://www.act.nato.int/futures-workDan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast - https://www.dancarlin.com/hardcore-history-series/Global Foresight Summit - https://www.globalforesightsummit.com/talks/gabriele-rizzo-the-war-we-never-prepared-for-how-covid-19-will-transform-the-future-armed-forcesU.S. Space Force - https://www.spaceforce.mil/Article on Nvidia’s Deepfake Technology - https://news.developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-invents-ai-interactive-graphics/Strategic Foresight Primer by European Commission – European Policy and Strategy Center - https://lngv.ws/2pa
017: DP Prakash - Global Head of Innovation at GlobalFoundries
Jan 24 2020
017: DP Prakash - Global Head of Innovation at GlobalFoundries
GlobalFoundries is one of the world's largest semiconductor companies, generating annual revenue of over $5b and DP Prakash is the Global Head of Innovation tasked with the job of creating the company's future. DP is a dynamic leader and an innovator at his core. In this episode, we discuss the end of Moore's Law, the future of the semiconductor industry, quantum computers, and how DP is using exponential technology like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and virtual/augmented reality to optimize operations and fuel innovation.BioDP Prakash is the Global Head of Innovation in the CIO office of Global Foundries with a focus on improving enterprise productivity through AI ML AR VR applications. His work includes industry leading innovations that speed up documentation of standard operating procedures by 10x, cut training time by half, reduce cognitive load in operations, deliver remote expert assistance, and redefine human machine interface for digital twins powered by AI engines.As Chief of Staff in 2017 to the current CEO of GlobalFoundries, DP Prakash has experiences in all aspects of leading and managing an organization of thousands of technologists. Spanning Research, Development and Manufacturing leadership roles, DP Prakash has numerous product yield ramp experiences gained through 17 years at IBM and 5 years at Global Foundries.In 2018, DP Prakash and his Team, in collaboration with the University of Southern California, demonstrated for the first time the VR capability to visualize walking inside chips made with nanotechnology.Along with two Outstanding Technical Achievement Awards at IBM, DP Prakash holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles, an MBA with honors from Jack Welch Management Institute, a certificate in Film Producing from UCLA School of Film & Television, a B.Tech in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. In 2019, DP Prakash also completed a certificate program on leading Innovation from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
015: Jason Feifer: Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, International Speaker & Podcast Host
Nov 5 2019
015: Jason Feifer: Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, International Speaker & Podcast Host
What’s up everybody? Today I’m joined by the one and only, Jason Feifer. Jason is the editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine, a popular international speaker, and the host of three podcasts. Other than being the editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur, Jason is best known for his incredible work with the Pessimists Archive podcast, where he explores the history of why we resist new things. On one of my favorite episodes, Jason dives into the crazy beliefs and dangers of bicycles, expressed by public figures, peeking with a news article where the writer states that every cyclist has killed at least one person. It seems unimaginable today, but people really pushed back when bikes first hit the mainstream. Jason’s ability to draw a clear line between historical stories where influential people resisted new things to how influential people today spread fear mongering on how new technology is ruining us, is a remarkable gift he possesses and is a major reason the Pessimists Archive is popular among entrepreneurs and technology innovators who deal with these types of opposing voices on a daily basis. His other podcasts are Problem Solvers, a podcast for entrepreneurs to help them identify how to overcome business challenges and Hush Money, a fun podcast Jason co-hosts with Nicole Lapin about the most taboo, awkward situations where money impacts our lives, relationships, and careers. Jason is an expert storyteller and has the energy of an 8 year old excited about life, which makes him super fun to talk with and learn from. He has interviewed and worked with thousands of entrepreneurs, celebrities, and world leaders and from those interactions he’s identified a few power levers that can be applied to increase your potential for a successful outcome in business. In this episode, Jason shares the common traits of successful entrepreneurs, how to communicate with busy leaders like him to build relationships that lead to meaningful opportunities, the future of communication with the shift from mass communication to personalized interaction, and the power of good storytelling. Check out his work in Entrepreneur Magazine and make sure to subscribe to his podcasts, which reminds me, I’m told podcasts with lots of 5 star reviews makes it easier for potential listeners to find my podcast so if you like what your hear, please take a minute to subscribe to The Way of the Futurist podcast and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or whichever app you use to consume podcasts. I’d greatly appreciate it. As a quick heads up, Jason had a hard stop so I didn’t want to waste any time, which is why I dove straight into the interview without the typical intro. Connect with JasonWebsite: https://www.jasonfeifer.com/Twitter: @heyfeiferInstagram: heyfeiferPodcastsPessimists ArchiveProblem SolversHush Money
010: Roya Mattis - Award-Winning Business Leader, Relationship Expert, Speaker & Coach
Sep 12 2019
010: Roya Mattis - Award-Winning Business Leader, Relationship Expert, Speaker & Coach
I have a fear...and lucky for you, we dive into it on today’s episode. I talk a lot about the future of technology with my guests, but today we’re taking a quick detour to talk about relationships and more specifically, the impact massive unemployment caused by automation and technological evolution will have on personal relationships within the home. Plus lots more.Roya Mattis is a leader of leaders. She leads an organization comprised of thousands of women, is a devoted wife and mother, a relationship expert (thanks to hundreds of hours spent with the Tony Robbins organization, Brendan Burchard, and other personal transformation leaders), and a truly remarkable human being. Roya is also an award-winning business leader, speaker, and coach. For the past 18 years, Roya has worked primarily with women, but at her core, she’s an advocate for women AND men. After many years of success in business, her new divine calling is to help women understand and use feminin and masculine energies to create powerful relationships while empowering them to realize their own unique “SHE-ness”. Roya loves sharing her message so please contact her if you’re looking for a podcast guest or speaker. She thrives on stage in front of groups of 5-10k people and of course you already know how great she is as a podcast guest after listening to this episode.Connect with RoyaWebsite: www.SHE-ness.comEmail: SHE-ness@SHE-ness.comInstagram: @royamattis & @SHEnessTribeFacebook: SHE-ness TribeSelf-awareness app we discussed: Wired2Perform
009: Richard Titus - Entrepreneur, Investor & Former Sound Engineer for The Beach Boys
Sep 6 2019
009: Richard Titus - Entrepreneur, Investor & Former Sound Engineer for The Beach Boys
What’s up everybody? Welcome to another killer episode of The Way of the Futurist podcast. Today’s guest is none other than Richard Titus. I came to know Richard through our shared connections from the crypto community and knew right away that he was the real deal. What I didn’t know, but learned during this conversation, was that he’s a technology rock star AND a committed family man and father. I would need a separate episode just to cover his full bio so here’s just a quick snapshot before we get started. Richard was named to the Wired 100 list in 2010, he launched Razorfish and Schematic, which are two of the world’s largest digital advertising agencies. He was a Senior VP at Samsung, and the Controller of Future Media and Technology at the BBC in Great Britain. Today he’s a venture investor and executive coach. In this episode we talk about:- Richard’s early days touring with the Beach Boy’s as a sound engineer - His self-proclaimed greatest success...co-producing the documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car?" - What led to his phenomenal success- How he sifts through all the amazing opportunities coming his way to decide what to work on- The impact of AI on society- The importance of being exposed to new ideas, thinking, and experiences- And most importantly, how critical it is that we are intentional in how we raise our children and support our communities...plus lots more. Now that I’ve set the stage for an incredible listening experience, lets get to it. Connect with RichardWebsite: https://andronik.us/about-meLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rxdxt/Twitter: @richardtitusWikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_D._TitusWho Killed the Electric Car: https://www.whokilledtheelectriccar.com/
008: Marissa Brassfield - Operations Goddess, Futurist & Co-Creator of Abundance 360
Aug 27 2019
008: Marissa Brassfield - Operations Goddess, Futurist & Co-Creator of Abundance 360
What’s up everybody? Welcome to another episode of The Way of the Futurist podcast. Today’s guest is the amazingly talented, Marissa Brassfield. Marissa started her career as a writer and journalist, but is now well-known for being an exponential technology evangelist and the Operations Goddess for the Abundance Group. For the past 7 years she’s worked side-by-side with the popular entrepreneur and futurist, Peter Diamanis, and was the co-creator, along with Peter, of the world’s greatest technology conference, Abundance 360. I’ve attended the event twice and can confirm it’s greatness. Marissa is now sharing all of her knowledge and experience with her community as the founder of Ridiculously Efficient. In this episode, Marissa shares the tools she uses to stay current with exponential technologies...and even shares one of her secret sources that she’s never shared before. We also talk about the process she used to successfully train her team to think and act like futurists. And for the first time ever, on public record, Marissa shares the detailed story of how she met and began working with Peter Diamandis. It’s a story of boldness, curiosity, and persistence. Marissa is a natural leader and cares deeply about people and relationships. We finish the conversation talking about the work she’s doing now to help people around the world achieve their unique flavor of freedom. I hope you enjoy this interview with Marissa as much as I did. Now before we get started, I have to apologize for the sound quality. I was traveling during this episode so it’s not as crisp as I’d like, but I guarantee you won’t even notice once we get started. Marissa was just that good.Get connected to MarissaRidiculously Efficient - https://vip.ridiculouslyefficient.com/Twitter - @efficientThings mentioned in this episode:Abundance 360 - A360Futurism.comSingularity UniversityMIT Technology ReviewFuturity.orgPeter's 6 D'sPeter's book "Abundance"Theranos Documentary