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Business

129 Business
Speakers

Minette Norman

Author of The Boldly Inclusive Leader | Co-Author of The Psychological Safety Playbook | Former VP of Engineering Practice, Autodesk

If you want to create a culture where diverse teams flourish, you need boldly inclusive leaders.

Maureen Chiquet

Former Global CEO of Chanel | Former president of Banana Republic

Finding power in empathy will revolutionize leadership and the way we do business.

Emily Esfahani Smith

Bestselling author of The Power of Meaning: Crafting a Life That Matters | Journalist

In times of great challenge, search for meaning, not happiness.

George Packer

Bestselling author of The Unwinding and Last Best Hope | The Atlantic staff writer

The passion for equality is the "hidden code" that will drive us toward a unified America.

Derek Thompson

Host of Plain English | Bestselling author of Hit Makers and On Work | Staff writer at The Atlantic

The nature of work is evolving—now is the time to embrace it and equip yourself with the knowledge to thrive well into the future.

Laura Huang

Distinguished Professor at Northeastern University | Faculty Director of Women's Entrepreneurship Initiative | Author of Edge

Are you looking for an edge to help you succeed? Good news: You've already got one.

Alex Kantrowitz

Reporter and Founder of Big Technology | Author of Always Day One | CNBC Contributor

Six bold predictions on the future of AI can help us thrive through the changes to come.

Gabby Rivera

Author of Juliet Takes a Breath and the Marvel comic series America

Living a revolutionary life starts with joy.

Sarah Kaplan

Founding Director, Institute for Gender and the Economy at Rotman School of Management | Author of The 360° Corporation

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are our greatest innovation challenges—risky, transformative, and ultimately worthwhile.

Danielle Wood

Director of MIT’s Space Enabled Research Lab | Associate Prof. of Media Arts and Sciences

Space technology is imperative for sustainable development on Earth—and for the benefit of all.

Ellen Bennett

Founder and CEO of Hedley & Bennett | Author of Dream First, Details Later

Overthinking kills innovation. You need to dream first, and worry about the details later.

Nathan Pyle

#1 New York Times bestselling author of Strange Planet | Executive Producer of Strange Planet

The road to creativity is right beneath our feet—we just need to learn how to walk it.

Adam Alter

NYU Marketing Professor | New York Times Bestselling Author of Irresistible and Anatomy of a Breakthrough

In an era of irresistible products and experiences, you can use the psychology of choice to command attention and stand out from the crowd.

Jason Feifer

Editor-in-chief of Entrepreneur magazine | Author of Build for Tomorrow

When we change in a way that is truly valuable, we won't want to go back to how things were before.

Sukhinder Singh Cassidy

Founder of theBoardlist | Former president of StubHub | CEO OF XERO | Author of Choose Possibility

In a volatile world, our biggest opportunity lies in revolutionizing our relationship with risk.

Lori Gottlieb

Psychotherapist | New York Times Bestselling Author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone

Revealing the truth of who we are is the glue that binds us together.

Stephen Marche

Author of the First AI-Generated Novella, Death of an Author | Writer on AI for The New Yorker, The Atlantic

ChatGPT is blurring the line between human and machine—which means uniquely human creativity is more important now than ever before.

Yvonne Camus

Member of the First Rookie Team to Complete the Eco-Challenge | Grit Speaker

Resilience, commitment, teamwork. That’s how ordinary people achieve extraordinary successes.

Laurel Braitman

Bestselling Author Of Animal Madness and What Looks Like Bravery | Director Of Writing and Storytelling At The Stanford School of Medicine

Telling our own stories has the power to combat burnout and bring us together in community.

Martin Ford

New York Times bestselling author of Rise of the Robots and Rule of the Robots

To adapt to machine learning, we'll need to come up with unprecedented solutions.

Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman

Editor of The Black Agenda | Harvard Researcher on Inequality, Education, and Work | Winner of the UN CEDAW Women's Rights Award

A better world for our most marginalized communities is a better world for us all.

Jelani Cobb

New Yorker Staff Writer | Columbia Journalism School Dean | Speaker on race, history, politics and culture in America

In the fight for racial justice, we must face the past to forge a better future.

Lauren Eskreis-Winkler

Assistant Professor at the Kellogg School of Management | Poets & Quants 40-Under-40 MBA Professor

Every setback offers insights you wouldn't have gained from a success. By learning how to "fail well," you can cultivate a mindset of mastery and reach your highest goals.

Minnijean Brown-Trickey

Civil Rights Legend who Helped Desegregate Public Schools | Member of the Little Rock Nine

When we challenge what we know to be morally wrong, we grow as a society.

Heather McGhee

Author of New York Times Bestseller The Sum of Us

Racism has a cost for everyone—so when we fight it together, we all win.

Neil Hoyne

Author of Converted | Chief Strategist at Google | Senior Fellow at Wharton

Most leaders strategize for times of certainty. To get ahead of the competition, you need strategies for times of change.

Angela Duckworth

Author of Grit, the #1 New York Times Bestseller | Pioneering Researcher on Grit, Perseverance, and the Science of Success

Grit, more than talent, IQ, looks, or wealth, is a powerful indicator of success.

Jay Van Bavel

Professor of Psychology & Neural Science at NYU | Award-Winning Author of The Power of Us

To build powerful teams, you need to harness the power of a shared team identity.

Nita Farahany

Author of The Battle For Your Brain | Legal scholar & ethicist | Director of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society

Technology is converging with our bodies, even our minds. What are the dilemmas and opportunities?

Misha Glouberman

Negotiations Expert | Co-Author of The Chairs Are Where the People Go

Virtual environments aren’t the end of human connection—as long as we communicate effectively.

Alexandra Samuel

Digital Workplace Expert | Author of Remote, Inc. | Author of JSTOR Daily's "Unfolding AI" Column

We are the founding generation of the new workplace. Leading this workplace means embracing a pragmatic, creative approach to AI and online work.

David Kong

Director of MIT Media Lab’s Community Biotechnology Initiative

Making STEM fields inclusive is about maximizing human creativity and building a better world.

Anthony Wilson-Smith

CEO of Historica Canada | Former Editor-in-Chief at MacLean's

To find out how to best move towards the future, we must look to the past.

Khalil Gibran Muhammad

Professor of History, Race, and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School | Author of The Condemnation of Blackness | Co-Host of Some of My Best Friends Are

Bringing people of color into our companies isn't enough. We must transform our cultures so they can achieve their full potential.

Paul Tough

New York Times bestselling author of How Children Succeed and The Inequality Machine

The way we think about focus and distraction is outdated. We need to embrace the way we pay attention to unlock our full potential.

David Eagleman

One of the World's Foremost Neuroscientists | Host of PBS’s The Brain | Host of the Top Science Podcast Inner Cosmos

In an increasingly technological world, we must tap into the uniqueness of the human brain to set us apart.

Bill Strickland

An Extraordinary Business and Community Leader | MacArthur Genius | Founder, Bidwell Training Center

Give people the tools they need, treat them with respect, and they will perform miraculous deeds.

Stephanie Mehta

CEO of Mansueto Ventures | Former Editor-in-Chief of Fast Company

Any company can become a Fast Company by pushing their creative boundaries.

Randall Lane

Chief Content Officer of Forbes Magazine

Endless disruption has led to faster innovations, better approaches, bigger opportunities.

Douglas Rushkoff

One of the World's 10 Most Influential Intellectuals (MIT) | Bestselling Author of Team Human and Program or Be Programmed

AI can help us flourish creatively and collaboratively—if we dare.

Candy Chang

Urban space artist behind the "Before I Die" walls

Creative ways of engaging communities can help us foster hope and belonging together.

Ellen Ochoa

The First Latina in Space | Former NASA Director

When we all come together as a team to learn and innovate—we can aim for the stars.

John List

Economics Professor at the University of Chicago | Author of The Voltage Effect

Data is human: when we understand how people behave, we'll give our good ideas the voltage to be great.

Margot Lee Shetterly

Author of Hidden Figures: The #1 New York Times Bestseller and #1 Hit Film

A greater diversity of voices in science, in the STEM fields, is key to the future of American innovation.

Nina Tandon

CEO and Co-Founder of EpiBone | TED Senior Fellow

How to revolutionize an industry, one cell at a time.

Daron Acemoglu

2024 Nobel Prize Winner | 3rd Most Cited Economist in the World | MIT Institute Professor | Bestselling Co-Author of Why Nations Fail and Power and Progress

Technology is moving faster than ever before. If we take hold of it right now, we can use it to build a more just and democratic world.

James Robinson

2024 Nobel Prize Winner in Economics | Famed Economist and Political Scientist | Co-author of Why Nations Fail

A nation's prosperity relies on its institutions: the more inclusive, the better.

Shalini Kantayya

Award-winning filmmaker | Director of TikTok, Boom. and Coded Bias | TED Fellow

A digital world comes with digital dangers—here’s how to protect ourselves and our rights.

David Robertson

Senior lecturer at MIT Sloan | Author of The Power of Little Ideas and of Brick by Brick

The third way of innovation is not radical disruption—it’s a low-risk, high-reward strategy.

Danny Southwick

Grit Expert | Former NFL player | MBA and Psychology PhD | BYU Professor

How do we motivate employees to achieve their goals? We replace talent with grit.

Matt Taibbi

New York Times bestselling author of Hate, Inc., Insane Clown President and The Divide | Rolling Stone Writer

We can counter the spread of misinformation in a post-truth era—if we’re smart about it.

Ajay Agrawal

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning Expert | Founder of the Creative Destruction Lab | Bestselling Co-Author of Prediction Machines and Power and Prediction

Being second in the AI race isn’t good enough. You have to get ahead now to gain a sustained edge over the competition.

Bryant Terry

Award-winning author of Black Food | James Beard Leadership Award Winner | Founder of 4 Color Books

We need to open a transparent dialogue about food insecurity, structural racism, and poverty.

Erin Meyer

INSEAD professor | Author of The Culture Map and No Rules Rules

How can we navigate—and make the most of—complex cultural differences in the workplace?

Tom Wujec

World Renowned Expert on Innovation | Former Chief Disruptor at Autodesk | Author of The Future of Making

An era of continuous disruption is changing, forever, how we design, manufacture, and consume.

Waneek Horn-Miller

Olympian, Activist, and Speaker on Indigenous Health and Reconciliation

Your struggle is your motivation in disguise.

David Sax

Author of The Future is Analog, The Soul of an Entrepreneur and The Revenge of Analog

Technology has made our lives better in many ways—but embracing our analog experiences is the key to building a truly human world.

David Yeager

Author of 10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People | Assistant Professor of Developmental Psychology at University of Texas, Austin

Learn the new science of motivating young people—and make your own life easier in the process.

James Nestor

New York Times bestselling author of Breath

The key to leading happier, healthier lives? Better breathing.

Anthony Jack

Author of The Privileged Poor and Class Dismissed | Boston University Associate Professor and Newbury Center Faculty Director

Poverty and equality shape not just how students get to college, but how they make it through.

Loran Nordgren

Behavioral science expert | Renowned management professor | Bestselling author of The Human Element

Overcome the forces that resist change, and watch your most innovative ideas take flight.

Wajahat Ali

Author of Go Back to Where You Came From

When we share our stories, we create an inclusive world—and build a multicultural coalition of the willing.

Katy Milkman

Wharton Professor | Choiceology Podcast Host | Bestselling Author of How to Change | One of the Thinkers50

The world has changed overnight. Learn the science-based blueprint for how to change with it.

Ethan Kross

Award-Winning Expert on Self-Leadership, Mental Health, and The Conscious Mind | Bestselling Author of Chatter and Shift | Faculty Lead at the Eisenberg Family Depression Center

Emotions play a powerful role in our professional lives. We can leverage them to think, perform, and lead better.

Salman Khan

Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Khan Academy

AI won't destroy education. It'll save it.

Jeff Chang

Social Historian, Cultural Critic & Community Organizer | Author of We Gon’ Be Alright and Can't Stop Won't Stop

Real solidarity and racial justice begins when we bring community into everything we do.

Jessica Nordell

Author of The End of Bias | Award-winning science and culture journalist

Bias has a real cost for your organization. Fighting it is your greatest superpower.

Jordan Ellenberg

New York Times bestselling author of Shape and How Not to Be Wrong

Math is the science of not being wrong. It touches everything we do.

Manjit Minhas

Co-Founder of Minhas Brewery, Distillery and Winery | Owner of the 10th Largest Brewery in the World

It’s time to demolish outdated stereotypes in business—one boardroom at a time.

Joe Jackman

Founder & Executive Chair of Jackman Reinvents | Author of The Reinventionist Mindset

It’s about more than retail. It’s about total reinvention.

Greg Hoffman

Nike's Former Chief Marketing Officer | Author of Emotion by Design

Great brands don’t simply reach customers: they create real emotional bonds with them.

Rick Mercer

Host of The Rick Mercer Report for 15 years | Bestselling Author of Talking to Canadians and Rick Mercer Final Report | Winner of the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour

Canada is a nation worth loving—and ranting about.

Nicholas Thompson

CEO of The Atlantic | Former Editor-in-Chief of WIRED

Generative AI is changing what it means to be human, and that's just the beginning. You can find the opportunity in emerging AI technology today.

Doug Stephens

Retail and Consumer Futurist | Internationally Acclaimed Author | Founder of Retail Prophet

The past few years have transformed shopping forever, but if retailers can adapt to AI and our changing supply chains, they'll survive—and thrive.

Nikole Hannah-Jones

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Creator of The 1619 Project | Executive Producer of the Emmy Award-Winning 1619 Project Hulu Docuseries | MacArthur Genius

Black history is American history.

Heather Berlin

Cognitive neuroscientist | Host of PBS Nova's Your Brain

You are your brain, but you can also shape it—and become more creative, more productive, and the best version of yourself.

Shoshana Zuboff

Bestselling author of The Age of Surveillance Capitalism | Harvard Business School Professor Emerita | Activist and scholar

We may have democracy or we may have surveillance society, but we cannot have both.

Dan Lerner

Positive Psychologist | Instructor of NYU’S “The Science of Happiness”

The overlooked key to achieving your unique potential? Passion.

Jeremy Gutsche

CEO of Trend Hunter | New York Times bestselling author of Create the Future

This is the year AI changes you. You can let the disruption derail you—or you can find the opportunity in chaos and gain an AI edge.

Kristin Neff

Author of Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself | Co-founder of the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion

Self-compassion makes you strong.

Radhika Dirks

Global AI Advisor | CEO & Co-Founder of XLabs and Ribo | One of Forbes’ 30 Women in AI to Watch | Artificial Intelligence Pioneer

Generative AI is changing the tech infrastructure of the world. Your biggest dreams—your most ambitious moonshots—are closer than ever before.

Negin Farsad

Director of The Muslims Are Coming! | Author of How to Make White People Laugh

The antidote to our political polarization? Laughter.

Lera Boroditsky

Cognitive Scientist | Expert in the Fields of Language and Cognition

How do humans get so smart? Language: it shapes our minds and the world around us.

John Kaag

Professor of Philosophy, University of Massachusetts, Lowell | Award-Winning Author of Sick Souls, Healthy Minds and American Bloods

It takes conscious, consistent, and creative effort to make a life worth living.

Annette Gordon-Reed

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author of On Juneteenth | Harvard Law Professor | MacArthur Genius

The legacy of Juneteenth, the holiday which marks the end of slavery, continues to influence us and our fight for racial justice today.

John Maeda

Microsoft VP of Design and Artificial Intelligence | Author of How to Speak Machine

Information is expanding—if we want to use it correctly, we need to represent it visually.

Ashton Applewhite

Anti-Ageism Activist | Author of This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism | Co-Founder of the Old School Hub

Ageism is prejudice against our future selves. What if we were free of it?

Susan Pinker

Psychologist and Author of The Village Effect and The Sexual Paradox

Even in our digital world, human connection is the key to learning, happiness, resilience, and longevity.

Jessica Green

CEO of Phylagen, Inc. | TED Senior Fellow

An unlikely ally in fairness—the microbiome—may hold the key to a more transparent business world.

Jer Thorp

Author of Living in Data | Former Library of Congress Innovator in Residence | Former NYT Data Artist-in-Residence

The future of data is about to be written—and it’s up to us to imagine a more just data democracy.

Michelle Coles

Civil Rights Attorney | Award-winning author of Black Was the Ink | Member of the Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission | Former Civil Rights Attorney at the US Department of Justice

To achieve racial justice today, look to the unsung heroes of American history.

Kate Crawford

Professor | Author of Atlas of AI | Leading scholar of AI and society

We’re at a critical crossroads in the spread of AI. We can use it to oppress and exploit, or we can chart a course towards a more just and sustainable future.

Cassie Holmes

Expert on Time and Happiness | Author of Happier Hour | UCLA Professor

When we treat our time as a precious resource, we gain purpose, motivation, and happier lives.

George M. Johnson

New York Times Bestselling Author Of All Boys Aren’t Blue and We Are Not Broken | Emmy Nominee | LGBTQIA+ Activist

Stories of queer identity and Black joy have the power to educate us on diversity, inspire social justice activism, and build community.

Todd Kashdan

Bestselling Author of The Art of Insubordination and The Upside of Your Dark Side | Award-Winning Expert in Psychology and Well-Being | George Mason University Psychology Professor

We all want to find purpose in life. There's a research-backed blueprint for that.

Tracy Dennis-Tiwary

Bestselling author of Future Tense | Clinical psychologist and researcher | Digital health technology entrepreneur

Anxiety may feel bad, but it’s actually good for us—and for our productivity, creativity, and wellbeing.

Hua Hsu

Pulitzer Prize-Winning author of Stay True | New Yorker staff writer | CBS Sunday Morning contributor

Telling our own stories enlarges the circumference of our imaginations.

Chia-Jung Tsay

Expert in the Psychology of Negotiations | Associate Professor, UCL School of Management | Associate Fellow at Oxford's Saïd Business School

Knowing the difference between what we say we value, and what we actually value, goes a long way.

Michael Norton

Harvard Business School Professor | Author of The Ritual Effect | Co-Author of Happy Money

Rituals can help us transform our unconscious habits into conscious productivity, unlocking greater meaning at work and at home.

Justin Reilly

CEO of Wavelo | Former Head of Product at Verizon

The future of business is AI First. By building Artificial Intelligence into the heart of your business, you can innovate faster than ever before.

Charles Booker

Author of From the Hood to the Holler | Founder of Hood to the Holler | Kentucky State Director of Faith Based & Community Initiatives

Building coalitions starts with seeing the humanity in others. Our issues aren’t really partisan—we can lift our voices together.

Clint Smith

#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of How the Word Is Passed and Above Ground | The Atlantic Staff Writer

The legacy of slavery still shapes our cities, roads, and stories today. Understanding our history will help us make sense of our world—and fight for a better one.

Adam Harris

Author of The State Must Provide: The Definitive History of Racial Inequality in American Higher Education | Staff Writer at The Atlantic

Higher education could be a powerful force for equity and democracy—but it must face up to its history of racial injustice first.

Rachel L. Swarns

Author of The 272: The Families who Were Enslaved and Sold to Build the American Catholic Church | Associate Professor at New York University | Former New York Times Johannesburg Bureau Chief

Slavery fueled the growth of our churches, schools, and institutions. We must face that history if we want to understand—and someday transcend—our racial divide.

Katie Drummond

WIRED Global Editorial Director

Breakneck developments in AI have brought us to a new inflection point in technology and society. You can lead your organization through this change.

Mary C. Murphy

Bestselling Author of Cultures of Growth | Indiana University Professor | Founder and CEO, Equity Accelerator

A growth mindset isn’t just for individuals. You can develop it in your whole organization, and unlock radical collaboration and innovation.

Denise Hamilton

Author of Indivisible: How to Forge Our Differences into a Stronger Future | Founder and CEO of WatchHerWork

To lead in today’s changing world, your teams can’t just be inclusive—they need to be indivisible.

Sarah Lewis

Founder of Vision & Justice | Harvard Associate Professor | Bestselling Author of The Rise and The Unseen Truth

What is the role of art and culture for racial justice?

Tessa West

Author of Jerks at Work and Job Therapy | NYU Professor of Psychology

We all face uncomfortable situations at work. By learning how to navigate them, leaders can boost their teams' productivity, creativity, and innovation.

Dan Cable

Professor of Organizational Behavior at London Business School | Author of Alive at Work

Everyone has an innate passion for learning. This is how neuroscience can increase engagement and motivation.

Camille Stewart Gloster

First Deputy National Cyber Director for Technology and Ecosystem Security | Former White House AI Council Member | Former Google Global Head of Product Security Strategy

People are at the heart of all our technology. Recognizing this can help us meet customer needs, find new opportunities, and thrive in the age of AI.

Carrie Sun

Author, Private Equity

By rethinking our organizational culture, we can find not only success, but meaning at work.

Max Bennett

Author, A Brief History of Intelligence | AI Entrepreneur and Founder of Bluecore | Forbes 30 Under 30 Honoree

To understand the future of artificial intelligence, we must first understand the history of human intelligence.

Soraya Chemaly

Author of Rage Becomes Her and The Resilience Myth | Award-Winning Journalist | Co-Founder and Director of the Women’s Media Center Speech Project

Resilience is a group effort. Leaning into our emotions and community can help us build strength at work and at home.

Robb Willer

Prof. of Social Psychology & Organizational Behavior at Stanford | Director of the Polarization and Social Change Lab

Trying to get someone to see your side? Start by connecting it to their underlying moral values.

Michael Casey

Author of The Age of Cryptocurrency and Our Biggest Fight | Co-Host of the Money Reimagined Podcast | MIT Media Advisor

The internet as we know it is broken. But we can still take it back—and turn it into a system that serves us all.

Jonathan Fader

Performance psychologist | Head of the MLB Players Association Mental Health Division | Former Director of Mental Conditioning for the New York Giants | Author of Life as Sport

From star athletes to office workers—to achieve success, you first have to visualize success.

Katy Hessel

Instant New York Times Bestselling Author of The Story of Art Without Men | 2021 Forbes 30 under 30 Europe | Guardian Columnist | Art Historian and Curator

The story of art has always excluded women. But we can write a new, more equitable story for the future of art, and beyond.

Corinne Low

Associate Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at Wharton | 2024 "Top 40 Under 40" Business Professor | Author, Femonomics (Forthcoming)

There's an economic benefit to inclusion. Companies that leverage this value will not only build a stronger company culture, but boost their bottom line.

Caleb Gayle

Author, We Refuse to Forget and BLACK MOSES | Contributing Writer, The New York Times Magazine | Associate Professor, Northeastern University

Engaging with our history opens up new ways of understanding race, identity, and how we relate to one another.

Isabella Hanson

Founder of the "I Matter" Poetry and Art Competition | Teen Vogue 21 Under 21 Honoree | Winner of the Princeton Prize in Race Relations

You can change the world, no matter who—or how old—you are.

Gregory M. Walton

Author, Ordinary Magic | Co-Director, Dweck-Walton Lab at Stanford | Professor of Psychology, Stanford

Recognizing and answering the unspoken questions of life—Can I succeed? Do I belong?—will build trust, strengthen relationships, and change all our lives.