Science Keynote Speakers: Technology, Psychology, and More

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.

Alan Lightman

Theoretical Physicist and Novelist | Internationally Bestselling Author of Einstein's Dreams

How can we merge the arts and sciences to better understand humanity?

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.

Britt Wray

Author of Generation Dread | Director of Stanford's CIRCLE Initiative (Community-minded Interventions for Resilience, Climate Leadership and Emotional wellbeing)

Wrestling through our climate change anxiety is the first step towards saving our planet—and ourselves.

Sergiu P. Pasca

New York Times Visionary in Medicine and Science | Founding Director of Stanford Brain Organogenesis | Knight of the Order of Merit

We can now grow a piece of human "brain" in a petri dish. Here's what that means for disease, ethics, and our brains' full potential.

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.

Nina Tandon

CEO and Co-Founder of EpiBone | TED Senior Fellow

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

James Nestor

New York Times bestselling author of Breath

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

Sean B. Carroll

Evolutionary Biologist | Author | Founder of Tangled Bank Studios | Executive Producer of Oscar-Nominated and Emmy-Winning Documentaries

The science that surrounds us is the story of our world. When we understand it, we can better understand ourselves.

Abdul El-Sayed

County Public Health Director | Author of Healing Politics and Medicare for All | Host of America Dissected

A great leader needs to find their unifying story—one that explains who they are to three key stakeholders: themselves, their team, and their future allies.

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.

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?

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.

Skylar Tibbits

Founder and Director, MIT Self-Assembly Lab | Associate Professor of Design Research, MIT

The robots of the future won't require batteries. We can use simple materials to build smart, sustainable, and scalable solutions to real-world problems.

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.

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.

David Wallace-Wells

Bestselling author of The Uninhabitable Earth | New York Times columnist

The most important driver of climate change is human action. We have our hands on those levers.

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.

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.

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.

Laura Huang

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Steven Pinker

One of the world's top public intellectuals | Author of Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why it Matters and Enlightenment Now | Harvard Professor

The world is getting better, not worse. The Enlightenment ideals of reason and science are a major reason why.

Jared Diamond

Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs, and Steel, Collapse, and Upheaval

Nations and individuals share the same techniques to survive a crisis—and thrive beyond it.

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.

Science

Lavin’s science speakers illuminate our understanding of the world—without their groundbreaking work, our view of the planet, and of ourselves, is diminished. These speakers connect their discoveries to our everyday lives.