Azeem Azhar – Emerging Technologies and Their Impact

Award-winning Technology Writer

Expert on Emerging Technologies and Their Impact on Economies and Society
Founder, Exponential View, Founder, PeerIndex

Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future’s Council on the Digital Economy
Author, “The Exponential Age” (2021)

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ABOUT AZHAR

Organizational leaders and teams are doing everything in their power, both personally and professionally, to keep business moving forward during one of the most challenging periods in history.

Well aware of the myriad problems the pandemic triggered, they are tapping into all the linear thinking they learned in business school to tackle new and seemingly endless problems.

But linear thinking no longer applies in a world that is changing at an exponential rate, says futurist Azeem Azhar, an award-winning technology writer, investor, corporate advisor and creator of the increasingly popular “Exponential View” podcast and newsletter.

Since 2015, Azhar has been researching, interpreting and discussing how emerging technologies will dramatically change every aspect of our lives.

His acclaimed 2021 book, “The Exponential Age: How Accelerating Technology is Transforming Business, Politics and Society,” lays out a framework for thinking about the future that business and government leaders have no choice but to embrace as they plan forward.

Highly celebrated for its insights on technology’s impact on business, politics and society, the book was longlisted for the 2022 Management Book of the Year Award by the Chartered Management Institute.

“We’re in the midst of a rapid and radical societal shift, driven by a series of exponential technologies that are transforming how we live and interact with each other and the world around us.

They are not just happening, they are taking off at the same time, launching us into a whole new world,” explains Azhar, who was named to the Thinkers50 Radar Class of 2022.

“As artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, renewable energy, and other innovations in technology and science mature, they will challenge the economic and social fabric of business and society in chaotic ways, including how we work and learn.

My work is focused on helping companies, governments and individuals understand and prepare for the future, leverage the best of what’s coming, and maintain their footing along the way.”

Azhar is particularly focused on how technology can address the climate crisis. Among other efforts, he initiated and co-authored a series of research reports with PwC called the State of Climate Tech.

His Exponential View charts keep the world up to date on the status of decarbonization and other key trends, and he regularly discusses solutions with global experts during his podcast, mostly notably his “Tracking Climate Progress” post and his podcast episode about carbon removal offsets.

One of a handful of people who has been involved in emerging technology since the early 1990s as a founder, investor, corporate executive and regulator, Azhar’s eclectic experiences offer him a 360-degree perspective on what we can expect in the coming decades.

His approach to analyzing and explaining key trends is uniquely interdisciplinary, drawing on his training in economics and political science as well as his professional track record as a technologist.

Both an analyst and a practitioner, he remains an active investor in early-stage technology companies, some of which have been acquired by such firms as Amazon and Microsoft.

A sought-after advisor and an in-demand keynote speaker who is a particularly welcome addition at technology and equities conferences, Azhar continues to help leaders in every sector – from advertising, banking, engineering and professional services, to insurance, transportation, health care and consumer goods – understand the lifecycle of technologies that are driving or will drive their business.

“Decision makers need to understand the muscle they’ll need to exercise as they journey toward the future. There’s no magic pill,” says Azhar.

“My core value is helping leaders see the big picture of what emerging technologies will do for their company over the next five to ten years.

The old rule books and business books don’t necessarily apply. In the old days there were set formulas.

Not anymore. The key principles now are experimentation, learning, forgiveness and self-restraint.”

The Exponential Age: How Accelerating Technology is Transforming Business, Politics and Society

High-tech innovations are created at dazzling speeds; technological forces we barely understand remake our homes and workplaces; centuries-old tenets of politics and economics are upturned by new technologies. It all points to a world that is getting faster at a dizzying pace.

In this talk, drawn from his award-winning 2021 book, renowned technology writer, investor and corporate advisor Azeem Azhar explains how and why new technologies are fundamentally altering the world, what we can expect in the future, and how we can navigate.

He delves into how the exponential gap created by these changes has inevitably resulted in the rise of AI, automation, and other technologies – such as renewable energy, 3D printing and synthetic biology – and offers a whole new way to think about technology, one that will transform our understanding of the economy, politics and the future.

Frameworks for Determining How Emerging Technologies Will Impact Your Business

New technologies continue to emerge each day, impacting how businesses and society live, learn, socialize and operate.

Many of these changes are causing disruption and unexpected pivots in organizational and consumer behavior.

How can companies determine which technologies will be relevant to their business and customers in the next five to ten years, and which ones can be ignored?
In this talk, renowned technology writer, investor and corporate advisor Azeem Azhar provides practical frameworks for examining how emerging technologies will positively or negatively impact your company’s operations, leadership, employees and customers.

Investing in Our Future: Decarbonization Technologies for Addressing the Climate Crisis

The climate crisis has presented humanity with its greatest challenge yet. The good news is, emerging technologies are offering us a powerful path to reaching net zero by 2050, and investment in climate tech is ramping up.

In this talk, renowned technology writer, investor and corporate advisor Azeem Azhar, author of “The Exponential Age,” gives audiences an inside look at the promising technologies that are our best hope for addressing the climate crisis.

He also highlights related research he conducted with PwC, discusses investment opportunities, and shares insights from experts at the forefront of climate tech, many of whom he has personally interviewed.