In the 21st Century, says Azeem Azhar, futurist, prize-winning technology analyst, founder of the popular “Exponential View” newsletter and podcast and host of “Exponentially” on Bloomberg TV, it’s critical that leaders anticipate how technology on the fringes will change the world in the not-too-distant future. Understanding the impacts of emerging technologies on business and society isn’t just about becoming familiar with the latest gadgets or artificial intelligence (AI) like generative programsChatGPTandDALL-E.
Thinkers50 included him in their list due to his impact on the analysis of exponential technology growth and its implications for business, the economy, and society.
A former corporate executive and a top advisor to business, government and societal leaders and current Visiting Fellow at the Oxford Martin School and an Executive Fellow at Harvard Business School, Azhar possesses unmatched expertise on exponential technologies – including AI, computing, climate tech and synthetic biology – that are leading the transformation of the world economy, business and society over the next 20 to 30 years.
Having been involved in emerging technologies as a researcher, investor and regulator since the early 1990s, his instant bestseller, “The Exponential Age: How Accelerating Technology is Transforming Business, Politics and Society” (Diversion Books, 2021), lays out a framework for thinking about a future that business and government leaders have no choice but to embrace as they plan forward.
Highly praised by executives at Spotify, LinkedIn and Accenture, as well as by economists and academics alike, “The Exponential Age” was named to best-of lists by the Financial Times, London Times, MIT Technology Review and Harvard Business Review.
A venture capitalist whose tech expertise is highly sought-after by governments, consultancies and financial firms around the world, Azhar has been a senior advisor to Hong Kong’s mass transit authority, MTR, consulted on AI and advanced technologies at Accenture and McKinsey & Co., and he’s advised PwC on climate technologies.
Azeem Azhar is co-chair of the Global Futures Council on Complex Risks at the World Economic Forum, and a contributor to major business and technology publications including the Financial Times and Wired. He served as the Economist’s first-ever internet correspondent and is regularly quoted in the international media.
With so many technologies developing and scaling quickly, leaders need to be able to cut through the noise to focus on which technologies they’ll need to directly contend with. Azhar excels as an executive’s key advisor by providing a methodology for understanding complex technologies, how those technologies will impact an industry or organization, and how leaders can act now to futureproof their companies.
