Event Summary
Jay Boisseau and Jay Williams are back for their annual discussion of the emerging and maturing technologies poised to have much greater impacts on industry and work, research and education, health, entertainment, transportation, and more in 2023 (and maybe a bit later, but still soon!). As always, they have expert guests, and this year will be joined by Michael Shepherd of Dell Technologies and Nancy Giordano of Big Play Inc. We will quickly share tech highlights of 2022 and then focus on key technologies and trends for 2023+. We will share other tech trends lists, discuss why tracking technologies in fast-changing times is important for innovating and out-competing, and provide guidance on how to get started with some of the technologies in your company, organization, or professional development.
Speakers
Jay Boisseau, Executive Director, Austin Forum on Technology & Society
Marc Hamilton is Vice President of Solutions Architecture and Engineering at NVIDIA, helping to build the world’s leading computing company for the age of AI. Marc’s team works with NVIDIA’s end-user customers, partners, and leading OEMs including Dell to build AI and HPC solutions addressing previously unsolved challenges across a broad range of industries. Marc holds a BS degree in Math and Computer Science from UCLA, an MS degree in Electrical Engineering from USC, and is a graduate of the UCLA Executive Management program.
Hugh Forrest, Chief Programming Officer, SXSW
Hugh Forrest is Chief Programming Officer for SXSW. He oversees content for the SXSW Conference, as well as the Music Festival, Film Festival and EDU aspects of the program. Hugh was named “Austinite of the Year” in 2012 by the Austin Chamber of Commerce and in 2014, he and other SXSW Directors were named Austin Entrepreneurs of the Year by Ernst & Young. He recently received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Kenyon College, his alma mater.
Beyond SXSW, he has served on the National Advisory Board for the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida. He is part of the Board of Directors for Austin Habitat for Humanity and also serves on the Board of Directors for the Austin-based accessibility company Knowbility. Before joining the SXSW team, he founded The Austin Challenger and wrote for several other newspapers and publications.
Nancy Giordano, Founder, Play Big Inc
Nancy built a formidable career at several of the most influential ad agencies in NY, Chicago, and LA and for more than a decade has been the Founder/CEO of Play Big Inc., a strategic inspiration company. Her current work dives deeply into the emerging intersection of tech, business and society. Her expertise and experiences range from A.I., to frozen foods, to reinventing the internet, and all of her projects have a key common denominator: transitioning away from the extractive operating systems and outdated business thinking that no longer holds up... to create the more sustainable, inclusive and dynamic solutions the future demands.
Author of the Amazon bestselling book Leadering: The Ways Visionary Leaders Play Bigger, Nancy is a frequent panelist at South by Southwest, global keynote speaker, Singularity University guest lecturer, and the world’s first TEDx licensee. She is recognized as one of the world’s top female futurists, and is co-Founder of the Femme Futurists Society.
Michael Shepherd, Distinguished Engineer, Dell Technologies
Michael is a Distinguished Engineer and recognized technical evangelist who speaks globally on the impact of emerging technologies. With 25 years of Technology experience backed by 14 years growing up in Asia, he currently leads AI Research and Emerging Tech for Dell Technologies Services. Michael’s responsibilities include engaging with external researchers and collaborating internally across the Chief Technology Offices to envision and drive transformation as we prepare for the Age of AI.
As Augmented Intelligence improves the efficiency by which humans and machines work together, Michael focuses on “the possibilities” with Machine Intelligence and provides a vision for how Data Scientists in Dell Technologies Services can help drive human progress and better outcomes for businesses and humanity. Michael’s experience as a sole proprietor and subsequent 20+ years at Dell in multiple organizations gives him a unique perspective of Dell’s entire product lifecycle. He serves on the MSBA advisory council for the University of Texas McCombs School of Business and has been granted thirteen hardware and software patents in eight countries. When he isn’t consumed by Machine Intelligence, he can be found (or not) hiking with family and friends somewhere off the grid…getting recharged by nature where technology has yet to reach.
Jay Williams, Vice President, Frontier Marketplaces
Jay Williams has been a chief technology officer and consultant to many of the Fortune 500. As a consultant, he has developed a highly refined process for managing a company’s technology infrastructure, including applications, security, and network assets. Jay is a highly sought-after, enterprise systems architect and problem solver. He has advised a number of high-profile technology companies on their products and is known for a rare combination of deep technology expertise, expert problem-solving ability, and business acumen. Jay is widely respected by peers and has influenced many pivotal technology consortia and industry steering groups. He regularly consults with senior technology and business executives and is frequently consulted by venture and capital investors for analyses of new technology strategies.