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Future Human, the world-class sci-tech event gone virtual, has revealed a schedule of out-of-this-world speakers and sessions exploring the forefront of science and technology.
All set for attendees from around the world later this month, the Future Human programme is now live with a plethora of international and local leaders in the line-up. Across what should be a lively couple of days, the virtual event will include plenty of opportunities to connect online with interactive breakout sessions also to be announced.
Future Human, the international tech and science event and successor to the award-winning Inspirefest, takes place on the afternoons of Thursday 29 and Friday 30 October. The organisers have today laid out the days’ proceedings so that attendees can start to plan their experience.
Both days kick off at 1pm UTC, to facilitate attendees from across the Atlantic. Main stage events wrap up at 5.30pm, while there will be a variety of breakout sessions available for those looking for a more intimate, interactive experience. There will even be the opportunity to set up your own online meeting rooms and compare notes with friends and fellow attendees.
Silicon Republic CEO and Future Human founder Ann O’Dea will MC the event from a purpose-built live studio in Dublin, while guest chairs will include BBC Northern Ireland’s Dearbhail McDonald, Silicon Republic editor Elaine Burke, author and artist Dr Niamh Shaw, and Silicon Republic deputy editor Jenny Darmody.
Terrific Thursday programme
Thursday kicks off with a musical opening, followed by a look at some remarkable future leaders including the 2020 winners of the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition, Alan O’Sullivan and Cormac Harris; and Technovation World Summit winners, Margaret Akano, Rachael Akano and Joy Njekwe from the Memory Haven team.
After that, we’ll hear from founders and investors with a line-up that includes NearForm founder Cian Ó Maidín, Atlantic Bridge managing partner Elaine Coughlan, Enterprise Ireland CEO Julie Sinnamon, and international entrepreneur, investor and best-selling author Brad Feld.
Paulette Frank from Johnson & Johnson will talk environmental health, and there will be a star-studded future of work session with Slack VP Ali Rayl, Trinity Business School dean Prof Andrew Burke, Jamie Adasi of Greenhouse and Kieran Flanagan of HubSpot.
The day will be rounded off with the highly anticipated keynote from Brittany Kaiser, the Cambridge Analytica whistleblower and founder of Own Your Data, followed by a live Q&A.
Make space for Friday’s phenomenal speakers
Friday will open and close with visits to space, starting with former NASA astronaut and one of the first black American women in space, Joan Higginbotham, in conversation with author and science communicator Dr Niamh Shaw.
Dearbhail McDonald will then bring us back down to Earth for a chat with RTÉ journalist Tony Connelly about the future of Europe. Gartner’s Rob O’Donohue will focus on the importance of neurodivergent talent for CIOs, and Verizon’s Ronan Dunne will look at positive discontinuity for business in the wake of the pandemic.
Later, the future of health session will feature design-thinking pro Lorna Ross on tech-enabled patient-centric healthcare, and NearForm CTO Colm Harte on the technology behind the company’s internationally successful Covid-tracking app.
Science Foundation Ireland’s Dr Ruth Freeman will tackle the future of research funding, before the afternoon moves on to robotics and AI with Dr Conor McGinn of Akara Robotics, Nokia Bell Labs’ Domhnaill Hernon, and some special guests for an important AI launch.
The future of music and the arts will then be tackled by World of Warcraft composer and conductor Eímear Noone, who became the first woman to conduct the Oscars ceremony earlier this year.
Finally, we come full circle back to space with Emmy-award winning Félix Lajeunesse of Felix & Paul Studios, whose cameras have been capturing the International Space Station in 360-degree immersive VR.
As always, there’ll be some last-minute announcements and surprises, so keep your eye on the event website and follow Future Human on Twitter and Instagram for updates.
Future Human is Silicon Republic’s international sci-tech event focusing on the future of work, climate, AI, security, robotics and life sciences. Live from Dublin, streaming to world on 29 and 30 October 2020. General, Executive and Student tickets are available now.
