Why do some leaders, investors, and organizations make better bets than others? Because they have a strategy in place for making sense of the future, says Jonathan Brill. As the Global Futurist at HP, Brill considers the social, economic, political, and technological shifts affecting the market of tomorrow. What impact does the explosion of megacities, the exponential growth of technology, and the rise of an AI-native workforce have on our organizations? With passion and clarity, Brill shows us how to radically innovate our organizational architecture and swiftly respond to the trends shaping the future.
Jonathan Brill advises leadership at HP on the company’s 10-year portfolio of opportunities and threats. Whether it’s human relations, finance, manufacturing, sales, or technology, Brill’s superpower lies in clarifying ambiguous situations in any field. How will automation influence the global supply chain? What are the social costs of the data economy (characterized by businesses such as Uber and AirBnB)? Can we fight climate change and resource shortages with technology? How will peer-to-peer financing challenge banks and venture capital, and what does that mean for the global economy? Brill translates his enormous wealth of knowledge into actionable strategies for any organization to take bigger, smarter risks. As the average lifespan of a company continues to shrink, it’s imperative that we have a system for leaning into ambiguity, measuring predictive indicators, and building mitigation strategies.
Prior to his role at HP, Brill has spent the last two decades building product innovation teams and developing growth pipelines for the US government, prestigious research institute MIT Media Lab, and top-tier brands such as Microsoft and Samsung. He founded the Special Projects Agency, a diverse group of designers, creators, engineers, and scientists, that have created unique experiences ranging from world’s fair pavilions to AI software to IoT devices. Brill is an imaginative thinker who helps companies delight customers at scale. To date, his companies have developed more than 325 products that have generated an astonishing $27 billion dollars in revenue for customers.
Brill is a board advisor at Frost & Sullivan, one of the world’s largest growth strategy firms. He holds several patents for his inventions in display technology, augmented reality, and HVAC. National Geographic and Business Week have both featured his work, and he has contributed to work displayed in New York’s landmark Museum of Modern Art. He has spoken to audiences at Harvard, MIT, TED, TED Women, and Mobile World Congress. Brill graduated from Pratt Institute, a leader in higher education for creative professionals, and has completed extensive executive training at Stanford.