Pioneering content creator and award-winning AI artist Taryn Southern has worked at the intersection of transformative technology and storytelling for more than a decade. From releasing the world’s first solo pop album composed with AI to directing an award-winning film on the future of human and artificial intelligence, Taryn shares the key lessons for optimizing individual and collective creativity and demonstrates how you can use AI to craft powerful, imaginative stories.

Pioneering content creator Taryn Southern has always had a front row seat to the future. As one of the first content creators on YouTube, she was part of a media revolution that changed every aspect of business and personal life. Since that time, she has broken new ground across AI, blockchain, virtual reality, and neurotechnology. Then in 2019, Taryn found herself facing a series of unexpected life events that challenged her optimism and resilience. In this session, Taryn shares the mind-blowing AI technologies that you can use to inspire creativity, outside-the-box thinking, and personal transformation in your business - and life.

Taryn Southern can tailor her keynote to your organization's unique needs, guiding your team through practical ways to leverage AI for enhanced productivity and well-being. She’ll spend time walking the group through how to apply AI to solve specific challenges you’re currently facing, encouraging innovative thinking and helping shift norms to work smarter, not harder.

Award-winning documentarian and emerging technology anthropologist Taryn Southern has spent the past decade working at the intersection of science and storytelling – and she’s here to tell you the future isn’t what you think…or maybe…it is?

Harnessing the power of machine learning and neural interfaces, concepts such as telepathy, telekinesis, and decoding dreams are no longer the work of science fiction….but real-world possibilities. 

In this highly visual and powerful keynote, Southern offers an anthemic view of today’s most awe-inspiring advancements empowered by neurotechnology and machine learning – and how we can harness the insights from these technologies to unlock our own potential.

Imagine being able to type, create digital art, and operate a robotic arm – with just your thoughts. Long considered the stuff of sci-fi lore, superhuman abilities are now a reality thanks to the real-world magic of implantable brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), which enable direct communication between the human brain and digital devices. 

In this session, Taryn shares the remarkable stories of some of the world’s first real-world superhumans - Nancy, James, and Nathan. Afflicted with paralysis, these early research participants have defied human limitations, restored lost function, and even gained new senses through their mind-bending research. While only a few dozen people globally have been implanted with a BCI, with a surge of investment in neurotechnology and AI, that number is about to multiply. 

What is the future of vision, hearing, learning, and memory? How will BCIs enable new forms of communication, embodiment, and creativity? Should this technology be available to everyone, and perhaps, most importantly, is society ready? 

A pioneering storyteller, anthropologist, and artist, Taryn Southern’s work has long explored the intersection of science, technology, and human potential. Then in 2019, Taryn’s optimistic mindset was suddenly shattered after a series of unexpected life events: a stage 3 cancer diagnosis, a devastating breakup, the loss of her home, and a burglary that left her with little more than a suitcase of clothes. 

Caught between the slippery wheels of life-threatening disease and soul-crushing depression, Taryn embarked on an east-meets-west search for healing that took her to the outer edges of science and spirituality: from breathwork practitioners in northern California to electrifying healers in Bali. Between one stomach-churning medicine – chemotherapy – to another - ayahuasca, an unexpected vision for healing emerged: one that found room for humor, pragmatism, and a little magical thinking. 

Now Chief Storytelling Officer at a leading neurotechnology company, Southern works at the bleeding edge of science. In this session, she shares the story of her unexpected pilgrimage, and how takeaways in ancient wisdom and modern neuroscience can help you find resilience and possibility in the face of extreme uncertainty.

Takeaways:

• How insights from old & new technologies can be used to reduce stress, enhance resilience, and turn pain into purpose
• Navigating uncertainty and fear 
• Why sharing your story is critical for wellbeing