The Greater Memphis Chamber is excited to announce Byron Reese, author of The Fourth Age: Smart Robots, Conscious Computers, and the Future of Humanity, as the first speaker of the Greater Memphis Chamber’s 2020 Thought Leadership Series. Reese will be leading a conversation at the Memphis Botanic Gardens February 25th on how today’s technology can solve many of our biggest global challenges.

 BR Headshot“Technology multiplies human ability. That’s its trick. It magnifies us. We can move more bricks with a fork lift than we can on our back,” Reese said.

“Technological advancement is not to be feared, rather it should be welcomed, for by enhancing human ability, we enhance our productivity and therefore our standard of living. This is the entire reason why we live so much more lavish and prosperous lives than did our great grandparents. An hour of our time is vastly more productive than was an hour of theirs.”

There are the people who hope the future will be better, then there are the people who reason the future will be better, Byron is the second variety. Both a futurist and optimist, Byron believes we are approaching a Fourth Age for humanity that promises to be infinitely better than anything we have seen before. Byron’s book, “The Fourth Age: Smart Robots, Conscious Computers, and the Future of Humanity” was released by Atria, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, on April, 24, 2018. He is also the author of the award-winning “Infinite Progress: How Technology and the Internet Will End Ignorance, Disease, Hunger, Poverty, and War.”

As a part of the Chamber’s UpSkill 901 Workforce Initiative, regional stakeholders from the workforce ecosystem have been convening each month to help establish a path forward for the Memphis workforce of the future.

“As AI and automation technology advances, it’s crucial that we have key players together at the table discussing how we can better prepare our workforce for the jobs of the future,” said Ernest Strickland, Chamber Senior Vice President of Workforce Development.

Reese and his work have been featured in hundreds of news outlets, including New York Times, Washington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today, Reader’s Digest, NPR, and the LA Times Magazine.

To learn more and register for this event click here.