Session overview

Come join us and fellow DIN members for our Spring future tech briefing with Danny Forston, West Coast correspondent of the Sunday Times.

Danny is recognised as one of the foremost speakers on tech and its implications on people, society and business. A long time Silicon Valley insider he can cut through the hype and distil down into an understandable way how tech will impact on you and your organisation. If you think the microcosm of Silicon Valley won’t impact you then think again as it probably already is. From AI, to business ethics, and autonomous robots some of this technology will reach its way into your future strategies.

Twice a year Danny will present an exclusive briefing for DIN members to help you make sense of the rapidly changing world of technology.

Areas we will look to cover include:

1. A brief overview of Silicon Valley, what it is, why it has such a knack for invention (for better and worse), and how is it that 7 of the 8 most valuable companies on the planet are all based on the West coast.

2. AI: what it is, what it isn’t, and why this year will be the most impactful and disruptive yet. Two years removed from the ChatGPT moment - and after much experimentation and huge leaps in AI capabilities - companies are starting to implement AI, actually replace humans with machines, and building new organisations from the ground up with AI at its core. WIll this be the year of the first 1-person, $1bn company?

3. The agents are coming. One of the biggest breakthroughs that happens this year will be ChatGPT and its ilk jumping out of the search box. New “Agents” will be freed to operate computers on their own - on your behalf. They will buy you groceries, book you a taxi, help plan a trip, by taking control of the mouse and doing actions in the background. This ability to move beyond the AI website search boxes will have huge implications. By the end of 2026, there will be more AI’s on the web than humans.

4. Space: the dawn of the private space industry, powered by SpaceX and now the arrival of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, will be profound for the planet. This will show up in cheap, high-speed web access around the globe, bringing online the third of the planet that is still Internet dark And that is before we even talk about asteroid mining, space hotels, and all the other wild ideas enabled by super-cheap launch costs.

5. What do we do? In an age where AI is also cheap and ubiquitous - like electricity - what do we humans do? There will be immense abundance - imagine a new country of geniuses we are able to turn to any task - but there will also be huge disruption of current industries as we know them.(Not got answers here yet, but working on it!).

6. And much more!

About our speaker

Danny Fortson is the West Coast correspondent for The Sunday Times and a true expert on Inside Silicon Valley. Before returning to the San Francisco Bay Area to cover the technology industry in 2016, he spent 13 years in London, where he covered everything from tech to airlines, financial services, defence, oil and gas and mining.

He has reported from more than 25 countries in Africa, Asia, South America and Europe, and has been recognised by The Society of Editors as one of Britain’s top tech journalists every year since 2017.

He conceived, reported, wrote and narrated an 8-part audio documentary called Tales of Silicon Valley, which was commended by the British Podcast Awards, and also hosts a weekly chat show called Danny in the Valley, where he interviews technology founders, investors and executives.

His column Tech Talk can be found every weekend in The Sunday Times, and has appeared as a guest commentator on the BBC and CNBC.

Who should attend?

Any leader wanting to understand the global advances in technology and how it will impact society, business and how you plan your future corporate strategies will benefit from attending this session with Danny. Including, CEOs, board members, Directors and leads on people, tech and transformation.

Attendance at this session is free as it is included in your DIN subscription