Born in Stockholm, raised in São Paulo – and having lived and worked around the world – Michell is global by default. Technology futurist, information designer and founder of Envisioning, a technology foresight institute. His work explores the causes and consequences of accelerating change and the effects technology has on society at large. He has given keynote presentations in more than 20 cities worldwide and worked with T-Mobile, LEGO, JWT, as well as the Swiss Army, the Netherlands Ministry of Defence, and the Government of Canada. His freely available information design work has been cited by Wired, Taschen, the Guardian, and Fast Company and been used by hundreds of organisations worldwide.
All sessions by Michell →The world changed on May 11, 1997 when chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov was defeated by IBM's Deep Blue supercomputer. A milestone in artificial intelligence, met by countless others in the subsequent decades.
The story of what Kasparov did in 1998, however, remains mostly untold. Learn about how Centaur chess allows players to play alongside computers instead of against them, and the consequences it has for our decision-making around machine learning today.
During the expert session, Michell Zappa engages the audience through storytelling, interactive discussions, and Mentimeter polls. He introduces the concept of Centaur thinking, where human intuition and machine intelligence collaborate for enhanced decision-making.
Participants explore various industries' applications of this relationship and discuss different types of human-machine symbiosis. Michell emphasizes the importance of maintaining a balanced relationship with technology while recognizing cultural differences in technology usage.
Centaur Thinking, the collaboration between human intuition and machine data analysis, can lead to better results in various industries. By understanding how to leverage both human creativity and technological capabilities, organizations can optimize performance and productivity.
Recognizing various forms of machine-human collaboration, such as mutualistic, parasitic, competitive, or commensal, is essential for prioritizing the most beneficial approach for your organization.
Establishing boundaries with technology and recognizing its impact on decision-making is crucial to prevent burnout and ensure effective use. Additionally, understanding that humans will continue to hold unique value in the era of increasing automation is important.
Michell shares a captivating story titled "The Age of Sun Towers," which highlights the evolution of human-machine collaboration through the lens of IBM's Deep Blue supercomputer defeating world chess champion Garry Kasparov in 1997. Instead of competing against machines, Kasparov decides to collaborate and invent a new form of chess called Centaur Chess.
This innovation combines human and machine intelligence, setting the stage for future collaborative advancements.
Michell explains that this session will focus on concepts related to future literacy - understanding the role the future plays in shaping the present. He terms this relationship between humans and machines as "Centaur," emphasizing collaboration and augmenting our capabilities rather than competition or superiority.
Michell also introduces the importance of differentiating levels of certainty as we venture into the age of Centaur.
The session dives deeper into the concept of human-machine collaboration, exploring examples from various industries and contexts. Michell discusses Centaur thinking - a powerful approach that combines human intuition with data analysis.
While gut feelings remain crucial for success, leveraging data points enhances decision-making and increases capabilities.
Michell provides compelling examples of this collaboration in football coaching, crowd control, and Formula One racing. Football coaches utilize algorithms to analyze game dynamics and player performance, while police leverage data for predictive analysis.
In Formula One racing, different race strategies and sensor input are combined to make informed decisions about the game's outcome.
Michell also discusses how developers can harness the power of this Centaur approach, citing examples such as GitHub's Co-pilot or Amazon's fulfillment centers. In these contexts, human intuition and technological capabilities are seamlessly combined to yield better results.
Centaur thinking extends beyond software engineering, with historical applications like Cancun's location determination based on complex data points that a single human could not process alone. Centaur thinking is about augmenting human abilities with technology for improved performance and productivity.
Michell uses the concept of symbiosis from biology to describe different ways machines and humans can collaborate, such as mutualistic (beneficial), parasitic (resource extraction), competitive, or commensal (living together but not directly affecting each other). Participants are encouraged to consider which type of collaboration suits their organization best.
As the session concludes, Michell emphasizes that a computer is an extension of human capabilities and thinking, providing greater efficiency and enabling us to explore new possibilities. He encourages participants to think beyond what machines can do on their own and focus on how they can be combined with human abilities to create meaningful advancements.
In a normal Teams meeting, yes, and in Zoom or Google Meet just as well. Not in Teams Town Hall or Teams Live Event: those are broadcast formats where the audience cannot be seen or heard, and this session depends on people joining in. If that is the only option you have, tell us and we will host it on our own platform instead.
No prior knowledge is assumed. It is built for a general working audience, and people who already know the subject get the research and the practical side rather than an introduction. What the hour itself covers: The world changed on May 11, 1997 when chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov was defeated by IBM's Deep Blue supercomputer. A milestone in artificial intelligence, met by countless others in the subsequent decades.
Michell Zappa is one of the experts we auditioned ourselves, and we produce every session so we see how each one lands. Participants rate this session 4.0 out of 5, across 90 responses, and rate Michell personally 4.3 out of 5.
It is interactive, and the block higher up on this page says exactly how for this session. Nobody has to speak up who does not want to: the chat and the polls carry most of it, and the questions can come in anonymously.
It runs 45 min / 15 min: the talk, then live questions. All you do is pick a date. We brief Michell, produce the session, host and moderate it, run the Q&A, and send you the report within an hour of the end.
A team, a department, an employee network or every single employee at once, with no cap and no per-seat price. It runs inside your own Microsoft Teams, Zoom or Google Meet, or on a branded page we build. No integration, no login, no company device or e-mail.
The session is delivered in English. You can add high accuracy live subtitles in 8, 16 or 24 languages, so everyone follows in their own. That is a paid option, priced by the number of languages you need.
No, and that is by design. There is nothing to install, nothing to integrate and no connection to your systems, so there is nothing for IT to validate: we join your own Teams, Zoom or Meet as a guest speaker, or we host a page and your people open a link. No software, no accounts, and no data of yours that we can reach. It is why hundreds of companies, among them some of the largest technology and financial firms in the world, were able to start within a day.
We never receive or hold personal data about your employees. Because the session runs in your own environment, attendance and identity stay with you, and what we report back is aggregated: numbers, ratings and survey answers, not people. That is also why IT approval usually takes minutes rather than weeks.
You keep the recording and can share it internally. You also get attendance over time, participant ratings for the content and the speaker, the survey answers, and the topics your people asked for next.
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