Technotopia

Mark Hopkins is an IBM Futurist and has been thinking about blockchain and media since both of those things became hot topics. His work spans multiple decades and he's built some amazing tools. In this podcast we talk about the future of blockchain as it relates to media and the importance - and rise - of micropayments.

Blockchain CEO [Ouriel Ohayon](https://twitter.com/OurielOhayon?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor) joins us this week to talk about the future of blockchain and where the bitcoin price is going. He's a thorough and smart thinker so he's well worth a listen.

Felix Van de Maele is the founder of Collibra, a data governance service that maintains data integrity. In this podcast Van de Maele shares his vision of the future of big data.

Twitter isn't new. In the past, people used to share their thoughts and observations in far less high-tech ways but the effects of the new media landscape are still being assessed. Professor and author Lee Humphreys talks about the future - and past - of social media in her new boo The Qualified Self.

Piergiorgio Grossi is the IT head at Ducati and in this episode of Technotopia we look at the decades old company in the context of future transportation systems. It's a great chat.

Fabiano Caruana is a brilliant mind. He's a professional Chess player of world renown and has been thinking about the problems associated with human/computer interaction and augmentation for years. In this podcast we talk about what it feels like to be beaten - and work with - computers that are designed to destroy your chances at winning.

Suraj Patel is an unusual politician - he actually understands tech. He's running for Congress in New York and aims to lead the way in terms of tech and the future. In this wide-ranging conversation we discuss why politicians are so behind and how he aims to help.

One of my favorite writers is Clive Thompson. His work appears in Wired, the New York Times, and BoingBoing and he's working on a book about programmers. I spoke with him about his recent research into the mind of the programmer and how the computing class are the lawyers of the 21st century.

Haydar Haba is a VC and entrepreneur and he's betting big on crypto. In this episode of Technotopia we go deep on his investing strategy and where he sees innovation going next.

Jeff Schmidt runs the [Columbus Collaboratory](http://columbuscollaboratory.com/), a unique think tank dedicated to building security and system solutions for major clients. Jeff and I talked about the future of cybersecurity and where the group was headed.

Amol Sarva has a had a long history with mobile computing. The founder of Virgin Mobile, he went on to build the amazing Peek email device and then went on to found [Knote](https://knote.me). After a few months, he realized that his app was the back end to what humans really wanted - connection. Now he's running thousands of square feet of shared offices and growing daily. I talked to him about the future of work and what it takes to make a truly mobile product.

Osama Hashmi runs the consultancy [Mocha 7](http://mocha7.com) in Seattle and he's seen it all. In this episode of Technotopia we look at problems facing the next generation and, luckily, talk about ways to fix them.

James Murry aka Murr joined us on this unique episode of Technotopia. Murr is the star of TruTV's Impractical Jokers and the author of an amazing thriller coming out this summer. We talk about the future of entertainment and what it takes to make it in the 21st century.

Social media is getting hit hard these days and Falon Fatemi is working on new ways to help us connect without all of the 20th century baggage. In this Technotopia we talk about her company, Node, and how AI will help us meet people.

First, this is a completely SFW episode. Roboticist Gil Weinberg is the father of [Shimon](https://www.shimonrobot.com), an amazing Marimba-playing robot with a head and camera that can make wild music with a live band. In this episode we talk about the future of music robots, what we can expect to see in robotics thanks to his research, and what it would take for a robot to make tunes like Isaac Hayes.

While I realize another podcast about ICOs might be a bit much I had the unique opportunity to sit down with Paul Vigna and Michael Casey to talk about their new book, Truth Machine, and the future of finance. It's a wide-ranging discussion and I hope you enjoy it. There is even a nice Q&A at the end.

Paul Vigna has been writing about crypto for years and his new book, [The Truth Machine](http://amzn.to/2Ho7s2X), focuses on the blockchain, the network that runs the bitcoin network. In this episode of Technotopia we talk about the technology and where it's headed.

Jonathan Zufi obsesses about cool stuff. His latest product, the [LifeClock One,](https://wristwatchreview.com/2018/02/14/escape-from-your-cubicle-with-the-lifeclock-one/) is an obsessive recreation of the LifeClock watch from Escape From New York and his book, [Iconic](iconicbook.com), is a fascinating look at Apple products from beginning to end. In short, he knows a lot about cool stuff. Join us as we talk about design, art, and the future of dystopian fiction.

When investor and entrepreneur Jalak Jobanputra first visited a blockchain conference five years ago she got goosebumps. The experienced investor had heard of cryptocurrencies but now that they had truly come into maturity she was excited. Now, five years later, she's building her entire VC practice around blockchain and sees bright days ahead for the technology. Join us as we talk about the future of blockchain and where she feels the technology is headed.

The PLATO computing system started out as an early educational tool in the early 1960s. The system, which launched well outside of Silicon Valley, captured the hearts and minds of thousands of early hackers and I spoke to Brian Dear, author of [The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture](The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture) about the platform and his deep research into early computing. It's a fascinating discussion.