JIMMY WALES: Founder, Wikipedia, World's 5th Most Visited Website; Founder, Wikitribune; TIME Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People”

"Jimmy's speech was great and we also received very good feedback from the sponsors doing private events with him... Looking forward to collaborating again in the future."

-World Business Forum

"Jimmy Wales was absolutely WONDERFUL! We loved having him here. He is such a kind and eloquent man. A true pleasure! ... The feedback we've received has been outstanding! Everyone is so impressed by Mr. Wales!"

-Night of Innovation

One of the most sought-after visionaries in business and technology, JIMMY WALES has been in-demand to illuminate the future of tech, helping companies both anticipate disruption and become disruptors, at events as varied as The World Business Forum and Geekpark's 2018 Innovation Festival. Audiences consistently praise Wales’ optimism for the future and masterful ability to break down issues ranging from Artificial Intelligence and automation to trends in new media and the digital economy, with passion, clarity and substance. In the coming months, Wales is set to address some 2,000 attendees at the prestigious Ringling College Town Hall Lecture Series, deliver a keynote on the future of media at the forward-thinking Matter "un-conference", and deliver a keynote on the digital economy and new ways of "work" at a conference in Lisbon. Recently, Wales shed light on "What's Next in Tech?" at the headline-making Digital Innovation Forum (where Wales was also sought-out for an interview), on the future of digital transformation for 2,000 tech business leaders at the Blockchain Institute, and for over 3,000 attendees at Block Show Europe, which resulted in a compelling Business Insider interview.  
DICK COSTOLO: CEO of Twitter (2010-2015); Partner, Index Ventures

"[H]e was a huge success! He was very interesting and spoke to our requested topic of what was the future of technology. He kept our audience very engaged throughout his talk. We, in fact, had attendees lined up at the microphones for Q&A from the start. He interacted well with the attendees asking the questions. I could not have been happier with his day-of performance..."

- Multinational Financial Services Company

"It went really well... His presentation was very good and then the Q&A went really well. The feedback has been great overall. The topic of technology was  a great fit as technology, managing millennials and social media in all aspects is a huge focus for all companies and he spoke to it all very well." 

- CIBC Annual Institutional Investor Conference
Named by TIME as one of the "10 Most Influential U.S. Tech CEOs," DICK COSTOLO is a management expert who in his five years at the helm of Twitter led the social media platform through explosive change, taking it from a private company with 300 staff valued at $3.7bn to a public company with 3,600 employees valued at $23.5bn. Costolo’s dynamic keynotes are chock-full of actionable insights on what it’s like to lead “the fastest growing, most disruptive communications platform in the world” and what it takes to survive in tomorrow’s tech future. Selected to deliver the opening keynote address for hundreds of executives at the Project Management Institute's PMO Symposium, Costolo was recently sought-out for an in-depth interview with Bloomberg and made headlines thanks to his game-changing remarks on how companies can navigate the evolving tech landscape at ICNY 18. 
ADAM BRAUN: New York Times & Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author, The Promise of a Pencil; Founder, Pencils of Promise; Founder, MissionU; Chief Operating Officer, WeGrow

"Compelling. Passionate. Engaging. His story is amazing in and of itself. When he tells it, the hairs on your arms all stand up and your heart skips a beat."

-American Association of Advertising Agencies

"I was left utterly speechless, the best event we've ever had."

-COX Communications

"The feeling was unanimous, the best speaker we've ever had at an offsite."

-Kraft Brands
Celebrated entrepreneur and leader of the for-purpose industry ADAM BRAUN knows how to motivate people to powerful action and organizations who bring him to their events are seeing the difference. Companies like Coca-Cola, Kraft and Great-West Life have all hosted the bestselling author, praising Braun for the positive energy, practical advice and tremendous breadth of entrepreneurial experience he brings to each engagement. Previously Co-Founder & CEO of MissionU, a college alternative named to Fast Company's list of "The World's Most Innovative Companies of 2018" thanks to its disruptive and strategic approach to higher education, and Founder & CEO of Pencils of Promise, the award-winning organization that has built nearly 500 schools around the world, Braun has established himself as a forward-thinking entrepreneur whose bold thinking and effective business strategies make a tangible and meaningful impact. Recently named the Chief Operating Officer at WeWork's WeGrow, a move that made headlines in Fast Company, Braun recently delivered a keynote, The Alpha Effect: How Great Leaders Invest in Others, at the SHIFT Conference, and regularly delivers insights on how even traditional companies can think outside the box and spearhead meaningful and bold innovation.  
APRIL RINNE: Head of the Sharing Economy Working Group, World Economic Forum; Global Authority on the New Economy, Disruptive Innovation and the Future of Work; Advisor for Airbnb, Jobbatical and Trov; Contributor, Quartz at Work

"It went very well. Timely topic, and April was really wonderful to have."

-TD Ameritrade
"April is a true star... April is thoroughly smart, engaging, and authentic – a powerful combination."
 
- University of Colorado at Boulder

Advisor of choice for a range of private and public sector organizations, from Airbnb to the World Economic Forum and  governments worldwide, APRIL RINNE helps audiences see the innovative shifts underway in businesses and startups worldwide.Tailoring her remarks to each audience, Rinne dives into how shifts in labor, business models, and technology will impact businesses across industries and prepares individuals to thrive in an uncertain future and tackle disruption head-on. Rinne is at the 50 yard line of the most cutting-edge workforce and industry innovations, decoding the positive social implications of technologies such as blockchain and artificial intelligence, providing a refreshing-- and not often presented-- perspective. In-demand thanks to her shrewd and actionable insights, in the coming months Rinne is set to deliver a keynote on "Disruptive Innovation and the Future of Work" at the Texas Economic Development Council's Annual Conference, on the new economy for 1,600 attendees at the Gartner Application Strategies & Solutions Summit, and on the sharing economy for hundreds of credit union CEO's and CFO's at Catalyst Corporate Future Forums.  
ABIGAIL POSNER: Head of Strategy, Google's Brand Unit; Thought Leader on Culture, Creativity and the Internet

"[I]t was an incredible pleasure to have [Abigail] here. People really loved her presentation and everyone who had the pleasure of meeting Abigail pointed out what a great and positive person she was… It's been an honor hosting her."

-Oslo Business Forum

"Abby hit it out of the park! She is one of the best presenters I have seen and can bring a room to life very quickly. Our audience of clients and colleagues were engaged throughout."

-Worldwide CEO
A pioneering innovator in marketing and communications, ABIGAIL POSNER'S quest is to spark novel thinking and lead people to take action. At Google, she helps advertisers and marketers make sense of human beings’ deep, emotional relationship to the digital space and convert those insights into strategic and creative efforts. Her keynotes decode the latest digital advances and help audiences unlock the secrets to greater creativity, productivity and growth. Set to deliver a keynote for 2,500 project managers on "Decoding our emotional relationship to digital" at the PMI Global Conference, as well as on "Cracking Creativity" and how technology will change the finance industry at the Women in Public Finance Annual Conference, Posner is in-demand to shed light on the latest advances at the intersection of customer engagement, marketing, and tech. She recently made headlines in Forbes for revealing the future of virtual reality storytelling and how to convert human insights into effective creative efforts.
STEVEN KOTLER: New York Times Bestselling Author of Stealing Fire, The Rise of Superman, Abundance & Bold; International Pioneer in Peak Performance & Innovation; Cofounder & Director of Research for Flow Genome Project

"Wanted to share some of the great feedback we received on Steven’s keynote at the Global CISO Executive Summit! 'Great delivery of Information'; 'Fantastic - inspiring'; 'Discussion flowed well after dinner'; 'AWESOME'; 'Changes the we view flow and how it can change the way we work. Great and powerful concept, interested in learning more.' Thanks again for everything and I hope we can work together again soon!"

-Evanta

"I am on my Steven Kotler high. He was amazing today!"

-Microsoft Corporation

"Steven Kotler's presentation was cutting-edge and utterly engaging. He introduced our audience to a unique set of concepts and perspectives that left participants deeply informed, richly inspired, and with a renewed sense of purpose. I recommend him highly."


- The Superhero You Conference

A revolutionary in the field of human performance, STEVEN KOTLER shows individuals and companies how to level up their game and tap into the latest revolutions in tech, creativity and innovation. Recently, Kotler was sought-out to deliver a keynote on "The Science of Maximizing Human Potential" at Talks at Google. A deep dive into the science of peak performance, Kotler's talk reveals revolutionary insights into the human brain that will allow organizations to innovate like never before, and generate surprising shortcuts for enhancing creativity and performance. Full of practical tips on how to apply the latest research, Kotler takes audiences behind the pages of his latest bestseller Stealing Fire, elected as a Top Shelf Pick and Best Business Book of 2017. Kotler is also in-demand to deliver a keynote at the upcoming Nordic Business Forum on Climbing Mount Bold: How Organizations Can Level Up Their Game Like Never Before for 8,000 business executives, board members, and entrepreneurs, as well as at a major bank's Elite Performance Forum, on hacking flow, peak performance and service engagement. 
DAVID ROWAN: Editor-at-Large and Founding Editor-in-Chief of WIRED UK; Renowned Tech Journalist, The Sunday Times; Author of "The Disruptors: A Wired Editor’s Quest for Non-Bullshit Innovation" (May 2019)

"David did an amazing job... Comments I have received included: 'a very well researched and fact-based presentation'; 'Provided really useful information I have not heard of before'; 'Perfect choice in speakers to end the two day forum: maintained everyone's attention and excitement'; 'David was brilliant. What a great speaker!'"

-APEC

"David was incredible and we’ve had some great feedback already from our analysts and leadership team that were there. We were engaged, inspired and enjoyed every minute of his keynote."

- Accenture

A prolific writer and speaker, DAVID ROWAN deconstructs tech trends in real time—how the Internet of Things, 3D printing, big data, artificial intelligence, and more are changing businesses and consumers. Currently writing a book on how corporations can innovate, Rowan frequently delivers fully customized keynotes that reveal the future of your industry, how companies can transform their values, and how to survive and prosper in a tech future. His new book "The Disruptors: A Wired Editor’s Quest for Non-Bullshit Innovation" will detail his global quest to identify "visionary leaders who have managed to recalibrate their businesses in radical ways to grow and succeed in the digital age" - and shows where he discovered "genuinely exciting innovation ... in places you might not expect". Rowan's keynotes deliver the same kinds of surprising and useful takeaways. Having just addressed 2,500 corporate leaders at the Digital Innovation Forum, in the coming months Rowan will address1,000 attendees at SugarCon 2018, and shed light on "The New Rules of Business" at the 2019 Leading Real Estate Annual Conference. He also recently delivered a slam dunk keynote entitled "Don't fall for fake innovation! Building industries that matter" at Impact CEE, one of the most important events on the future of the digital economy.
As new technologies and workforce trends continue to disrupt existing business models and consumer experiences, organization's across industries are eager to stay ahead of the curve and integreate innovation, creativity and new tech into their business. These HWA Speakers reveal how to do just that; demystifying new advancements and providing actionable strategies for how to be the disruptor rather than the disrupted.