Biography

I am a policy analyst and researcher focused on AI and robotics. I am professor in Education Policy at East China Normal University (ECNU) in Shanghai, China and senior fellow with the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Toronto, Canada. My professional work explores research and practice overlapping technological innovation, public policy, and learning. I also have an interest in global governance and technology regulation. I have written or edited eight books across a range of subjects and I have worked as an advisor to government in Latin America and North America. I write for Forbes, The Brookings Institution, Singularity Hub, Futurism, and The National Post, and have been invited to speak on various news programs including DW and TRT World. I have given talks on my work at a number of universities and research centers including Harvard University, Stanford University, the American Enterprise Institute, the Center for Global Policy Solutions, the University of Toronto, the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, the Canadian Department of National Defence, UC Santa Cruz, and Microsoft Research. I live between Toronto, Canada and Shanghai, China. In addition to speaking and writing, I am also a film producer and screenwriter with a particular interest in science fiction. I am currently developing two sci-fi book series overlapping AI and human evolution. The first series, “Accession,” explores questions of technological excess and the dangers of alien contact. The second series, “Triumvirum,” imagines a future Earth as near-utopia caught between the instinct for power and a religious drive for consciousness evolution.