TORONTO – October 22, 2018 – Canada is home to some of the best and the brightest minds in technology and impact, and SingularityU Canada is proud to announce that eight of them are joining as faculty members.
“When it comes to technology and innovation, Canada is thriving, and I am thrilled to see that the Canadian community is growing,” said Oren Berkovich, President & CEO of SingularityU Canada. “Our new faculty bring diverse perspectives, and their passion and dedication is really inspiring.”
With highly diverse backgrounds, SingularityU Canada’s new faculty will become part of a Canadian community that uses exponential technologies to tackle the world’s biggest challenges. They bring expertise in areas including blockchain, cleantech and autonomous vehicles.
- Dr. Irwin Adam, Future of Food Faculty. Dr. Adam is the Founder and Creative Scientific Director of Future Food Studio. A creative scientist and food futurist, Dr. Adam combines a background in engineering, biology, and technology with his passions for eating and design. He creates defining multi-sensorial food experiences such as products, new technologies, immersive dining installations, and interactive workshops. Dr. Adam brings his energy and creativity to exploring the future of food, encouraging us to think more critically about how we experience food.
- Anuj Chandarana, Future of Work Faculty. Anuj works in People Operations, Strategy & Effectiveness, Senior Manager at Google. With the job market rapidly changing and the future of work largely unknown, Anuj brings his leadership and analytical skills to this area. At Google, Anuj and his team use the latest academic and scientific research in order to “maximize the health, happiness and productivity” of Google employees.
- Neil Desai, Governance and Security Faculty. As Vice-President at Magnet Forensics, Neil leads strategic engagement with leaders from policing, national security and government agencies to support their digital transformations in the realm of cyber-investigations. Neil has worked for the Government of Canada in senior roles at both Global Affairs Canada and the Prime Minister’s Office. He was named one of the top Canadians influencing Canadian foreign policy by Embassy Magazine.
- Dr. Philip Edgcumbe, Exponential Medicine Faculty. Dr. Edgcumbe connects medicine, biomedical research and entrepreneurship. He led a team which developed a crowdsourcing competition to End Alzheimer’s, and was selected as the top priority XPRIZE. He is currently an Md/PhD Candidate at the University of British Columbia, and Innovator-in-Residence at the Canadian Medical Association. A passionate scientist and doctor-in training, Philip strives to positively impact the health of a billion people.
- Ryan Gariepy, Robotics Faculty. Along with three other University of Waterloo Mechatronics Engineering grads, Ryan formed Clearpath Robotics in 2009, where he is Chief Technology Officer. In his current role, Ryan drives research and development of the OTTO industrial self-driving vehicle software and guides the expansion of Clearpath’s world-leading efforts in supporting robotics researchers. He is an avid speaker in the robotics community and is a Board Member on the Open Source Robotics Foundation.
- Dr. Maria Cynthia Goh, Nanotech Faculty. Dr. Goh is a Professor of Chemistry, and Founder and Director of the Impact Centre at the University of Toronto. An entrepreneur, researcher and educator, Dr. Goh is passionate about the translation of scientific discovery to technology/products that benefit society. Her research group has led to seven science-based companies, which she co-founded with her students, including Axela Inc. and Vive Crop Protection.
- Jane Kearns, Cleantech Faculty. Jane is a senior advisor with MaRS Cleantech. She is a recognized leader in sustainable innovation and has extensive experience growing successful companies at the intersection of business and sustainability. She co-founded, grew and profitably sold a full-service renewable energy company, and leverages over 20 years of experience in venture capital, cleantech and sustainability to help build businesses that matter.ng women in deep technology sectors the opportunity to build businesses.
- Matthew Spoke, Blockchain Faculty. CEO and Co-Founder of Nuco. With a background as a CPA, Matt has spent several years working exclusively in the blockchain space. He founded Deloitte’s first blockchain team, Rubix. He is the Founder of Aion, a world-leading blockchain protocol, which is designed to solve the most pressing challenges that are limiting blockchain’s mainstream adoption: Scalability, interoperability and governance. An energetic speaker and storyteller, Matthew shares the significance of this revolutionary and widely used technology.
Current Canadian faculty members are Anne Connelly (Blockchain Faculty), Dr. Suzanne Gildert (AI/Robotics Faculty), and Dr. Sonny Kohli (Exponential Medicine Faculty).
The new Canadian contingent is joining a global faculty comprising more than 150 thought leaders. They participate in speaking engagements around the globe, educating others and helping them develop an exponential mindset. Faculty members may be booked to speak at events.
About SingularityU Canada
SingularityU Canada is a not-for-profit organisation committed to inspiring and enabling more Canadians to think BIG, take risks, and drive global impact. We are a grass-roots movement of passionate individuals and forward-thinking Canadian organisations that came together to catalyse a pan-Canadian community of thinkers and doers. SingularityU Canada was born of uncommon partnerships across communities, governments, and sectors, each of which wishes to have strategic conversations about their collective future and ensure that Canada plays a global role in shaping the way we all live and work.
Building the Canadian platform of Singularity University was made possible when a grassroots movement of Canadian Singularity University alumni brought together a visionary group of founding members including ATB, BMO, CIBC, Canadian Medical Association, CN, Deloitte, FairVentures, Goodmans LLP, Google, the Government of Ontario, KPMG, RBC, Rogers Communications, Scotiabank, Suncor, TMX and TD Bank Group. Together this initial group is on a mission to share SU’s exponential mindset and bold thinking with Canadians from coast to coast to coast.
The group is working closely with leading-edge innovation hubs, academic institutions, and NGOs across the country to create a pan-Canadian network of partners who wish to come together and discuss Canada’s role in shaping our collective future.
About Singularity University
Singularity University (SU) is a global learning and innovation community using exponential technologies to tackle the world’s biggest challenges and build a better future for all. SU’s collaborative platform empowers individuals and organizations across the globe to learn, connect, and innovate breakthrough solutions using accelerating technologies like artificial intelligence, robotics, and digital biology. A certified benefit corporation headquartered at NASA Research Park in Silicon Valley, SU was founded in 2008 by renowned innovators Ray Kurzweil and Peter H. Diamandis with program funding from leading organizations including Google, Deloitte, and UNICEF. To learn more, visit SU.org, join us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter @SingularityU, and download the SU App
