Click the dates below to view the schedule by day. Sessions are listed in Eastern Time.
Subject to change as details are confirmed.
A Program Built for Leaders
EmTech MIT’s agenda is built for those making the business and technology decisions that determine the outcomes of projects, plans, and strategies. We’ve designed the program to offer:
- Cutting-edge tech and trends distilled for impact by our editors
- An early view to critical industry shifts before mainstream adoption
- No hype—only credible insights to help you make proactive decisions
Networking and morning refreshments for our live audience
Technology is reshaping the world at a rapid rate and, for some, has surpassed businesses’ ability to keep pace. Two forces must now be factored into every business decision: AI and climate impact. We examine the in-depth implications, as well as the broader landscape of breakthrough technologies, to understand their impact on strategic business decisions
The wave of innovation on the horizon is intense, potent, and so pervasive it will reshape human existence. As this tech cycle unfurls, there will be the victors and the vanquished, those who seize the reins of this epochal change and those who are swallowed whole. For business leaders, investors, and policymakers, understanding this tech “supercycle” is paramount.
Innovations in electric vehicles are a bellwether for industry and society as we move from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. The transition requires changing attitudes, infrastructure, and technology in a way that benefits the consumer, the producer, and global climate objectives. We explore the delicate balance involved in disruptive, essential change.
Twenty-five years ago, experts believed it would take 100 years for computers to reach human-level intelligence. Ray Kurzweil predicted that we would reach that goal by 2029, and now some others would argue that this may be possible. We take a leap forward to hear Ray’s latest predictions on artificial general intelligence, singularity, and the infinite possibilities of an AI-integrated world.
Networking and refreshments for our live audience.
Exclusive networking opportunity for our Innovation Circle attendees, hosted by Mat Honan, editor in chief at MIT Technology Review.
Explore the profound impact of AI algorithms on social influence and knowledge transfer across education, business, and politics. This session examines how algorithms shape our perceptions, thoughts, and decisions and influence everything from the products we purchase to the way we cast our votes.
As the world faces an increase in climate-related events, there is an urgency among businesses to use technology to drive sustainable solutions. A recent survey revealed that, while 80% of organizations see great significance in technology’s role to achieve their goals, only 37% believe they are making full use of it in their organizations. We explore how technologies such as AI can help companies automate sustainability measurement today, while helping them move toward predictive analytics that assess scope 3 emissions, forecast energy consumption, and anticipate potential risks in the future.
The Internet was supposed to enable large-scale conversation, but this vision has been eroded by fragmentation and toxicity, closing down conversations and exacerbating divides. To solve the problem, we must build back trust, and understand how the nature of trust has changed. Trust in information is no longer determined solely by the authority of its source, but by its authenticity and other heuristics that help situate us relative to "truth". We explore how the latest tech may be leveraged to establish new forms of public trust and conversation and in so doing, lay a firmer foundation for democracy aligned with the original promise of the internet.
Delve into today’s most critical elements of AI development, control, and deployment. As predictive and generative AI weave themselves further into the fabric of our lives, we examine exciting advancements, concerns, and the near-future possibilities brought on by the technology’s ubiquitous presence.
After an incredible debut, generative AI is moving quickly from promise to production. Powering these advances are large language models and their ability to synthesize text, images, and video. We’ll cover what’s going on in Google’s labs, what they're hearing from customers, and what lies ahead in the space -- from the challenges that remain to be solved to the business models that will turn potential into profit.
Explore the cutting-edge convergence of AI and robotics, where intelligent systems enhance robotic capabilities. Discover innovations transforming industries, from manufacturing to health care, and understand the future potential of “the machines.”
We review session highlights with an MIT Sloan School of Management faculty member who breaks down the business impacts and how they can translate into insights that attendees can take home with them and put to work within their own organizations.
Networking and refreshments for our live audience.
The promise of automation is to accelerate the pace of innovation. What used to take months now takes only minutes. But without ideas, there is no innovation. We explore the ideation process and the secret sauce that brings ideas to life.
Characterized by longer-term time frames, “tough tech” is transformative technology that solves the world’s most important challenges through the convergence of breakthrough science, engineering, and leadership. In conjunction with The Engine, an MIT spinoff and startup accelerator, we explore the ideation process that brings long-term tough tech projects to market as economically and efficiently as possible.
Scientific entrepreneurs who begin their work in the lab often find that the most valuable lessons they learn come from testing their product out in the real world. We’ll talk with our entrepreneurs about what it took to set up their first field trial or build their first pilot facility, and what lessons they took from that experience.
Uncover the unique challenges faced by intrapreneurs incubating ideas within large enterprises. This session explores the how-tos for fostering innovation, overcoming corporate inertia, and leveraging your organization’s resources to transform visionary concepts into reality within the walls of established organizations.
In January 1899, The Technology Review was born on the campus of MIT with a singular mission: to be a clearing house of information and thought. From that first edition to today, MIT Technology's Review's journalism has been inspired by the ethos of MIT - generating, disseminating, and preserving knowledge and collaborating on the world's greatest challenges. Join us for a special networking reception at the MIT Museum, celebrating MIT Technology Review's 125th anniversary.
Networking and morning refreshments for our live audience
Tour the MIT campus with an alumna and member of our editorial team.
Embark on a journey into the realms of AI, climate, computing, and biotechnology research within MIT classrooms. This session offers a glimpse into the cutting-edge research and innovations poised to shape our future. Join us to explore the seeds of tomorrow's breakthroughs, planted today in the halls of MIT.
*This on-site, in-class experience is available only to in-person attendees
Join us for this special opening session in the MIT classroom with Ian Waitz, vice president for research at MIT. As corporations increasingly invest in R&D, we examine the changing relationship between academic and industry research. Is it better to publish or to profit? Should knowledge be open-sourced or private? We explore these big questions and get an insider’s look at the goings on in the labs of MIT.
The impact of nanotechnology on society has been compared to the invention of electricity or plastic — it is transformative to nearly everything we use today, from stronger golf clubs and stain-resistant pants to more efficient microchips and new treatments for cancer. We put the world of nanotechnology under a microscope and explore the material breakthroughs transforming business in a big way.
The MIT Climate & Sustainability Consortium is a new kind of academia industry collaboration, working together to accelerate the implementation of large-scale, real-world solutions, across sectors, to help meet global climate and sustainability challenges. It aims to lay the groundwork for one critical aspect of MIT’s continued and intensified commitment to climate: helping large companies usher in, adapt to, and prosper in a decarbonized world.
Networking and refreshments for our live audience.
A short conversation about what businesses are doing that is successful in combating climate change and what cost-effective, productive implementation looks like
A decarbonized transportation system is a necessary pre-requisite for a sustainable economy. In the transportation industry, the road to electrification and greater technology adoption can also increase business bottom lines and reduce downstream costs to tax payers. Focusing on early adopters such as first responders, local municipalities, and small business owners, we'll discuss common misconceptions, barriers to adoption, implementation strategies, and how these insights carry over into wide-spread adoption of emerging technology and electric vehicles.
Moore's Law may be slowing, but innovation is surging. Dive into cutting-edge computing architectures that are pushing performance boundaries and opening doors to exciting new applications and ways of interacting with technology.
Quantum computers hope to excel at solving problems that are too large, complex, or cumbersome for even the most powerful supercomputers, but many hurdles remain before they can be reliably put to commercial use. We explore the future expectations as well as the challenges, the stakes, the rewards, and most importantly the timelines of useful quantum computing.
Get an inside look at the future of minimally invasive brain-computer interfaces that enable humans to use their thoughts to control digital devices. As research advances, we look at early results and the issues raised by the development of these new technologies. Where are the ethical lines being drawn? What are the limitations and what are the realistic expectations of this new digital interface?
New green policies and shifting consumer demands are forcing businesses to find more sustainable ways of delivering products and services. The new green economy will be built on renewable-energy innovations and climate-tech infrastructure that solves for sustainability and economic growth.
One Boston Wharf will be the largest net-zero-carbon office building in Boston at the time of its completion in 2024. This remarkable achievement will reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 90% below code requirements and eliminate 5.1 million pounds of CO2 emissions annually. We deconstruct this project to examine all of the interconnected innovations forming the new foundations of modern construction.
Networking and refreshments for our live audience.
Private lab tour at the MIT Media Lab, available to Innovation Circle attendees only.
Gain insights from real-life case studies from those at the forefront of technology-driven change. This session shares firsthand experiences from individuals and organizations navigating the rapid pace of innovation in real time. Learn how they adapt, overcome challenges, and harness new technologies to drive progress.
The paradox of the connected world is that we have more ways to reach people but it’s becoming harder to connect with them. With the fractions of attention brands can now hope to get online, AI driven marketing holds the potential to redefine how we create awareness, deepen desire, and illicit action from consumers. We explore AI’s ever-increasing role in building brand relationships with consumers.
Intellectual property is a multi-trillion-dollar asset class stuck in an antiquated legal system that makes it illiquid and inaccessible. Given the intangible nature of intellectual property, capturing ownership and defining usage rights has always been tedious, and today this system is breaking under the load of AI generated media. Programmable, blockchain-based, licensing offers a potential solution that allows creators to license and control their creative IP. Will it work?
The struggle to balance innovation and experimentation with safe and practical applications is a challenge. Is it better to optimize productivity by fitting AI into their existing processes? Or to focus on brand new ways of working, like using autonomous agents to free workers for higher-level tasks? This session shares a strategic yet practical vision for this moment where people, data, and AI are coming together and how leaders can accelerate their business and scale performance.