Technology leader. Author. Consciousness researcher.
Vice President of AI & Product Management at Mastercard. Author of Meaning in the Multiverse. Co-founder of Women of the World.
What I Do
Three pillars that drive my work and thinking.
AI & Innovation
Leading AI product strategy at Mastercard. 30+ patents in AI/ML and Open Banking. Building tools that augment human intelligence rather than replace it.
Writing & Ideas
Exploring consciousness, philosophy, and the future of intelligence through books, essays, and the Emergent podcast. Making complex ideas accessible and actionable.
Humanitarian Impact
Co-founded Women of the World in 2010 with wife Samira Harnish. Award-winning refugee services nonprofit recognized with the Americas Nansen Award (UNHCR).
Active Projects
ConsciousGPT
An open research initiative exploring whether large language models can develop functional analogs of consciousness. Rigorous, philosophical, and interdisciplinary.
Emergent
Conversations at the intersection of technology, consciousness, and human flourishing. Guests from AI research, philosophy, neuroscience, and beyond.
Ordinary Illuminated
A Substack exploring the extraordinary within everyday experience. Essays on attention, meaning, technology, and the contemplative life.
Women of the World
An award-winning Salt Lake City-based nonprofit empowering forcibly displaced women to achieve self-reliance and economic success. Raised $5M+.
Speaking Topics
Available for keynotes, panels, and workshops.
- The Conscious Machine — Can AI systems develop functional awareness? What does this mean for society, ethics, and our understanding of mind?
- AI Strategy for the Enterprise — How organizations can move beyond AI hype to build genuine competitive advantage with intelligent products.
- Meaning in the Age of Machines — Exploring purpose, creativity, and human flourishing as artificial intelligence reshapes work and culture.
- The Second Brain — Building personal knowledge systems that augment thinking, creativity, and decision-making.
- Technology & the Contemplative Life — How mindfulness practices and technological innovation can reinforce each other.
- From Patents to Purpose — Bridging deep technical expertise with humanitarian impact and meaningful leadership.