https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1mwp0uk2cQ&feature=youtube
We discussed science fiction, creative process, social impacts of technology, venture capital investing, and predicting the future. I’ve always been amazed by the busy intersection of speculative fiction, engineering, and policy. There’s a lot of background on Cumulus and The Uncommon Series, the big ideas the stories wrestle with, and the inspirations behind them. I fielded questions on how my work as a technology strategist influences my fiction and vice versa, the counterintuitive commonalities between artists and entrepreneurs, and what to expect from my next novel. It was a fascinating conversation and I was honored to talk through these issues with folks that are literally building the future.
Ann Farmer orchestrated the entire event and I am deeply indebted to her for suggesting it. The Talks at Google program has hosted some of my favorite writers, including folks like Neal Stephenson, George R.R. Martin, and Michael Lewis. But one of the coolest things about the experience was the interviewers. David Allison leads teams and builds products inside Google and previously was the CTO of Nulu and Brightscope. Rick Klau is a partner at Google Ventures (now called gv). Both David and Rick have been dedicated early readers since my very first novel, and have generously helped vet the technologies presented in the books. That meant that we could go deep during the interview, tackling the toughest questions buried in the stories.
Watch it and let me know what you think.