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Matthew GriffinFounder, President and Futurist, 311 Institute
G7 · G20governments advised
850+keynotes
102countries
17codexes
Future of society sessions forSlovakiaTechSamsungCalifornia Governor's OfficeThe Mentor ProjectBritish Property FederationRWE
Featured inBloombergThe Wall Street JournalThe Telegraph
About this interview
I have to admit I do sometimes have to sit back and pinch myself, after all, it was only a few months ago, comparatively, that the Discovery Channel interviewed me to illicit my opinions on Elon Musk and his vision for the future of transportation, and now, as we wave goodbye to January here I am again being asked to commentate on Richard Branson's future visions. It's a funny old world, but as I say in my interview, criticising people who are trying to make the world a better place, change the status quo and, or, push the boundaries of what's possible is easy, but if more people got off the fence and holstered their poking fingers then we might already have managed to solve some of the world's greatest challenges.
You can find the excerpt of my interview below, happy reading, and let me know what you think, am I right or wrong in my opinion?
311 Intelligence
What this means for your leadership team
Scrutiny is cheap, progress is not.
Matthew's point is that finding fault with ambitious people takes little effort. The harder task is helping the work move forward. Leadership teams can ask whether their own habits reward the first or the second.
Sitting on the fence has a cost.
He argues that more people taking a side might already have solved some of the world's greatest challenges. For an organisation, undecided teams slow down good ideas as surely as open critics do.
Judge visions with evidence.
The same speaker was asked about Elon Musk's vision for transport in an earlier Discovery Channel interview. Bold visions in transport and mobility rely on machines that can see and place themselves, so leaders can check readiness before they pick a side.
Three questions for your next leadership meeting
Do we back bold ideas, or only critique them?
Where is our team sitting on the fence?
What evidence would let us judge a big vision fairly?
The trends and technologies behind this session
From the 311 Starburst, the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit’s map of the technologies and trends shaping the next 50 years.
It is a prompt to review how a team treats ambitious ideas. Matthew's view is that easy criticism holds back progress, and that taking a position helps more than waiting. Leaders can set up ways to test bold proposals rather than dismiss them.
How does Machine Vision relate to this?
The interview does not discuss it directly. It matters because transport visions depend on computers that look at photos and video and understand them. It is rated Act now, at readiness level 9, with wide use dated 2023.
How does Vision-Based Place Recognition Navigation relate to this?
It lets a machine work out where it is by matching what its camera sees to stored maps and photos. That makes it relevant to future transport ideas. It is rated Explore, at readiness level 7, with wide use dated 2032.
How can 311 brief our leadership team on this?
311 offers a private executive briefing or leadership workshop, tailored to your sector. Sessions are held in person first.
Bring this to your leadership teamA private executive briefing or leadership workshop, tailored to your sector. In person first, anywhere in the world.
Analysis by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit, from Matthew Griffin’s session and 311 data.
If Matthew gave this session today
Hundreds of emerging technologies, mapped for industry.
The codex explores hundreds of emerging technologies and their implications for global culture, industry and society, the long-range view that any 2080 infrastructure strategy depends on.
