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Full Speed Ahead | WIRED, UK | Matthew Griffin | WIRED Presenter and Keynote Speaker
The world was already changing rapidly before COVID-19, and post COVID the rate of change is set to accelerate.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2020) 'Full Speed Ahead | WIRED, UK | Matthew Griffin | WIRED Presenter and Keynote Speaker', 311 Institute, 4 July. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/futurist-keynote-uk-full-speed-ahead-wired/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Firstly, I’d like to thank Catherine, Greg, and the team at Condé Nast and WIRED for inviting me to be their keynote speaker which, because of the current Coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19, ended up being moved online and conducted via the now infamous Zoom video conferencing app.
During the presentation, which was appropriately entitled Full Speed Ahead as we look forwards to life after COVID, I did a fast take on how Coronavirus has changed the way people and companies think about the future, and the long tail implications it will have for companies, their industries, their workforces, and their strategic visions from here on in.
One of the most top of mind topics for most executives and leaders around the world at the moment is Work From Home, or WFH for short, especially as it relates to how companies keep their workforces engaged and productive, manage and monitor their mental health and wellbeing, and formulate policy as more employees are offered the opportunity to work from home.
See the keynote
To address some of these challenges during the presentation I demonstrated and discussed a host of new ways that exponential technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Vision, as well as other technologies and tools, can be used to help alert companies to problems and allow them make helpful employee interventions, as and when needed.
Then, after delving into COVID’s legacy I then shone a light on a number of other topic areas including the accelerating rate of innovation, and ergo disruption, as well as the future of jobs and skills – all of which were being changed increasingly rapidly by the emergence of new exponential technologies pre COVID but that now, post COVID, are likely to be supercharged as companies re-design their workforces, accelerate their digital transformation initiatives, and continue to embrace automation in all its various forms.
I hope you enjoy the short video, and if you have any questions or concerns about any of these topics then please feel free to reach out, after all, we’re all in this together.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
The world was already changing rapidly before COVID-19, and post COVID the rate of change is set to accelerate.

About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
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Sources and further reading
- Condé Nast condenast.com
- WIRED wired.co.uk
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 4 July 2020. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2020). Full Speed Ahead | WIRED, UK | Matthew Griffin | WIRED Presenter and Keynote Speaker. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/futurist-keynote-uk-full-speed-ahead-wired/
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