BT's Former CTO & Expert Technologist

Peter Cochrane is a British technologist, futurist and innovation expert, and is the former Chief BT Technologist. With over forty years of experience, Peter has worked with software, hardware, programming, and adaptive system design and operations, and acts as an engineering and development consultant for some of the biggest brands across four continents. He has played an integral role in the development of some of the most important digital technology of today, such as Ecommerce, mobile networks and optical fibre.

However, this leading technologist has worked hard to earn his place amongst the heavyweights of the technology industry, from his humble beginnings digging ditches for The Post Office. It was during this time however that he gained an interest in technology, and joined college to study the industry. He gained a PhD in technology development, and was appointed as the University of Bristol’s first professor of science and technology. He joined the British telecoms giant BT as a base level of lineman, but with his managerial skills and tech expertise, quickly worked his way up to R and D engineer, and then onto CTO.

With his experience in managerial roles and consultancy, and expansive expertise in engineering, Peter has also released several books on futurism, market longevity and the development of artificial life and mobility. He states that his primary focus has always been and remains the solving of problems and creating wealth through new technologies and business ventures, and has an interest in the development of artificial life. Through this, he is exploring the future of healthcare and the development of medical and life-support technology as well as being actively involved in a number of startups.

Most recently Peter has been sharing his expertise in the media, producing regular columns and blogs for the Economist, Daily Telegraph, Financial Times and WIRED. Additionally, he is on the board of innovators known as TTI/ Vanguard and has been appointed as a member of the scientific advisory committee at the Qatar Computing Research Institue. As a speaker, Peter covers a wide range of topics from ‘managing in a chaotic world’ to ‘why strategic decision making goes wrong’ and all aspects of modern technology and big data. As a pioneer in his field, Peter has facilitated a cybersecurity conference for the US defence community.

How to hire Peter Cochrane

Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Peter Cochrane for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.

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Peter Cochrane's official speaking topics are listed below:

Artificial Intelligence - Today and Tomorrow:

How AI works and what it can do today
Why we need AI and projected capabilities
Threats, promises, and why all our futures depend on AI
The impact on industry, society, government, ecology and sustainability

Quantum Computing - Reality Check:

There is much more to QC than Qbits!
QC is analogue and not digital, it is probabilistic
QCs will not replace our existing digital computers
QC cannot decode every encrypted message instantaneously
Without QC we will never understand chemistry, biology, life, ecologies or economics
Exceeding 50 stable Qbits would see QCs profoundly impacting every aspect of life on our planet

Cyber Security - Thinking Like The Enemy:

There is far more to cyber security than technology
Every successful attack starts with human fallibility and failure
The Dark Side is an integrated business venture on a global scale
Operating as individually isolated organisations means we can only lose
Integrating the information and resources across sectors and countries is essential
The projected ‘business earnings of The Dark Side will be >5x the GDP of the UK by 2030

How to Build a Truth Engine

Fake News and Propaganda are the biggest threat to humanity
If societies lose sight of the truth and reality then they are doomed to fail
Accurately detecting Fake News and Propaganda has largely been demonstrated
With >170 global Fact Checkers, AI, and historical trend analysers we have the key tools
We now need a global effort to police and neutralise the sources of Fake information
But the ignorance of populations/ease of manipulation is probably an even bigger problem!

Sustainability - It’s About Time:

The full scale of the problems now facing humanity exceeds our comprehension
The world is no longer linear and stable- complexity and instability are now the norm
Changing all the lightbulbs and polishing existing technologies/industries is not enough
Sustainability demands new materials/industrial processes and near loss-free recycling
Today’s management, political and economic systems are fundamentally unable to deliver
In this battle for survival; AI, Robotics, The IoT and New Materials are the key elements

"Great presentation - very thought provoking and entertaining." - Microsoft