2008 Singularity Summit: Stellar Lineup

Among many others, I'm incredibly excited about the upcoming 2008 Singularity Summit. This year's theme is Opportunity, Risk, Leadership -- and the speaker lineup, of course, does not disappoint. It includes:

* Vernor Vinge, science fiction author, mathematician and computer scientist
* Esther Dyson, entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist extraordinaire
* Justin Rattner, Intel VP and CTO
* Peter Diamandis, X PRIZE founder and CEO
* Nova Spivack, CEO of Radar Networks and creator of Twine
* Pete Estep, Cofounder and CSO, Intellispace

Previous speakers also featured this year include Ray Kurzweil, Ben Goertzel (if you happen upon him, be ready for a mind-bending conversation with Ben), and Peter Thiel. The full list of speakers may be found here.

For those unfamiliar, some background:

Each year, the Singularity Summit attracts a unique audience to the Bay Area, with visionaries from business, science, technology, philanthropy, the arts, and more. Participants learn where humanity is headed, meet the people leading the way, and leave inspired to create a better future. "The Singularity Summit is the premier conference on the Singularity," Kurzweil said. "As we get closer to the Singularity, each year's conference is better than the last."

The Summit was founded in 2006 by long-term philanthropy executive Tyler Emerson, inventor Ray Kurzweil, and investor Peter Thiel. Its purpose is to bring together and build a visionary community to further dialogue and action on complex, long-term issues that may transform the world.

I attended last year's Summit, and plan to attend this year's as well. Of the intellectually engaging, thought-driven conferences, summits and gatherings in which I've participated over the years, the Singularity Summit sits atop the list.

Best reason for attending? As I tweeted back in July:

You deserve a day to have your mind blown.

Details: October 25, 2008; San Jose, CA. Register here. Blog is here. See you there.