TEDxSeattleLive: Watching TED 2018 "The Age of Amazement"
To introduce TED2018, TED owner Chris Anderson and TED Head of Curation Helen Walters asked the audience to complete a simple task: to turn to someone whom they didn’t know and state what, over the last year, the main emotion is that they’ve felt. In Seattle, the crowd that was gathered at TEDxSeattleLive followed suit. Strangers exchanged quick greetings and with just a few minutes for the exercise began sharing their hope—and fears—from the past year. 
While there was plenty of apprehension in the crowd, there was also hope for what the next year would bring despite an increasingly divisive global culture. Seattle has long been known as a city filled with forward-thinking innovation and passion for change, so it’s no surprise a day full of learning and inspiration was met with such an openness to how an idea can shape the future.
The event screened two different sessions over the course of the day: “Doom. Gloom. Outrage. Uproar.” then “Wow. Just wow.” Between the two sessions, the audience listened to topics ranging from the #MeToo movement by Tracee Ellis Ross, to how artificial intelligence can upheave the job market as we know it today by Kai-Fu Lee.
How traveling at the speed of a bullet will change a region's culture
Hyperloop technology will allow travel at the speed of a commercial jet on the ground. What happens when cities like Seattle and Portland – three hours apart by car – are suddenly a 20-minute pod ride apart?
Charlie Swan, student and Hyperloop proponent, believes the new commuter option could do more than relieve traffic congestion and redistribute housing prices across a region. Swan argues the speed of connection will transform culture and even sense of personal identity for the people along its path. Charlie Swan, co-founder of Pacific Hyperloop, is a senior at the University of Washington pursuing undergraduate degrees in Economics and Entrepreneurship. Out of over 2600 applicants worldwide, Pacific Hyperloop represents the region as 1 of 12 semi-finalists in the Hyperloop One Global Challenge. As head of Regional Engagement & Economic Development at Pacific Hyperloop, Charlie has engaged with organizations across the business and engineering spectrum as well as evaluating the economic and cultural implications of a Seattle to Portland hyperloop route on an urban and regional scale. He routinely communicates about hyperloop to public and private stakeholders, and is navigating partnerships with local industry and policy-makers.
Harnessing the power of civic data to build vibrant cities
Speaker Deep Dhillon introduces us to how data can be an empowering asset for every city.
Deep Dhillon is the chief Technology Officer of Socrata, Inc., a privately-held cloud software company headquartered in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square with offices in Washington, D.C. and London. He is an accomplished technologist with over 18-years of experience conceptualizing, architecting, and deploying multiple advanced networking applications. He specializes in leading startups and growing companies by developing their data science, distributed computing, and search capabilities.
Climbing the Ladder that Matters
Young adults, empowered by greater mobility and technologies than any prior generation, are shaping our world in extraordinary ways.